<p>Your child wants to major in classical music - how viable is this major?</p>
<p>I think everyone knows the reality.</p>
<p>But sometimes you just have to go for BAROQUE.</p>
<p>(smiley face).</p>
<p>This isn’t a new phenomenon, it is something that has been going on a long, long time…even when you see crowded concert halls, take a look and see who the audience is, and that is what is scaring a lot of people. Classical music has always drawn older audiences I suspect, for a number of reasons, but today the audiences are frankly getting older and older; I am not exactly in the first bloom of youth, but I am a babe in arms at most events. And with a bad economy, and with classical musical tickets being relatively expensive (even going to see a regional orchestra like the NJSO at a theater in New Brunswick, NJ can set you back 80 bucks), it is not surprising that audiences are declining. The only young people you see at concerts tend to be music students, many of whom if they don’t make it in music, seem to drift away from going to concerts from what I can tell. Despite all the hype about Asians helping save classical music, that has mostly been in performing,not in the concert halls, and it is audiences that are the problem. </p>
<p>It is why people are hopeful that Dudamel isn’t a flash in the pan so to speak, but rather is a fundamental change in direction (the LA Phil apparently has been drawing younger audiences, as has MTT in SF, if the reports are correct), that they can get people otherwise not interested in classical music going. Classical music is going to have to wake up and realize this isn’t the 1940’s or even 50’s, that to stay afloat it has to find the audiences. There are plenty of things going on that are encouraging, classical music happening in clubs and bars, classical musicians “crossing over” and also Pop stars like Sting bringing some focus on classical music, but there is still a huge lack of audiences out there. </p>
<p>But in reality think about the concert hall and the atttitude of those putting on the performances and those frankly who do go to concerts. Their attitude is "this is my space, you behave as we want you to; don’t bring children, sit there quietly, back straight, don’t think of swaying or humming, etc…and a conductor who may actually deem it proper to bow at the audience, as a big concession,and there you have classical music, detached, rigid, and frankly in many cases even to myself, deadly dull and boring as people perceive it. Maybe it is time that conductors and musicians interact with the audience somehow, maybe acknowledge it is a shared experience. MTT does that in SF from what I have been led to believe, and it seems to be working. Bring in music that is accessible to people who have grown up with pop, don’t assume like James Levine seems to that Elliot Carter and Milton Babbitt, because he likes them, are going to draw ‘new audiences’ because ‘it isn’t Bach and Beethoven’…that stuff is way more inaccessible to most people then Bach or Beethoven is. Dudamel is exciting, not only because he is one hell of a conductor, but because he can electrify an audience, and he isn’t afraid to lead an orchestra that is <em>gasp</em> actually having fun, too. I talk to a lot of not into classical music people, and their basic impression is that going to a classical music concert is like being forced to go to some great aunt’s house as a child, the one where you aren’t allowed to touch anything, have to sit there and say nothing, ignore her stupid remarks, and otherwise pretend you don’t exist.</p>
<p>Classical music wasn’t always this serious, I was reading a wonderful book written by a Pop critic who discovered the Bach Cello suites, and he pointed out that spontaneous clapping and such, that you would see at a jazz performance, were not uncommon in classical music, well into the 20th century, and that the whole not clapping between movements is not cast in stone and again is relatively recent. </p>
<p>That said, classical music has survived a lot of upheavals, and in some ways it probably is more popular and widespread today then it was in other times. It continues to be popular in Europe, even among young people, and that is a positive, and hopefully Asians, who have come to be the fastest growing group in classical music, and dominant in many areas these days, will also turn into audiences (sad fact is that Asians seem to be a lot more into playing the music then going to concerts; NYC and its surrounding area has a pretty sizeable Asian population, yet concerts routinely have very few Asian audience members). </p>
<p>Is it going to be easy? To quote one of my favorite music critics, “It always seems like it is hard times to be in classical music”, and that is true; I think someone going into it has to realize that a lot of the jobs that used to be there, aren’t going to be there, and it is going to take very unique skills to be able to go into classical music, and also that if they don’t have a total passion for it, it probably doesn’t make sense. I think a lot of the kids I see today, the ones who seem to have achieved incredible skills early, are going to find that that isn’t enough, not by a long shot, that it is going to take a lot more to grab people’s attention.</p>
<p>When we were in London, we went to a concert at the Royal Albert Hall. It seats 6000 people…more than live in my TOWN. The concert was sold out. AND it was not the only classical event on the calendar in London that evening.</p>
<p>The show was a musical extravaganza complete with pyrotechnics, dancers and a sing along with the audience. My daugher quipped “if our ____ orchestra did this type of program, maybe THEY would get larger audiences.” We all loved the show.</p>
<p>Making music approachable and appealing to a broad base of listeners and age groups is important. My son is in a group that does a blend of classical as well as other types of music, but their goal is to make it very appealing to a young audience…and they do. We’re mighty proud that groups like his exist.</p>
