Notes From A Bass Guru (Vol. 26, Jan. 13) "Plato and Arts"

Notes From A Bass Guru (Vol 26., Jan. 13)

Plato on Arts

I was reading Plato's “Gorgias” recently, and what started as a political commentary in which Socrates really tears into a few politicians, eventually turned into a critique of what art and sciences really are and how they apply to the mind and body. He begins by disagreeing on their ways of persuading the unknowing masses of things they are ignorant of just for the sake of convincing them to believe anything they say, thus gaining personal power. This sounded to me to be extremely relevant to the modern music industry!

Plato says that anything done for purposes of pandering (merely for pleasing others) disqualifies it as an art, as it will then be done for purposes of pleasure and not for the sake of art itself. Art is something that exists on a higher plain than pleasure. Also, true art can never lead to anything bad while pleasure (as Aristotle will put it for several chapters in “The Nicomachean Ethics”) is one of the most dangerous drives of the psyche in terms of morality. This is because pleasure in its own nature strives only to fulfill itself, whether the source of fulfillment is ethical or not. Pandering, then, is not ethical as it depends completely on the pleasure of masses and not on the higher facets of art itself.

I've heard it said that pop should stand for “pandering on purpose”. When I read the dialogue between Socrates and a politician named Gorgias, Gorgias admitted that while giving speeches (which pander to the masses he is giving them to) it only matters that he can convince them of anything he is trying to say, and that it helps him further if they are ignorant of the topic at hand. He says that educated, professional masses would be tougher to convince of things than an unknowing mass. Finally, he admits to Socrates that his speeches have nothing to do with knowledge, and everything to do with convincing! Socrates ends saying that it is better to TEACH (true knowledge is involved in teaching) than to convince.

This made me think of the music industry! Gorgias seems to be a good representative of every major record industry mogul out there today! The more of the masses that are pleased with the song he is trying to sell, the more sales he will make. Which is why the industry produces formulaic songs now for capital gains and not for art's sake! Plato, just now, has shown me that the entire modern pop industry is NOT an art, it is something far less! Art is to be done for art's sake, which means music should be done for music's sake! It is every musician's higher moral duty to only create music out of love and for music's sake, never to convince less musically educated masses that this is music for purposes of taking their money. (And the industry wonders why musically educated people/real musicians dislike their products?!!?!)

Always remember: “Art for art's sake!” Music is not to be used for convincing everyone to buy it, but it should be made out of love, for it's own sake. The people understand that language too, pandering isn't necessary.

Platonically yours,

Mark McAnaney (composer/bassist)