Pop

Genre Research

IntroductionPop music is an abbreviation of the original:

“popular music”

It originated in its modern form in the 1950s, a modification of rock and roll

 The term “popular music” can be used interchangeably, and can include any style.

It can use elements of, dance, electro, urban, rock, alternative and country.

Its usually pleasurable to listen to rather than holding artistic depth.

Sub- genres Rock popSoul popBubblegum popChristian popDance popPower pop SynthpopTeen pop

Pop puckDiscoIndie popAcoustic popFolk popRap pop

Pop origins  The term "pop music" "originated in Britain in the mid-1950s as

a description for rock and roll and the new youth music styles that it influenced…

Aretha Franklin (1942): American singer/song writer. Crowned the “Queen of Soul”, She revolutionised the lyrics of pop and many other genres.

The Beatles (1960): one of the most successful bands to date, who thought of new ways to produce music. Experimenting with genres including pop, ballads and progressive rock.

ABBA (1972): ABBA (1972): Swedish band topped charts with their pop music. Won in 1974 Eurovision and were one of the first non-English pop bands.

Pop – evolution "a body of music which is distinguishable from

popular, jazz and folk music“

Thus "pop music" may be used to describe a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll.

many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music.

Pop – Evolution Pop music charts as such didn't exist until 1952,

when the first Top Twenty was recorded. It came at an interesting time, as "teenagers" really came into being. Historically there'd been no transitional period between childhood and adulthood

New styles have briefly emerged, but nothing appears to have gained a major foothold besides modern R&B, which owes little to its soulful predecessor, but a lot to hip-hop - which itself has become a pop style.

Features in pop musicAppealing to a general audienceMore about the production, recording and

technology rather than live performance.Follows trends rather than developments.Encourages dancingHas a beatUses a wide range of instrumentsMay include background noises of synchs, or

rhythmic elementsSimple melodies Last for 3-4 minutes average. Artist usually have a single released as well as

album Can include instrumentals

Top40 ChartsTop 40 is a music industry shorthand for the currently

most-popular songs in a particular genre. it typically refers to the best-selling popular music songs of the previous week.

Top 40 became the dominant radio format of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.

Its popularity overlapped with the rapid changes in recording technology in the 1950s and 1960s.

Radios now have top album charts to determine the best selling artists.

Focus on Pop soul/Blue-eyed soul

Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the United States in the 1950s and early 1960s, combining elements of African American gospel music and rhythm and blues.

Blue-eyed soul is a media term that was used to describe rhythm and blues and soul music performed by white artists, with a strong pop music influence.

Similar to the music of the Motown. Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps and

extemporaneous body moves, are an important feature of soul music.

Tense vocal sound The style also occasionally uses improvisational additions,

twirls and auxiliary sounds.

Focus on Power pop/Pure pop

Spurred on by the emergence of punk rock and new wave, power pop enjoyed a prolific and commercially successful period in the late 1970s and early 1980s

Instrumental solos are usually kept to a minimum

draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music.

Recordings tend to display production values that lean toward compression and a forceful drum beat.

Key bands/artists – Otis Redding (1941 – 1967)Known for his talented, open throat music Otis

is in the sub genre of Pop-soul.He influenced other soul singers in the 1960s

and crafted his own style to the R&B series.He became popular quickly with his lyrical

creativity and is still a worldwide legend

Key Bands/Artist – Stevie Wonder (1950 – present)One of the most ever awarded solo artist,

receiving 22 Grammys.He has recorded thirty top ten US hits.Sets the standard for pop soulWell known albums such as Talking Book

and Songs to the Key of Life.His style of writing/song evolved as he

grew and got older as he went from susses to classic to commercial gain to his worldwide status now.

Wonder's songs are renowned for being quite difficult to sing. He has a very developed sense of harmony and uses many extended chords utilizing extensions such as ninths, elevenths, thirteenths, diminished fifths. Many of his melodies make abrupt, unpredictable changes. Some of his best known and most frequently covered songs are played in keys which are more often found in jazz than in pop and rock.

Key Artist/Bands – Bob Dylan (1941 – present) American sing-song writer, musician and artist – Genre: Folk pop Dylan's early songs became anthems for US civil rights and anti-war

movements – giving Dylan popularity. Many of his songs were heavily criticized for his used of electronic

instruments.  Dylan's six-minute single "Like a Rolling Stone" has been described as

radically altering the limitation of popular music in 1965 He holds raw talent for music and is extremely gifted in being able to

play with numerous instruments - performs with guitar, keyboards, and harmonica.

in the late 1970s, Dylan became a born-again Christian and released two albums of Christian gospel music. 

