"This fear of alienation is a slippery slope descending towards the ridiculous, as any ensemble which has tried dressing up in pointy shoes and pretending to be ‘medieval’ can attest."I should admit a bias here as someone extremely fond of the medieval pointy shoe (and so much more comfortable than the modern high heel that a female performer might otherwise be expected to wear!). But why does he think it so obviously ridiculous and pandering to the audience to dress as they did in the middle ages when performing medieval music? Why, indeed, isn't this 'odd' clothing potentially seen as more alienating to an audience, more risky, than standard concert dress?
There are at least two issues here, I think. One is that the medieval costume is seen as all part of the 'drums and fun' attitude, which prevents the music from being taken seriously. The other, as hinted at in the quote, is that by wearing a costume, the performer is 'pretending' to be someone they are not, some character from the middle ages; rather than being themselves, playing music from the middle ages. I don't think either is a good reason to suggest the practice is inherently ridiculous.
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