FinishMySong Blog

I won't accept being accused of bigotry - in my work and in my leisure-time, I read and digest the opinions of all kinds of nutters! ;)

Most recently, I read an article written by an elusive blogger only known as "Last Row". Having gone through his/her thoughts about the state of the American Idol television programme (the U.S. version of Pop Idol.. another show in the X-Factor format) and how (s)he extends his/her argument about the arrogance and incompetence of many of the hopeful singers on there, I was intrigued to find out more about the writer. Unfortunately, this is the sum total of his/her profile:

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ
lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the
Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

"Ah, that explains a few things", I thought. This person's point in the blog, you see, is that to be a successful musician one is required to adhere to certain fixed rules of the game and that, by extension, the same applies to life. That it is not good enough to say that this or that "works for me" - it is either right or wrong, and that's all there is to it. Personally, I beg to differ: the trouble is, you see, that the conventions in life, as in music, are not only constructed by man but also changed by man at his whim. To be precise, various ruling classes are always responsible for these conventions and the direction that they take. As individuals we can choose to accept or reject these conventions.

So, getting back to the singing contest, when a hopeful appears before the judges and is dismissed by them for failing to sing correctly, what they must understand is that the situation in which they knowingly placed themselves does work in its own way based on a set of assumed rights and wrongs - the judges know what they're looking for and will brutally criticise anything that does not fit that bill. But the criteria they are working with is self-imposed and when one enters that arena one also imposes that criteria upon oneself. Relativism is all very well: art is my art and music is my music, but what a judge or examiner hopes for is to see you abide by his conditions. Scream through a straw whilst garrotting yourself if you like - I won't say it's not singing or that it's not a perfectly legitimate art-form (hey, it might one day find its way onto primetime telly) - but don't expect me to tell you that it's a good Mariah Carey cover.

Life is like this too. Your church-going types will tell you what is right and what isn't. That's fine - they have their stage to play on but what they, the judges, must remember is that I also have mine and if I don't want to compete in this year's version of Christ Idol then I have every right not to bother. I'll play by my rules because my moral criteria is just as valid as theirs. The difference with this and the arts, though, is that we all ultimately have to work in the same theatre and so it makes sense to try to find a way to go ahead without treading on our peers' toes. Does this mean abandoning the relativistic approach to perception of right and wrong? Probably not; just finding a way to compromise whilst accepting that, as long as there are people, we will always live in a world of multiples.