Dylan was included in the Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century where he was called "master poet, caustic social critic and intrepid, guiding spirit of the counterculture generation"

Key Artist/Bands – The Beatles (1960 – 1970) The Beatles are the best-selling band in history, with

estimated sales of over one billion units. Internationally famous They acquired the nickname the "Fab Four“ Experimental with genres and music style, “no limits” From 1966 they produced what many critics consider to

be some of their finest material, including the innovative and widely influential albums Revolver (1966), Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967), The Beatles (1968) and Abbey Road (1969)

Key bands/artist – The Saturdays (2007 – present)The band rose to fame when they released

their debut single “Up “To date the band have released thirteen

singles in the United Kingdom alone.They are currently due to star in their own

TV show on American cable network E!, in 2012

They have furthermore written a book titled, The Saturdays: Our Story.

Key Artist/Bands – Eliza DoolittleEliza Sophie Caird, better

known by her stage name Eliza Doolittle, is a British singer–songwriter from London.

She chose the stage name of Eliza Doolittle, the My Fair Lady character, because it was her nickname as a child

her song “Skinny Genes” had featured in a television advert for an online retailer

Instruments

Influenced my the traditional structure of a song, using vocals, electric guitar, bass guitar, drums, keyboard, synthesizer and keyboards.

Template laid out by Stevie Wonder and The Beatles for experimentation.

Classical instruments often used – nowadays even mixed with rap.

Vocals Sometimes synths added to voice for

immersion and effect.

Open throat originated from Otis Redding

Artist will sing it own accent.

Use materials, stage performance to highlight and illustrate the meaningful lyrics.

Notable vocalists: Bob Dylan, Otis Redding

Guitar – (bass, electric and acoustic Originally in pop, guitarist

must be very versatile able to switch between rock and classical styles at the drop of a hat, like Bob Dylan. There is a large emphasis upon sonic exploration and creating different sounds using music technology and unusual tunings.

Nowadays guitar is often kept at a simple melody and often computerised.

Solo artist cant often play instruments and relie on their own band to provide their overall sound

Synthesizer A sound synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of

producing a wide range of sounds. Synthesizers may either imitate other instruments or generate new timbres. They can be played via a variety of different input devices (including keyboards, music sequencers and instrument controllers). Synthesizers generate electric signals (waveforms), and can finally be converted to sound through the loudspeakers or headphones.

Used to produce quick music for commercial reasons.

Development means becoming more popular, especially with dance, electro and pop artists.

Revolutionised music, some electro artist, like Example relie heavily upon these for their musical style.

Sampler A sampler is an electronic musical instrument similar in

some respects to a synthesizer but, instead of generating sounds, it uses recordings of sounds that are loaded or recorded into it by the user and then played back by means of the sampler program itself, a keyboard, sequencer or other triggering device to perform or compose music.

Samples are now usually stored in digital memory the information can be quickly accessed, used by artist such as Rihanna and Jessie J.

Drum Kit Pop drummers have to be good; they have

to be able to play everything from straight rock to jazz. Polyrhythm's, awkward and unusual time signatures are the backbone of the music.

Pop 1950s- present Popular music has remand at the forefront of musical

evolution because of its appeal to a wide, changing audience.

Even though musical influence has died there music continues to encourage upcoming artist, who craft new styles by adding their personal touch

EVOLUTION Early pop music drew on the sentimental ballad for its form,

gained its use of vocal harmonies from gospel and soul music, instrumentation from jazz, country, and rock music, orchestration from classical music, tempo from dance music, backing from electronic music, rhythmic elements from hip-hop music, and has recently appropriated spoken passages from rap.

Pop 1950s - presentAs pop music is influenced by every genre

of music it often suits everyone's tastesPop is often criticized for the lack of real

talent and the want for commercial and financial gain, which brings to the industry the fame hungry artists.

Pop music used the technological development to their gain and arguably created innovative ideas used across the musical board.

New popJessie JRihannaThe SaturdaysThe WantedJustin BeiberAlphabeatOlly Murz Maroon 5Flo RidaKaty Perry

SinglesPop groups/artist use singles to promote their album

A single is the most catchy up beat tune in an album to get the audiences attention, it is highly publicised

Experimentation and a range of different songs are often on the album to keep a range.

Many albums may relate to events in the artists personal life, or political matters at the time. Audiences can relate to this

New technologySynthesier SamplerRecording equipment New ways of performingDJ tables Amplifiers