Until the early part of this century there was certainly a distinction between
popular music, the songs and dance (1)……. of the masses, and what we have come
to call (2) ……. music. Up to that point, however, there were at least some
points of contact (3) ……. the two, and perhaps general recognition of what made a
good voice, or a good song. With the development of (4) ……. entertainment, popular
music split away and and has gradually (5) ……. a stronger life of its (6) ……. , to
the point where it has become incompatible with (7) ……. classics. In some
respects, it is now dominated by the (8) ……. of youth culture, so that a concert by
Elton John is just as much a fashion (9) ……. , and other artists may be promoting
dance styles, or social (10) ……. For this reason, it is impossible to talk about
popular music as if it were a unified art. The kind of music you like may (11) …….on
what kind of person you are. Curiously, there are now classical musicians and
operatic singers who have (12) ……. the status of rock stars, and have been
marketed in the same way. This seems to suggest that many young people enjoy
classical music but do not wish to be associated with the (13) ……. of those who
are traditionally supposed to enjoy it. Or it may simply be that recording companies
have discovered that there is an insatiable (14) ……. for 'sounds', and that
classical music is beginning to sound exciting to a generation (15) ……. on rock
but now settling into affluent middle-age