From objet Sent Sat, Jun 20th 1998, 07:04
Champion that I. Unselfishly, of course. Think about it - we (in America -- I won't pretend to be able to speak for other cultures) live in one of the most rabidly anti-intellectual cultures conceivable. "Smart-guy" is largely considered an insult. In hip-hop 'schools', "stupid" was once "buttah." That the description of any music as intelligent should be looked upon strangely -- well, wear the strangeness. The music addressed here indeed is, for the most part, very intelligent, complex stuff, begging for abstraction. In short - watch a 'backstreet boys' video and consider the audience for that band, consider the ridiculous self-closeting of strict classical afficionados, and then consider that the description of this music as 'intelligent' may not only be apt, but in a certain way, quite necessary. sr -- sd