<p>…oh, people still listen to classical music? -_-</p>
<p>Yes people still listen to classical music!</p>
<p>One of the things we loved about living in Germany is that folks like and respect classical music. Even the smaller towns have their own orchestras. They also love pop, folks, etc. They understand that there is room for all, and all have value.</p>
<p>I believe part of the problem in the US is that we’ve “dumbed down” music in general. It used to be that everyone took piano lessons, everyone had some idea of how to read music. Churches used hymn books and sang four-part harmony. Music was understood as expression, and valued for the complexity.</p>
<p>Now, folks who were not exposed to music growing up only understand strong rhythms and volume. We care about “music you can dance to”. Parents are gushing about their kids who can pick out a melody on an electronic keyboard and use synthesized accompaniment. (Seriously, we had kids auditioning for talent shows a few years back doing this, while the parents stood by gushing about their kid’s amazing talent.) Church music is “7-11” music - seven words, repeated 11 times. It’s considered complex if it has more than 2 chords. My church is all about the show - strobe lights, smoke machine, and inane lyrics. We can’t hear the music through the noise.</p>
<p>And as music is made marginal in the schools, there are fewer folks who see value in it. As budgets get cut, music is seen as a luxury.</p>
<p>The last time I attended a symphony, my husband and I commented on the fact that most of the orchestra was middle aged or elderly. It takes a long time for our music students to reach the level of proficiency necessary for a top orchestra. And once there, they tend to stay put. And our young folks sure don’t like to go watch old people. (Something tells me that if snowboarding was a skill acquired as one ages, and Shaun White was 50+, we’d be less enthralled with him?) Youth is valued in our culture. And younger audiences, raised on Sesame Street, want something different to look at every 3.5 seconds or so. I’d like to see orchestras branch out in that respect. The all-black attire was meant to cut back on distractions from the music, but if I just want music, I can buy a CD. It’s not a bad trend to give us something to look at.</p>
<p>However, I don’t believe that we need to sound the death toll for classical music yet. Youth orchestras around the country are filled with fine young musicians who will be filling orchestras - and audiences. Music directors are examining the problems of audience attraction, and experimenting with new ideas. </p>
<p>When I talk to parents of prospective piano students, I explain that my goal will not necessarily be to get them to a performance stage, but rather to instill a love and understanding of music that will put them in the concert hall audience. One student who has so far insisted that she only likes jazz (and fast, rhythmic stuff) has fallen in love with Vivaldi’s “Spring” and declares it the best thing she has EVER played.</p>
<p>With younger students, sometimes we’ll examine music from soundtracks. (Classical music is alive and well in Hollywood.) The kids will have to tell me what they think might be happening in the movie, based upon the music. Are they fighting? Is the prince about to kiss the princess? As they learn to interpret music without words, they learn a whole new language.</p>
<p>I think there’s a big problem with the repertoire. It is difficult to fill the seats with anything other than familiar pieces written prior to the 20th Century. Even Stravinsky’s music is “too modern” for many listeners, even though The Right of Spring is nearly 100 years old. And if you want to program atonal music, forget it. I think the hope lies in innovative stuff like Bang On A Can, which is more audience-pleasing.</p>
<p>We’ve recently been attending extraordinary monthly concerts at the University Art Museum. The first one started at 9pm and ended after midnight - with Terry Riley by himself on piano in the center of the floor - and the audience lying on sleeping bags and blankets all around him, or perched on the prosceniums above. There were 800-1000 folks there, and only a tiny handful were over 30. Listening to music lying down was great! I was sure, after a long work week, I would fall asleep - but instead it was one of the most riveting concerts I’ve attended. And the huge young audience was enthralled.</p>
<p>Breaking down the proscenium fascinates me.</p>
<p>At another one of these concerts there was a huge amorphous orange sculpture in the middle of the floor. The 500+ (again, mostly young) audience sat, laid, stood all over this strange sculpture, and the music was played in stations all around. And all quite wild stuff - Fluxus from the 60’s, early Steve Reich with swinging microphones - a Ligeti piece for 100 metronomes. The audience seemed to enjoy it all. The experience of experiencing it was a huge part of the whole event - it made the sum total greater than its parts.</p>
<p>The same presenter, for years, has put on a summer solstice event in a local mortuary (designed by Julia Morgan.) Thousands of people, of all ages wander through the mortuary/columbarium at will - stumbling on pockets of music tucked away in strange corners. Again, total enthusiasm from the mixed audience - and an openness to new experiences which are difficult to duplicate in the standard concert hall.</p>
<p>On the other hand, we went over to Mills College to a conventional auditorium the other night to hear a wonderful concert of Julia Wolfe’s works and there was a sparse audience - mostly related to the performers, or old folks like us. It was very disappointing. If the concert had been in a club like Le Poisson Rouge in New York, I know it would have been packed with an enthusiastic audience.</p>
<p>Lots of experimentation is going on out there on ways to reach the audience - when it works, one discovers it can work beyond one’s best hopes.</p>
<p>
My son is in an ensemble from Yale that just played there (Sic Inc.). He said it was a great venue.
