Taste vs. quality

Does objective quality exist? I think it does. I was in the car with my daughter today. Just as we reached our destination, Adele’s ‘Easy On Me’ came on the radio.

‘Awww… are we already here? I like this song!’

I parked the car, but kept the radio on for a bit, so she could keep listening. Even after I shut it off, my daughter kept humming the melody.

So my seven year old daughter likes Adele, like her father. Is that a coincidence? OK, she has my genes and grows up in a house where Adele’s and similar music are played. But could it be that Adele has a general quality that appeals to everyone, young and old?

Maybe you don’t like her music, like we do. But even if you don’t like her style, her voice, or her personality, it’s hard to ignore the music. It’s simply good. Innovative? Not really. Groundbreaking? Hardly. But it is good. It has quality.

When something is bad, we can all tell. We also just know when something is good. Movies, books, food, designs. Because behind good experiences lie certain principles that go beyond ‘taste’. They are consistent and coherent. Familiar yet novel.

Tastes differ. But quality is universal.