(Un)popular Music Making and Eudaimonism

Abstract

The author introduces himself as a popular musician making unpopular music. He is a drummer, living his life according to the Aritostelian concept of eudaimonism, which he explains as a socio-psychological construct. The chapter reviews literature on identity, fulfillment, work, play, and leisure, before presenting findings from interviews with eleven other contemporary musicians. Their accounts are discussed under the headings of “motivation,” “making music,” “making time,” and “is it leisure?” with reference to the constructs of eudaimonism and serious leisure. The chapter then considers practical and ideological challenges posed by pursuit of the daimon, critiquing eudaimonism as both opposed to and inseparably bound up with the pervasive neoliberal pact in today’s Western societies. In conclusion, the author highlights the complexity of eudaimonsim, suggesting that, in combination with a reconsideration of leisure, the concept might help scholars and others to better understand success and the meanings of lives lived in music.

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