We recently saw a very crowded performance by Bang on a Can in the lobby of the Performing Arts Center at U. Md. College Park–they were playing an arrangement of Brian Eno’s Music for Airports. It was a pretty cool scene.
I do think there is some danger of the gimmicks overcoming the music, though.</p>
<p>I saw your son’s group had a midnight concert. My son was thinking of having a concert starting then or later - he says on campus everyone’s up but there’s nothing to do! My guess is the hard part will be getting the janitor to stay up that late to lock the venue after…</p>
<p>This is an important and necessary conversation to have. But the age thing will never quite go away–rather it’s a case of ensuring each new generation takes up classical music as it ages. </p>
<p>I like one quote in particular from the following article: “Classical music has never been the passion of the young. It is an acquired taste that requires both encouragement and education, like voting or drinking Scotch.”</p>
<p>[The</a> Unsung Success of Live Classical Music - Wall Street Journal](<a href=“http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122299103207600279.html?mod=googlenews_wsj]The”>http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122299103207600279.html?mod=googlenews_wsj)</p>
<p>(disclaimer–my boss wrote this, but I happen to agree with it on its merits)</p>
<p>I live in rural western Pennsylvania, so one would think I would never see classical music unless I went to Pittsburgh or the like. . .</p>
<p>so not true. In my county there are two major symphonies with salaried players, plus junior orchestras at both, plus concerto groups. Heading farther into central Pennsylvania are more chamber groups and another orchestra at our state college. Pittsburgh itself, in addition to the Pittsburgh Symphony, has the McKeesport Symphony, Edgewood Symphony, two youth symphonies, more concerto groups than I can name (Renaissance City Winds and Three Rivers Brass Band come to mind since we know musicians in both), several Baroque groups, two professional choral groups. . . All of this is within 45 minutes of my own home. Go farther out of state, but still within driving distance, and you have the Wheeling Symphony, WVU orchestra, Frostburg State Orchestra. . . </p>
<p>We can’t get to all the concerts we want to attend because there are just too many. </p>
<p>That is why I am constantly telling people there are many, many jobs in music. All of these groups do outreach to schools - really important for music to survive these days - and many offer summer camps, student recital opportunities and junior concerts. I think the classical world realizes it needs to reach children and is trying to do so.</p>
<p>A lot more could be done in the schools - why isn’t there AP Music History, for example? There’s Art History and kids for the rest of their lives will be able to go into museums and enjoy the art more than would have otherwise, because they will have some sense of the periods of art, etc. I took music history in high school in LA in the 60’s and a lot of it stuck with me - and it led me as I grew older to try listening to classical music - and I was, by my mid-20’s, very interested in classical music - at least the standards: Bach, Beethoven (not Brahms) - it was when my kids got into classical music that I became more knowledgeable and interested in contemporary and also 19th century music. So much of this is exposure. Kids now learn about jazz and become quite excited about it. I have no doubt that kids taught properly could be very excited about classical music long before they turn gray. Dream on…I know…</p>
<p>haha, just kidding with u, thumper. sort of : P</p>
<p>u know what i think would attract my generation to classical music? setting it to rap lyrics. i can totally see it now. give it 10 years…it will explode!</p>