Thursday, July 13, 2017

The Rustic Faces the Music

There was a rustic who lived on the outskirts of the kingdom and who had gone to the big city to learn how to better serve the King. There was a dispute over what kind of music should be used by the King's army. The rustic, being very ignorant of those sorts of things, obtained a guide to show him the various options.

The first one involved a large pipe organ playing complex hymns. The rustic found the whole thing very majestic. The people wore fine clothes and suits. He was told it was the classical approach.

"This is the older form of music," said the guide.

"Is it the oldest music used by the army?" asked the rustic.

"No, but it is the oldest most people remember."

The next group used the piano. They were simpler, but a more lively. The rustic liked it, though he could see why some modern people might see it as a bit old-fashioned and boring. The people were still wearing their good clothes, but not quite as fancy. This was called the old favorites.

The following group went for a guitar and banjo. They were more lively, and the rustic found himself clapping his hands and stamping his feet. The people were wearing more casual clothes. This approach was called country.

The fourth group had electric guitars and drums. They were louder, with more of a driving beat. The people were dressed considerably more casually, and some of the men had long hair. This music was called soft rock.

The final group had electric guitars, drums, and loudspeakers. They were very fast and loud and nearly blew you out of the room. The rustic liked it, but he saw why some might regard it as too loud and chaotic. The people were very casual, almost a little grungy. This was full scale rock and roll.

As the rustic walked away, he turned to the guide and said, "I do not see anything in the King's manual regarding type of music. Why not allow people whatever they happen to want? Or better yet, learn to respect other people's choice of music and even learn to appreciate the kinds they are not familiar with. I like all of them to some degree and would like to see them all incorporated together."

The guide rolled his eyes to show what he thought of the naivete of this statement.       

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