The Influence of Australian Political Environment on the Development of the Country’s Music

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Music as a Tool of Political Socialization
Australian Music and Political Landscape: Historical Roots
Modern State of the Art
Conclusion
References

Introduction

Politics is not only the sphere of the rational-practical but also the emotional-sensual: a person perceives the world of politics from the standpoint of expediency and the realization of interests and forms ideas about relations in the political sphere (friends – enemies). The creation of images of the state, political and social future is carried out in this process. The concept of political socialization does not have a single universal definition.

Nevertheless, using this concept, it is possible to designate with it the whole complex of changes in the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of a person associated with the development of his or her political consciousness, behavior, and value-orientational system. All those processes during which a person interiorizes the requirements of status and role behavior, political values, and norms of political culture, allow him or her to harmoniously enter the existing political system and become a subject of political relations in it. At the same time, personality, society, and culture are indissoluble unity. Thus, any kind of art, including music, can serve as a tool for a two-way process of exchange of political information between the “powers that be” and ordinary citizens.

Music as a Tool of Political Socialization

A person can argue that music and politics are two parallel lines that never intersect, that he or she is not fond of music on political topics; however, any music written on the territory of a certain state, country absorbs “the breath of political life,” even if the music creators do not realize it. Adorno explains this situation by the fact that social factors in music “cannot be simply pointed with the finger,” they can only be found (Garratt, 2018). The song is, in fact, an artistically encoded social position.

Behind the most primitive lyrics of the song, the author’s view of public life, and therefore of politics, may be hidden. If, for example, the scene in a song is a club, this may indicate a craving for a “beautiful” life, a well-paid job, and success. Writing songs in foreign languages hints at dissatisfaction with the quality of life in own country, about the intention to become famous, which means it reflects the desire to improve one’s financial or social situation, if possible, and to connect future life with a foreign state, which contains aspects of the political (Barton, 2018). However, there is also a strictly political component of musical art. For example, many African American musical styles (rap, hip-hop, funk, jazz, blues) have emerged as a result of a person’s social position in society, they are a reflection of social movements and protest against the political regime.

In turn, political forces also turn to musical culture to influence the mass consciousness and political behavior to ensure the achievement of the set goals and objectives. It should be noted that political advertising practice in Australia follows a music-based trend, with less speech, with a focus on music, sound effects, and screenwriting for the message (Brunt & Stahl, 2018). At the same time, musical art, as one of the integral elements of culture as a whole, can reflect the processes taking place in society. Musical means have considerable potential for political influence on listeners.

Australian Music and Political Landscape: Historical Roots

The music of Australia contains elements of various musical cultures: indigenous people, Anglo-Australians, non-British immigrants. After 1945, in the context of expanding contacts with the United States, as a result of the American cultural and ideological expansion, the so-called mass musical culture spread. Popular culture, progress in the transmission of information, the emergence of global means of communication, as well as the dominance of the clip model of consciousness, all have a significant impact on both art and politics (Diamond et al., 2008). It is difficult for a modern person to hide from propaganda, proposals of various opinions, and art can ‘clothe’ some ideologemes in a popular and fashionable form. Contemporary art itself is part of the aesthetic and ethical paradigm; it materializes the spirit of the times in certain works; therefore, it does not remain aloof from topical issues. However, many composers today are turning to the traditions of Aboriginal music and experimenting to find a synthesis of European and non-European music.

Some of Australia’s earliest musical compositions in this “convicts land” recounted the hardships faced by the early settlers, which had their origins in Celtic folk music. Songs such as Bound for Botany Bay described the period in the late 18th and 19th centuries when British convicts were deported to various Australian penal colonies (Diamond et al., 2008). It is about the life of the condemned on the ships, while other early songs recount the hardships and isolation endured in the harsh new country. These early songs were heavily influenced by successive waves of migrants from different walks of life, ranging from British, Irish, Scottish, and Welsh convicts.

In the future, in the conditions of the formation of statehood in Australia, the entire spectrum of human experiences was reflected in folk and, of course, the author’s songwriting. The Australian song Waltzing Matilda is a great example of it. This folk song is often referred to as “Australia’s unofficial anthem” (Fisher, 2016). The original lyrics were written in 1895 by the poet Banjo Paterson and were first published as sheet music in 1903. There are several themes in the song. The first theme is personal freedom, the ability to live as one wants, and not as required by the generally accepted norms of society. The hero of the song lives the carefree life of a person not tied to private property and enjoys such simple joys as a cup of fresh tea brewed in a pot over a fire in the shade of trees on the bank of a cool pond. He does not have a boss who gives him orders every day. This lighthearted vagabond image epitomizes the self-reliance that Australians are so proud of.

The second theme is a challenge to the authorities and the establishment. The song contains the motive of defending the rights of the poor over the interests of the rich. In late 19th century Australia, sheep shearers rebelled against the dominant British class system. It was a revolt of the rural proletariat against the wealthy landowners. Public opinion in the country was on the side of the shearers. In the end, the rich class lost in the colony the social significance that it had in the metropolis. In 1900, Britain granted independence to Australia; many Australians sincerely believe that name due to the huge popularity of the song Waltzing Matilda the problem of social justice dominated the consciousness of the country’s population.

In this context, one should recall the phenomenon of White Australia Policy – a set of political decisions within the framework of Australian immigration policy, which limited the flow of “colored” migrants from 1901 to World War II. The name White Australia is unofficial and has been used as an umbrella term for laws designed to prohibit migrants from Asia (especially China) and the Pacific Islands (especially Melanesia) from migrating to Australia (Foley, 2006). Concepts of ‘salad bowl,’ cultural mosaic, and multiculturalism are inherently opposed to the policy of White Australia, which did not provide for the integration of “colored” populations at all. At the time, the anti-immigration sentiment was reflected in songs such as White Australia (Australia the White Man’s Land) from 1910 to music by W.E. Naunton and words by Naunton and H.J.W. Gyles.

