(2004-12-20) Grazian Experience ConGame

David Grazian on "Popular Music (Live Performance) as a Confidence Game (ConGame)". A curious set of concerns develops in settings where patrons seek out cultural forms deemed "authentic," or naturally indigenous to their locale. In these settings, consumers expect to be entertained by performances that conform to dominant stereotypes of the setting, with attention given to local dialect, styles of interaction, dress and so forth. But in addition, they also expect that these performances will be real, as genuine expressions of self rather than a charade performed merely for the audience's benefit. As a result, producers face the arduous challenge of meeting a predetermined set of expectations without appearing as though such a feat requires any effort. While few contemporary consumers would be shocked by the revelation that motion pictures rely on tricky camerawork and special effects, or that their favorite actor routinely opts for plastic surgery, audiences rarely suspect that authentic culture and art - populist music, exotic handicrafts, ethnic cuisine - depend on similarly performative strategies of manipulation and impression management. (Experience Economy, Authenticity) As previous work in the sociology of music demonstrates, a lifetime of performing any "set list from hell" takes its toll on all different kinds of musicians... For those musicians, the con may actually be on them.