No Music Day

No Music Day (the 21st of November) is an event introduced by Bill Drummond to draw attention to the cheapening of music as an art form due to its mindless and ubiquitous use in contemporary society. Drummond explained "I decided I needed a day I could set aside to listen to no music whatsoever, [...] Instead, I would be thinking about what I wanted and what I didn't want from music. Not to blindly -- or should that be deafly -- consume what was on offer. A day where I could develop ideas."

The date of November 21 was chosen as it is the day before the feast of Saint Cecilia, who is the patron saint of music. This follows the traditional observance of antithetical events on the day before religious occasions, such as celebrating Mardi Gras before the start of Lent.

Manifesto

 Notice
 on no music day:
 no hymns will be sung.
 no records will be played on the radio.
 ipods will be left at home.
 rock bands will not rock.
 conductors will not take the podium.
 decks will not spin.
 the needle will not drop.
 the piano lid will not be lifted.
 films will have no soundtrack.
 jingles will not jangle.
 milkmen will not whistle.
 choirboys will shut their mouths.
 recording studios will not roll.
 mcs will not pass the mic.
 brass bands practice will be postponed.
 the strings will not serenade.
 plecturms will not pluck.
 record shops will be closed all day.
 and you will not take part in any sort of music making or listening whatsoever.
 
 nomusic day exists for various reasons, you may have one.

References

• Silence is Golden - or for at least one day of the year it is Bill Drummond's manifesto No music day The Guardian Sunday October 15, 2006
• How No Music Day struck a chord BBC 21 November 2007
• Who’ll Stop the Ring Tones? New York Times November 18, 2007
• No iPod, Radio or Humming on 'No Music Day' NPR All things considered, Melissa Block interviews Drummond.
• A little music goes a long way Thomas Sutcliffe in The Independent 23 November 2007.
• Britain to tune out on No Music Day Michael White, International Herald Tribune November 19, 2007.
• The divine sound of silence: Britain's No Music Day offers a welcome hush over a noisy world. It can't come to America soon enough Kevin Berger salon.com Nov. 22, 2007
• A day for savouring the sound of silence Laura Battle in Financial Times November 17, 2009.

External links

• nomusicday.com
• Bill Drummond Interview - No Music Day Has Been And Gone, The Quietus, 23 Nov. 2009.