Modern State of the Art

By the end of the 20th century, traditional Australian Aboriginal culture had grown into big business. The globalization of the market economy has contributed to the commercialization of traditional Aboriginal culture, and with the development of high technology, new ways of reproducing it have appeared. The revenues from the sale of Aboriginal art were estimated in billions of US dollars. Not only works of folk art printed on carpets, T-shirts, and greeting cards, but also traditional aboriginal tunes in world music albums and traditional musical instruments recreated by non-Aboriginal people were in demand on the art market. Moreover, as McLeay (2006) notes, “in seeking to increase the export potential of locally produced music, Australian governments have come to hold an important place in the political economy of contemporary Australian music” (p. 91). Thus, politics of restoring the rights of aborigines and attempts to restore historical justice for them led to some negative trends in folk music – the erosion of its identity.

The traditions of local cultures, including musical ones, have become commercial to such an extent that their cultural and religious significance has practically remained beyond the comprehension of the non-native society. Nevertheless, despite the commercialization and simplification of Aboriginal art for the sake of popular culture, Australia has several unique musical trends that reflect the country’s socio-political situation. The existing intellectual property system in Australia, despite the active work of civil society organizations, political attention, and international influence, still needs to be improved (Smith et al., 2008). A new vector in the development of Aboriginal intellectual property rights could be the issuance of a copyright law specifically for the protection of traditional Aboriginal culture and the legalization of Aboriginal community rights to express their traditional culture in music.

Aboriginal rock is considered an interesting and unique phenomenon today. Of all the Aboriginal groups, Yothu Yindi, formed in 1986, has lasted the longest; it still exists today and has a very solid legacy over the years. After the release of this album, recognition came to the group, in the shortest possible time it gave several concerts in major cities of Australia and South Korea, then organized a festival of aboriginal rock in Darwin and toured North America with Midnight Oil. At the same time, the leader of the group, Mandawui Yunupingu (at that time the only Aboriginal on his reservation with higher education) worked as the director of the Aboriginal school in Yirkkale, which he graduated from. In 1991, the album Tribal Voice (Call of the Tribe) was released, which took fourth place in the charts. The first song from the album, Treaty, has won several awards, in particular from human rights organizations (Wu, 2014). In 1993, the group began campaigning for “controlled use” of alcohol as a counterbalance to alcoholism flourishing among Aboriginal people.

Contemporary Australian singer Stella Donnelly has earned the title of Australia’s main feminist for her music. The very first EP Thrush Metal, released in 2017, was recorded by Stella for a couple of dozen people in a local bar, and eventually inspired girls all over the world with the song Boys Will Be Boys. Stella dedicated it to her friend who was a victim of rape. In her other song, Old Man, a beach-air motif accompanied by an electric guitar reveals the image of a middle-aged owner of a dozen yachts and frank magazines walking one of his “girls.” In her songs, she raises issues of women’s rights and latent sexism, as well as social inequality that forces women to “sell” themselves.

The real factor that determines the behavior of people in Australia, including young people, is the degree to which their needs are met. It is important to understand that the priority of entertainment, which is becoming increasingly more easily saturated with the development of new technologies, can play a ‘cruel joke’ with us in the hands of skillful manipulators of public consciousness. Not counting themself as a member of the opposition movement, but observing a protest trend in musical culture, a person who has not yet decided on his political views can side with the opponents of the government because it is fashionable because he becomes “like everyone else,” integrates into the already created socio-political community. However, in this case, the question of the depth of political education and the problem of education obtained in this way come to the fore.

Conclusion

As it is known, the greatest pieces of music have been inspired by major historical events. In Australia’s daily political life, music also has a direct and indirect influence on political events and is itself a “product” of the country’s political landscape. This correlation can be traced both in historical retrospectives and in the modern political environment and musical culture of Australia, defining several positive and negative trends. Simultaneously one can observe excessive commercialization and simplification of folk music and, at the same time, the emergence of unique musical trends and performers, raising in their work the deep social and political challenges of modern Australian society. In this regard, efforts are needed for further political and sociological studies of this problem, as well as additional incentives for further, more in-depth study of the role of musical means among other elements in the political socialization of members of society in Australia and other countries.

References

Barton, G. (2018). Music learning and teaching in culturally and socially diverse contexts. Palgrave Macmillan.

Brunt, S., & Stahl, G. (2018). Made in Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand: Studies in popular music. Routledge.

Diamond, B., Crowdy, D., & Downes, D. (2008). Post-colonial distances: The study of pop music in Canada and Australia. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Fisher, D. (2016). The voice and its doubles: Media and music in Northern Australia. Duke University Press Books.

Foley, F. (2006). The art of politics the politics of art: The place of indigenous contemporary art. Keeaira Press.

Garratt, J. (2018). Music and politics: A critical introduction. Cambridge University Press.

McLeay, C. (2006). Government regulation in the Australian popular music industry: The rhetoric of cultural protection, the reality of economic production. GeoJournal, 65(1-2), 91-102.

Smith, R., Vromen, A., & Cook, I. (2008). Contemporary politics in Australia: Theories, practices and issues. Cambridge University Press.

Wu, J. (2014). Sounds of Australia: Aboriginal popular music, identity, and place. Nota Bene: Canadian Undergraduate Journal of Musicology, 7(1), Article 6.

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