Classical Music needs to get off it's high horse

By -

There is an article in The Australian by Susan Chenery about Andrea Bocelli. Much of the first part of the article speaks of Mr Bocelli's struggle without sight, but midway through the article turns into an examination of the musical world Mr Bocelli lives in - a world of Classical Music which, in many respects doesn't respect him.

There is quote after quote of musical snobs who critique Mr Bocelli (IMHO) mercilessly. They attack his ability, they attack his styles and they attack the idea that millions of people are listening to classical music because him. It sounds as if they resent him - as if they are jealous of his fame, his success.

Many of the comments made about his performance quality are to some extent correct. But if you go to one of the (many) minor professional orchestra concerts, or semi-professional opera companies (let alone the amateur ones), you'll find many of the same "problems", lack of precision, intonation and style. These are still good concerts, maybe not as good as the concerts of the New York Philharmonic or at the Met - but they are still enjoyable. And there are just not enough professional concerts (or they're too pricey) for everyone to enjoy.

Exposing classical music, even less than perfect classical music, to the masses is a good thing. It can only mean more people will want to listen to this kind of music, which means more demand, meaning more opportunities, more income and more jobs. How is any of this bad news for classical music?

Rather than lambasting an artist who becomes successful, I suggest we try throwing our support for those artists who have yet to achieve, or who are not yet the Itzhak Perlmans but are willing to perform for less money and as a result reach a much broader audience. Classical music is classic because it has stood the test of time, proven to be something more than just a trend. Let's continue to share this wonderful music with the world (now more than 6 billion people). Not all of us can be perfect, but classical music is still amazing music even when performed slightly off.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Role of Music in Opera

By -
There are numerous books on the topic, and every composer, librettist, director, singer and audience member has their opinion as to what role the music should play in an opera. In a play without music, the words ought to support the meaning behind a character's actions. However, in the case of action movies, often times the action is what tells the story and there aren't words, just images to forward the plot. We might hear music to accompany action, build tension, but the action tells the story. Musicals tend to speak until the emotion of the moment just "has" to break out in song - unless it's something like "Mama Mia" where the dialog is the rails we travel on between songs; the songs themselves, written before the concept of the musical, are the focus of the production, while the story is secondary. Operas are a different beast. The music provides emotion to the words spoken, but it also plays the role of ambience when there is only action. In ...
Read more

Episode 210b: Joyeuse le départ

By -
Image
Podcast:  Play in new window  |  Download Subscribe:  Apple Podcasts  |  Android  |  Google Play  |  Stitcher  |  TuneIn  |  RSS Provost Cunningham has Transmigrated, but to where! What is Dr Sage going to do with his body? And how can she bring home her friends, Abigail and Erasmus, without also bring home Cunningham? What are they going to say when they find the “skeleton” she’s hiding in her closet? Cast: Eddie Louise Clark  as Dr Sage Chip Clark  as Professor Savant Justin Bremer  as the Narrator Emily Riley Piatt  as Abigail Entwhistle, Calypso & Dean Stewart Written by  Eddie Louise Theme music by  Unwoman Sound Design by  Chip Michael
Read more

Teaching Composition – What are we trying to achieve

By -
In the process of learning composition I have spent time with a number of instructors who have encouraged me to write twelve-tone, pitch-class, electro-acoustic and other forms of experimental techniques. No matter how much I might understand and appreciate the work of other composers in the genres, these are not forms of music I resonate with. They are simply not forms of music I listen to and I struggle with the idea of writing them. However, in a Master Class by Libby Larsen she made the comment, “Learn them all, because all forms of music have something to offer.” This I very much agree. There are elements of each of the above mentioned forms (and others) that I do resonate with. Berg’s Violin Concerto is a beautiful twelve-tone work, although it is possible to look at numerous sections of the music with a “tonal” analysis. Another composer friend, Gary Bachlund commented that using these techniques can narrow the choices for how to compose a piece of work. If you look at ...
Read more