Music has always been considered a universal language, but what happens when this language begins to lose its nuances? A team of researchers decided to go beyond subjective sensations and scientifically measure how modern melodies are evolving. The results are surprising and could make us reflect on the future of music.
When music was still a complex art
Musically speaking, I have never been a great foreigner: I grew up1 between disco music and Italian singer-songwriters. Yet even as a kid I listened to Pink Floyd and their “constructions” sang to me. How to define them? Sound cathedrals made of complex chords and sudden tempo changes among which I got lost. Just as I got lost, for example, in the harmonic labyrinths of the King Crimson or in the progressive suites of the genesis. What happens to all this in modern melodies?
Today, scholars of theSapienza University in Rome and of theUniversity of Padua they confirmed what we boomers (me Generation X, to be precise) suspected: modern melodies are becoming simpler and simpler. In fact, elementary. Research, published on arXiv, analyzed about 20.000 MIDI files through network science, turning notes into nodes and transitions into arcs of a complex network.
Modern Melodies, Science Confirms: Everything Is More Basic
The results are merciless: musical complexity is in constant decline. And I'm not just talking about the comparison between the Beethoven's Fifth and the latest trap hit of the moment (which for goodness sake, maybe has its reason, or at least its who knows: but we are talking about two parallel universes). Even within classical music, a progressive simplification is noticeable.
The only exception? The jazz, who had a moment of glory with geniuses like Miles Davis e John Coltrane, before settling on more manageable levels of complexity. And don't say that just looking at Young Signorino was enough, and there was no need for researchers: I can already see you tinkering around in the comments on Facebook.
Technology: Friend or Foe?
I can't help but notice how the democratization of music production has played a role in this trend. With a laptop and a few plugins, anyone can produce music today. With artificial intelligence (like Suno) all you need is a phone and a finger.
Surprising, sure, but when I listen to certain modern melodies I wonder if we haven't lost something in the process. Globalization and the algorithms of streaming platforms seem to favor increasingly simple and repetitive structures. Bruno Mars, Rosé, I'm looking right at you. And to think that once upon a time it took years of conservatory study just to understand how a harmonic minor scale worked.
The Price of Popularity
I admit that this paragraph might be too biased, but let's talk about it: it must be said that the simplification of modern melodies is not necessarily a bad thing. After all, even the Beatles They made history with “Love Me Do”, which is not exactly Mozart’s “Requiem”.
But when I hear certain current refrains consisting of two notes repeated endlessly, I can't help but think how far they are from the complexity of a David Bowie or of an Frank Zappa. Am I doing wrong, or do I look like one of those old men who picked on “long-haired people”? Let’s go back to the future. Yes, but which one?
Modern Melodies: Towards What Musical Future?
This research raises interesting questions about the future of modern melodies. Will we continue down this path of ever greater simplification? Will we get to the point where a song is composed of a single note repeated over a beat? (Wait, maybe that's already happened...) Or will there be a reaction, a return to complexity?
Music is mathematics made audible through time
Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz, rapper. Or rather philosopher.
This quote makes me think, and a lot. It makes me think because if music is mathematics, we are moving from advanced algebra to multiplication tables. Not that there is anything wrong with multiplication tables, mind you. But maybe it would be worth remembering that there is also differential calculus.
Mind you
I know that by the next Sanremo I could be overtaken by events: but this research and my article are not intended to be a snobbish criticism of contemporary music. They are more of a reminder: Simplicity can be a valid artistic choice, but it should not be the only option on the table.
If you really want my advice, next time you feel overwhelmed by the simplicity of modern melodies, put on your headphones “Close to the Edge” by Yes. There are more tempo changes in there than in the entire Spotify top 50 combined. Not that that's necessarily a good thing, but at least it will make you appreciate how vast the range of possibilities music offers us.
Who knows, maybe one day someone will listen to Tony Effe with the same nostalgia with which I think back to Pink Floyd. Ultimately, the music it is also this: a bridge between generations, complex or simple as it may be. A bridge that accompanies everyone towards the refrain of life: wow, what a filthy metaphor.
- Do you want to laugh? I was born in 1975, the very year after which, according to another research, music has begun its “decline” of simplification. Courage: the best is over! ↩︎
