Why no great musicians today?

@youless (112091)
Guangzhou, China
August 17, 2010 10:04am CST
I wonder why today there are not great musicians like Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt and so on. Although we can have some excellent musicians today, but why none of them can create a masterpiece like the past musicians? They can only repeat to play their masterpieces only. But the creation is important and why we don't have any pieces to compare to the classical music?
12 responses
• India
17 Aug 10
That's true. There are no 'legends' today as they were before. And I agree with grayxenon too, that quality music is tending to dissappear due to commercialisation. But I don't agree that there are no great musicians today. Actually, there are. The only problem is they don't come into focus due to the bad taste of todays listeners. So, there are hidden gems even today! All we need to do is find them which is a very difficult job. But if you are really fond of music, you will certainly find them. Lastly, I wish to say one thing, "It's our responsibility to create legends in todays world, and we can do this by becoming legends ourselves". Hope this helps! Happy mylotting!
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
18 Aug 10
Perhaps like the past great musicians, they became famous after they were gone, sighing...
• India
19 Aug 10
No, fame is not everything when it comes to quality music. I mean, there are several good musicians producing quality music but not getting famous. They just don't get what they deserve.
@Lemonata (33)
• Estonia
17 Aug 10
It's not that there aren't great musicians, just the times have changed. In the past there weren't many genres like there are today, that's why the land of music is a lot bigger now. Sure you can compare - there are a lot of composers nowadays who create classical music. And, by the way, most of the classical composers known today weren't very popular during the time they lived.
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
17 Aug 10
I just know the popular modern music composers but I do not know the classical music style composers for today. Perhaps I am not a musician and therefore I am ignorant here
• Estonia
17 Aug 10
You definitely do not have to be a musician for that :). I'm not saying you HAVE to know any, just telling you they excist.
1 person likes this
• China
18 Aug 10
Well,those classic music is just past popular music.Time has changed a lot,so musical styles have developed with the time.
@grayxenon (1313)
• Philippines
17 Aug 10
Because popular music is not just about music now a days, it is how you can sell cds and albums buy having gorgeous smile, sexy body and charisma. The music industry has been so commercialize, money plays a big factor and sometimes artistry is compromised,.
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
17 Aug 10
Perhaps popular music is much more popular than the classical one?
• United States
17 Aug 10
It is more popular, and why kids will be bored if they listen to long music.
1 person likes this
• China
18 Aug 10
But when I heard some classic music,I really felt serene and peaceful in my heart and I exactly get enjoyed from these music.I don't like bubblegum at all,especially their childish and pointless lyrics.Maybe they are very popular today,but tell will tell in the future.
• China
18 Aug 10
Well,I don't think so with your opinion.There are still many talented musicians today,maybe they are not classic music composer(sorry ,I don't know well in the domain of classic music),but they still have created quite a lot creative and soundful masterpieces.For example,Joe Hisaishi from Japan(I admire him very very much),James Last from Germany and very proverbial British composer Andrew Lloyd Webber.So certainly it is not the fact that talented composers don't exist today,just because music industry has become more in its diversity to suit our life today.
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
19 Aug 10
I know Joe Hisaishi and his music is great. Many movies use his music as the background music.
• China
19 Aug 10
Haha,yeah,especially quite a lot cartoon movies of Miyazaki Hayao.They really cooperate with each other perfectly.
1 person likes this
@qianyun6 (2067)
• China
18 Aug 10
Reason #1: We have a history of five thousand years, how many Beethoven-level musicians can you list? So it's normal that we don't have such great musicians in a period of several decades which you call it "today". Reason #2: It takes time for people to accept a kind of act (including music), like Picasso's painting. Maybe several nowaday musician's composition will be pursued and admired by our posterity and he/she will be considered as great musician that time. Reason #3: More or less, humans has the prejudice of the more ancient, the better, especially in the field of art, literature and music. We tend to refuse new compositions.
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
18 Aug 10
I appreciate to your explanations
• China
18 Aug 10
Your third argument is very very correct.People always think that the ancient compositions are the best,just to show their false graceful and good taste with art.Probably they think that they will never be condemned if they glorify those classic past compositions that have all accepted by audience.And this is very unfair for the young present artists.In fact,many past artists were not well-known even in their times,like the most famous example of Van Gogh.
