Fleetwood Mac "Rumors" album on record player. Image by Sophia Dutton-Rodkin
What does it mean to have a diverse musical palate? Does it mean liking many artists in one genre? Many genres but few artists? Many similar genres? A few wildly different ones? As someone who loves exploring different genres, I don’t think there is a “right” answer.
Everyone is allowed to like whatever they like. There is no right or wrong answer to the question: What is good music?
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” – Margaret Wolff Hungerford.
A less literal paraphrase might be along the lines of: “Good music is in the heart of the listener.” Everyone has different upbringings and experiences and tastes. There might be some music that is objectively bad but if someone likes it there has to be a reason behind it. Maybe they are noticing something others aren’t.
Having a diverse music taste is important. Not only is it important to help make connections with people and create relationships, but I believe it is important to an individual and make them unique. If every Tom, Dick, and Harry had the same three favorite artists and five favourite songs, there wouldn’t be much to talk about pretty quickly.
Having a diverse music taste is especially important for musicians. Many musicians tend to take what they love to listen to and incorporate it into their own work. This isn’t always an intentional thing either. Sometimes there is a natural instinct to have a certain style. I have been told repeatedly that my singing and songwriting style sounds like an artist I’ve never listened to before. On the other hand, a friend of mine is a very big grunge fan and has a voice that could easily be mistaken for Kurt Cobain.
Vinyl Records. Image provided by Unsplash, lincensed CC0 1.0 Universal.
I can’t speak for everyone but I tend to have moods where only a certain style, genre or song will scratch the itch in my head. As an example, I tend to really like alternative rock, indie, and grunge music but sometimes I just need to listen to Dutch or Russian rave music like Joost Klein (explicit content warning) or Lida (explicit content warning). Sometimes I need my bbno$ fix (explicit content warning). While Public Theatre might be one of my favorite alternative rock bands or Alice in Chains (explicit content warning) might be one of my favorite grunge bands, it is important to be able to have a variety.
In my own music, I find that I take aspects from different genres and toy around with them. Most of my songs tend to be in a typical grunge or alternative rock format with guitar, bass, drums, and vocals. But every so often, I like to toy around with synthesizer sounds, brass instruments, acoustic upright bass, and piano.
There is nothing wrong with liking what you like. There is no reason you shouldn’t listen to the same album over and over if it brings you joy. I just think that there is a whole world full of different sounds that can bring one just as much joy.
The “end of an era” is what Atlanta-based rap duo EarthGang tweeted in reference to their performance at month’s Dreamville festival. Dreamville, held annually at Raleigh’s Dorothea Dix Park, has come to a close, at least in its current form. Considering this, many are wondering what is next for live music in the Triangle.
12 week old puppy (Daphne) sleeping on lap of piano player. Image by Sophia Dutton-Rodkin
Any musician worth their salt could say with full confidence that practice is the cornerstone of success. Practice at home, in the dorms, in the practice rooms and even in between classes. While your roommates might think you’re strange, it doesn’t matter if you aren’t disturbing anyone. In my case, the one most affected by my practice would be my lovely lady, Daphne. She’s an Australian cattle dog mix and she both loves and hates when I play music.
