La Fabrique des Tubes - Talk by Jean-Pierre Caporossi

The Scarron hosts a special talk on the history and mechanics of the musical hit. Saturday, December 12, 4:30–6:30 PM, Jean-Pierre Caporossi explores how hits work in the relationship between music and popular success, unpacking the mechanisms and players who individually and collectively shape the songs that define an era. The talk looks at how the hit has changed profoundly as production and distribution evolved: from a finished artistic work, it has become a fragmented element, “a few notes, bars of a sequence that moves us, a series soundtrack, an ad sync, a ringtone, a jingle, a sample, etc.” It also covers digital dematerialization, which makes the hit omnipresent but “gaseous” in contemporary culture, as well as the coexistence of traditional formats (vinyl, single) and streaming platforms, in a context where traditional songwriter-composer-arrangers are giving way to “beatmakers” and “topliners.” Free admission.