A musical performance can’t be judged by familiarity alone. If it sounds different, it doesn’t mean that it is inferior. It should be judged by skill and the quality of sound. If it is judged by a sound that is familiar only, it can’t be a true evaluation. The quality of sound has nothing to do with public opinion. Skill should be what is judged and not familiarity.
As inclination changes, the unstable tide of public judgment changes with it. The quality of sound is not firmly entrenched in the convictions of man and is vulnerable to how the masses think of it. Popular opinion will always be the judge as the followers keep following it and think that it is a true evaluation. And since it seems to be so convincing, it will always be the commanding voice.
I am a true fan of the TV show "American Idol." The voters are always voting for the singers whose voices sound like voices that they are familiar with (that suit their taste) and not the quality of the voice and the performance. I'm mad as hell but can't change how the public thinks.