• Philippines
18 Aug 10
yeah i agree to that. i hate the kind of music theyre playing on mtv nowadays... im not much into rnb and i miss the music back in 90s but since last year i could not understand my fav bands are gone and theyre replaced with rnb artists...it suckss
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
19 Aug 10
I also think the past music is better. Perhaps this is called the generation gap.
• Philippines
19 Aug 10
yep, thats it... just like how my parents regarded my playlist with apathy.. i could understand that generation gap thing.. the music recently has somewhat evolved into rnb era.. which i despise
1 person likes this
• India
18 Aug 10
Maybe you are correct or maybe the world is so wide open these days that we don’t really value what we have. When the masterpieces you speak of were created, they were for select audiences in select cities and have become part of legendary folklore…communication in those days was not advanced and the common people were deprived of these masterpieces and hence these assumed mythical proportions. However, nowadays you can hear everything either live or on TV or thru CDs… I mean that aura is gone so even if we are having great music being created, we don’t really feel awed about it any more.
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
19 Aug 10
Thanks for your response.
@landi927 (657)
• China
17 Aug 10
i think the key point is the big environment for the music. In the past there are not so many different kinds of music, so people can focus more on classical music. but nowadays, we have many choices, some like pop music, some like hip hop etc. For sure the focus on the classical music will be decreased.
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
18 Aug 10
Perhaps you are right.
@Hatley (163781)
• Garden Grove, California
18 Aug 10
hi youless I have often wondered that, we have nobody to rival Mozart or Bach or Beethoven and yet surely somewhere in this vast world lives some musicians who could rival these great masters if they wou ld just come forward. I am glad to meet someone else who thinks like me about the great compositions and wonders why we have no one now like that. Sad too as some are excellent but not real masterpieces maybe they do not want to take the time to really compose something great.
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
18 Aug 10
Perhaps it needs some time to have the talent?
• United States
17 Aug 10
The classical music has no market nowadays so you can expect none from todays musician. Today it is all about party music. If you look at the music pieces of today, they are simple, catchy, and repetitive. Unlike the ones you mentioned who composes symphonies that usually takes hours just to play them. Kids would be bored if the music played for so long. Though some kids do listen to those composers you mentioned. I have seen a symphony concert before of Dvorak and it was nice but expensive, and it was very interesting though very few appreciate this kind of music here in phoenix. Most of the people there were doctors and students.
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
18 Aug 10
But when children learn to play the piano, usually they will learn to play the classical music at first.
• United States
18 Aug 10
That is true but many kids don't have the privilege to learn piano, or even if they do they don't. Like me we had an upright piano, but I never learned because when I was a kid I'd rather play outside than play piano. So how many people do you think play piano and appreciate classical, romantic, modern music? I think there is very few to make money from. That is why there are very few composers of symphonies now because nobody will buy it. I'm sure there are still geniuses who compose their own symphonies but that would be rare. I studied music history and most of the students there were only people like me who ran out of courses to pick.
1 person likes this
@ptower76 (1616)
• United States
18 Aug 10
What we know as classical music as you described, comes from many years ago. Perhaps many years from now, today's music will also be held in similar regards. Music like the rest of society continues to develop. Music is a part of history and many may not realize that the music that is known as classical also has its history in three major eras. Classical, Baroque, and Romantic periods of history. I think people will look back with the same esteem at Jazz, soul, rock, and hip hop.
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
18 Aug 10
The history will tell us
@BigTips (304)
• China
18 Aug 10
There are many factors that lead to such a situation in modern society. At first, music is becoming a product and everyone can listen to music through many applications; So, most musicians tend to pay more attention to create music for commercial profits instead of creating great songs. Besides, with the pace of life gradually accelerated, there are no so many people who need to taste music carefully with heart. Of course, you see, we are living in a peace time and perhaps great musicians can only appear during a hard time.
1 person likes this
@youless (112091)
• Guangzhou, China
18 Aug 10
The talents won't appear so often.