A pendulum is a good way of looking at it. What you see in the Medieval period is, as an example, musicians writing more and more challenging lines to sing. Wider leaps, rapid-fire phrases…and this is how they show off their skills. You see this more in the secular music of the day, as the church is constantly pushing for sacred music that doesn’t call attention to itself. But, the backlash happens because while those complex, jagged lines might be lots of fun for the singer, not so much for the listener. And so begins a movement toward vocal lines that are easier on the ears - smoother, more melodic, easier to sing, which also lines up nicely with developments in counterpoint and polyphony that allow major forms like the motet to come into being.
And of course musicians, not being able to help themselves, start competing with each other to write more and more complex motets, which sparks another aesthetic backlash, and it all starts again.
This is a gross simplification of course but just to give you an idea how this all works.
Modern pop - which I define as what you typically hear on commercial radio, but you could also define as the trending artists on digital platforms - is very safe, very conservative, and very listener friendly.
But…to use an example that’s relevant to your question, you can look at the rise of punk rock in the 70’s. Punk was a reaction to the growing popularity of Progressive Rock artists like King Crimson, Jethro Tull, Rush, and similar artists that dabbled in complex harmony, polyrhythm, mixed/odd meters, and so on. Punk artists felt that these were becoming too elitist and exclusive and said, hey, how about we just play three chords and say fuck a lot? Let’s make music anyone can pick up a cheap guitar and learn in five minutes!
In 2026 I’d be hard pressed to identify a popular musical style that’s pushing the boundaries of listenability to the point of sparking a backlash. And we just had a couple of these not that long ago anyway: Minimalism in the 60’s and my aforementioned Punk movement. I’d say we’re in kind of a lull at the moment, though it’s not hard to look at all the styles and genres that sprang out of Punk and see where they’re going. But these patterns span decades, sometimes centuries. It may not happen again in our lifetime.
So are Gregorian chants more musically complex than modern pop music? Or is it more of a pendulum?
A pendulum is a good way of looking at it. What you see in the Medieval period is, as an example, musicians writing more and more challenging lines to sing. Wider leaps, rapid-fire phrases…and this is how they show off their skills. You see this more in the secular music of the day, as the church is constantly pushing for sacred music that doesn’t call attention to itself. But, the backlash happens because while those complex, jagged lines might be lots of fun for the singer, not so much for the listener. And so begins a movement toward vocal lines that are easier on the ears - smoother, more melodic, easier to sing, which also lines up nicely with developments in counterpoint and polyphony that allow major forms like the motet to come into being.
And of course musicians, not being able to help themselves, start competing with each other to write more and more complex motets, which sparks another aesthetic backlash, and it all starts again.
This is a gross simplification of course but just to give you an idea how this all works.
Where would you say modern pop is on the swing?
Modern pop - which I define as what you typically hear on commercial radio, but you could also define as the trending artists on digital platforms - is very safe, very conservative, and very listener friendly.
But…to use an example that’s relevant to your question, you can look at the rise of punk rock in the 70’s. Punk was a reaction to the growing popularity of Progressive Rock artists like King Crimson, Jethro Tull, Rush, and similar artists that dabbled in complex harmony, polyrhythm, mixed/odd meters, and so on. Punk artists felt that these were becoming too elitist and exclusive and said, hey, how about we just play three chords and say fuck a lot? Let’s make music anyone can pick up a cheap guitar and learn in five minutes!
In 2026 I’d be hard pressed to identify a popular musical style that’s pushing the boundaries of listenability to the point of sparking a backlash. And we just had a couple of these not that long ago anyway: Minimalism in the 60’s and my aforementioned Punk movement. I’d say we’re in kind of a lull at the moment, though it’s not hard to look at all the styles and genres that sprang out of Punk and see where they’re going. But these patterns span decades, sometimes centuries. It may not happen again in our lifetime.
Thanks for the follow-up!