Music and venues

Consumption is not restricted to tangible items but can also be conducted visually and audibly. Music, whether recorded, or performed live offers an opportunity to reflect on not only everyday consumption but also identity and biography.

Audio consumption, inequalities and identity

Listening to music, engaging with musical subcultures and playing musical instruments has long been an important focus for sociologists; both in their scholarship and as part of their lived experience (Back, 2024). Music has been positioned as a lens for understanding social and cultural norms and lives (Back, 2024), and the sociology of sounds and audio consumption is an important area for consideration. As Hudson (2014) notes ‘the ransacking of music for insights into wider social relations like class, race and gender’ has been an important sociological endeavour.

The sociology of music has sought to provide an insight into identity. Sociologist Dave Beer (2017: n.p.) has argued that musical scenes and genres that are favoured in youth, long remain central to music fans’ identities. He notes that: ‘Music scenes are, after all, moments when our personal biographies mix with broader social changes and cultural movements’. Music forms part of our biography, as individuals, but also in our relationships with others and how we might connect to the world around us. Music is, therefore, another important space for the sociological imagination – where history and personal biography collide and provide a window into understanding self in society.

Beyond identity sociologists have considered how music can be used as a tool to understand structures and relations within society. Nick Prior (2013) has outlined how Bourdieu made important contributions to understandings of musical taste, and how this can help us to understand and reflect upon social inequalities. Whilst, Haynes and Nowak (2021) have explored ideas around ‘cool music’, and the capacity of sociology to develop more nuanced understandings around how music can be both enjoyed and experienced. And from a broad disciplinary perspective, music has been drawn upon as a source of inspiration for reinvigorating and seeking out a vibrant future for sociology. For example Dave Beer’s book Punk Sociology draws on the ethos, energy and cultures of punk music to argue for a reimagined approach to sociology as a lively, cutting edge discipline which is fresh, creative and collaborative.

Music, space and place

Another key consideration for sociologists has been the deep connection between music and place. Music, artists and even songs are synonymous with place and are inscribed across the landscape in various ways. Music has been cited to be a form of cultural expression, and specific songs, arrangements, harmonies and styles can be associated with particular times and places both geographically and individually. The sounds of the city are written through its streets and venues.

In the city of York, none perhaps is more imposing than York Minster itself. The Minster has a long history of choral music, and was one of the first to admit girl choristers in 1997. Another historic venue which no longer hosts concerts but remains a key part of the cityscape is The Assembly Rooms in Blake Street. Originally built in the 18th century as a meeting and entertainment space for the upper classes, it was used as a subscription concert space where customers had to pay in advance for a number of concerts. The venue has been used by the city for formal and civil events, but it operates now as an Italian restaurant.

World-class acts to grassroot gigging

York has hosted world class artists from across the spectrum of musical tastes. The York Rialto located on Fishergate in the centre of town was turned into a ballroom and entertainment space in 1925. It was host to a wide range of artists including The Beatles, Louis Armstrong, Gracie Fields, The Hallé Orchestra and Mick Jagger. The venue became a nightclub which operated until the 1980s before being demolished in 2003. Around the same time the Rialto was in its heyday, The University of York was creating music history. In 1967 Jimi Hendrix played a gig in the Langwith Hall dining hall. The students organising the show sold 1000 tickets, despite the university only having around 500 students at the time. The venue is now aptly called Hendrix Hall and is a lecture theatre and event space.

But perhaps nowhere is York’s identity as a city with a vibrant and rich cultural and musical scene more visible than in the 2023 video released by legendary York band Shed Seven, announcing their landmark 30th Anniversary shows in the Museum Gardens (Shed Seven, 2023). Through the video the deep connection between music, the city, cultural and creative industries is brought to life. This is evidenced not only by bands selling thousands of tickets and selling out large venues – like Shed Seven – but it is also visible in the numerous grassroots and DIY venues in York. These include places like The Fulford Arms and The Crescent. Venues like these are the lifeblood of local music scenes. They host local and touring bands in York, bringing together fans, artists, bands and workers from across the creative industries to produce and create the sounds of the city, and crucially, to have fun.

Over to you

Consider the following questions:

• What live music or gigs have you gone to?
• Why is live musical performance important?

Share your thoughts with your fellow learners in the comments

If you want to know more…

• Beer, D. (2017) From Bananarama to Boyzone, here’s why so many bands are making a comeback
• Shed Seven (2023) Shed Seven -30th Anniversary York shows

References

Back, L. (2023). What sociologists learn from music: identity, music-making, and the sociological imagination. Identities, 31(4), 446–465.

Beer, D. (2014). Punk Sociology, London: Palgrave Pivot. Haynes, J. and Nowak, R. (2021). We were never cool: Investigating knowledge production and discourses of cool in the sociology of music The British Journal of Sociology, 72(2), pp. 448-462.

Hudson, M. (2014) Music, knowledge and the sociology of sound, Sociological Research Online, 19(4), pp.48-60.

Prior, N. (2013) Bourdieu and the sociology of music consumption: a critical assessment of recent developments. Sociology Compass, 7(3), pp.181-193.