Is Music Art?

Small Black

If you're looking for a good times soaked in drunken insouciance and potential nudity, then you're better off skipping early evening concerts at museums, 'cuz you ain't gonna find it there.

This week's Girls At Shows takes a more culturally-attuned approach to all things fun and attractive with Babes At The Museum grabbing the handlebars and crashing the Brooklyn Museum to check out a show by synth-pop warble rockers Small Black and Lemonade.

Lemonade

The idea of live music in a museum, a ruckus in a rather proper setting, begs the question, "Is Music Art?" So instead of us trying to figure out the answer to that, we piggy backed off the crowds lucid, early evening sobriety to get some intelligent answers from some lovely 'demoiselles at the show, at the museum. Here's what they had to say:

Lucia

Yes, it's art because it inspires people. There's the artwork and then there's music, and then there's all of yourself that's immersed into one whole thing called "art." Plus, it's a concert and is a good excuse to visit a museum.

Florine

Yes, it definitely is. It's hard to define, but there's a similar process of creation as with art. It's definitely not common to have music come together with museums, but I think it's a great idea and it should be a natural fit.

Rosalie

I guess so. This may seem dumb, but I like art and I like music. So music is art.

Leaf

Music is totally art! It brings a new vibe to the museum, too. I'm going to take a walk in the museum when the band plays, so that it's like a soundtrack to looking at the rest of the art.

Claudia

It is art. I think they definitely go together. Music has been art for a long time.

Girl #1

Nobody is ever dancing at these things.

Girl #2

Maybe. But why do they just stand there? I'm here every concert and they just stand there.

Julia

I think it depends on the approach to music. It's composition, mainly, that matters. It's the same with art; not all visual art is art-worthy, but I think if bands experiment with complex structure and layering of different melodies and stuff, then it makes music more art-worthy. There's also strong overlaps between music and art. Keith Haring used to paint while listening to music, and John Cage combines performance art and music performance. 

Erin

I don't know, but I love Keith Haring and I love Small Black. They're two unrelated loves of mine in the same place right now, so I guess that's cool.

Marina

It's an art, yeah! It's made by artists. It's a creative process, so yeah, it's an art. I'm studying architecture, and museums are designed for artwork. To put another form of art in a space that's not made for music is a good experiment. Let's see what happens.

Joelle

That's a larger discussion, actually. I think music, first of all, is art and art doesn't necessarily belong in the museum. Maybe this performance is a sound piece that lives in the museum for the time being.

@museumbabes