Extreme sports are sports “taking place at potentially dangerous speeds or heights, or involving a high level of physical exertion, highly specialized gear, or spectacular stunts.”
I think the beauty of great music-making is that they are un-extreme sports. Without any of the show, the physical risk, or special technology of an extreme sport, a choir can move an audience to tears, to laughter, to joy.
It’s not flashy, and it’s not, perhaps, as TV-friendly as base jumping or competitive skateboarding. But what it loses in extremeness it gains in its accessibility, its universality, and its ability to connect people and transcend differences.
Maybe that’s why so many televised attempts to make music into an extreme competition feel flat to me: it goes against what I think makes music worthwhile.
Music-making isn’t an extreme sport, and I’m so glad it isn’t.