Monday, March 1, 2010

Frith Response

Within the article, Frith seems to argue the idea that music and identity are closely intertwined. One cannot exist without the other. Frith also claims that by choosing the music we listen to we are forming our identity. He supports these ideas with two details: identity is mobile, a fluid entity constantly changing and unstable; musical encounters are the experiences of a continuing identity. Music shapes the becoming of our identity. By listening to music we are forming our identities. Identity and music are striking similar in a sense that they both are constantly changing. Music is a way in which we are able to outwardly express our identity, but it also forms our identity. In the article, Frith is able to draw the connection between music and identity in a new and unique way for me by saying that although they are two different things, one cannot stand without the other.
Frith complains that people often think music is a manifestation or expression of both those who create it and those who listen to it. He (Frith) claims that neither of this are true. Instead, he argues that music is a tool use to aid in the becoming of a person’s identity. I completely agree with him in this aspect. People often think that by listening to a certain type of music that you can automatically discover someone’s identity. For example, if a person listens to EMO music, most would immediately think that they are depressed and socially awkward. But the music that a person listens to is not an demonstration. It is not the sole definition of all the attribute that a person possesses. Although this music shapes the identity of the person listening to it, it is only one aspect of something that is constantly changing.

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