Question

What subject material and style of music in a musical production would appeal to an audience of your peers?

Answer 1

People tend to listen to and remember music that they like, but they also remember music that is meaningful to them, music that helps them to define an identity for themselves – usually this means that the music will help them to feel a sense of belonging in a community that is part of their sense of who they are. This tends to be true whether it is music that stirs in them a sense of patriotism and cultural nationalism, identification with their local community and the things that it values, or even membership in a community devoted to a culture they love, which may or may not be defined as their “own” based on where they live, or even on their ethnicity or ancestry.

The answer may differ depending on the kind of music one prefers. As a classically-trained musician with a research interest in national traditional music, I prefer to listen to music that I've encountered throughout my musical life. What I listen to in the privacy of my own home may be predictable to those that know me, but in no sense are my listening choices determined by any sense of community or peer pressure.