4 ms·

"In the summer of 1968, a friend and I went to see the blockbuster movie of the year—2001: A Space Odyssey." So did I, and in the same year—1968. And I went wi

"In the summer of 1968, a friend and I went to see the blockbuster movie of the year—2001: A Space Odyssey." So did I, and in the same year—1968. And I went with a friend from uni to see the movie. The next day the physics prac teacher spent much of the lesson whingeing that our behavior was unacceptable and that he did not expect to have to lecture to an empty class. The film had a profound effect on many of us and I still reckon it's the greatest science fiction film ever made. Even as a kid I liked classical music having been brought up in a household where it was the norm—both my parents appreciated classical music. Nevertheless, 2001: A Space Odyssey was the first time I had heard Strauss' Also Sprach Zarathustra. Frankly, it blew me away when I heard it in the film. Kubrick, couldn't have found a more appropriate piece, its selection was absolute genius. Funny isn't it, some years later I was involved in setting up a listener-sponsored classical music FM radio station. That said, I no longer consider myself as being normal—at least when it comes to music. I've tried to get interested in much of the mainstream rock and popular music and much of it does nothing for me. I simply cannot understand why I like classical music and why so many others have no interest in it at all. Except for a tiny percentage of oddballs like me, classical music is essentially dead. I feel like a dinosaur, a throwback from another era.

OldGuyInTheClub 3y ago
> I've tried to get interested in much of the mainstream rock and popular music and much of it does nothing for me. I simply cannot understand why I like classical music and why so many others have no interest in it at all. This resonates with me. I got hooked young and it has stuck with me through the decades. There are vast swathes of 'classical' that I won't listen to but just about everything I do listen to fits within the 'classical' umbrella. > Except for a tiny percentage of oddballs like me, classical music is essentially dead. It is possible to be more optimistic if one looks at South Korea, Japan, and China. There are superb young instrumentalists and ensembles coming from there and they have enthusiastic audiences.
- hilbert42 3y ago
  "There are vast swathes of 'classical' that I won't listen to but just about everything I do listen to fits within the 'classical' umbrella." I understand that. There are classical works that I've little time for. Like any classical music lover, I have strong preferences for certain composers and compositions. I indicated several in my reply to musicale. In your quote of me I chose the words 'much of the mainstream rock and popular music' with care as I do like some modern music, and some of it I find very inventive and cleaver. That said, I can't stand to listen to rap and most stuff with a monotonous repetitive beat, it's boring and doesn't make sense to me. How people find it interesting I'm damned if I know. I fully take your point about those Asian countries and classical music, they are producing many performers of world class. Several weeks ago I was listening to the Sydney International Piano Competition and the young Asian performers were remarkable for their age. I stumbled across the Competition by accident on FM not knowing what it was. I came in part way through a stunning performance of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 22 in E flat major —a work I know very well, I not only have multiple recording thereof but also a copy of the score (but my piano playing doesn't extend to me being able to perform it). Anyway, I was quite transfixed by the brilliant playing. During the performance I was trying to figure out who the artist was but to no avail. When the back-announcement said it was Jeonghwan Kim I was very surprised. Kim, although Asian, is based in Berlin, it shows the lengths these Asian performers will go to achieve excellence. What I'm still unclear about is why the West has largely lost interest in classical music, it's essentially ditched its own cultural heritage. By way of example, that FM station broadcasting the competition has less than 1% of the radio audience. Proof enough I reckon that people have little interest.
musicale 3y ago
> Except for a tiny percentage of oddballs like me, classical music is essentially dead Opera may have fallen out of popularity, but stage and screen musicals are still popular. Classical music may have fallen out of popularity, but film music in the classical style is certainly popular. I also keep noticing how certain popular classical works or excerpts (such as O Fortuna from Carmina Burana, Dies Irae from Mozart's Requiem, the overture from Carmen, etc.) are used as stand-in music and in film promotion, and many classical pieces show up in film releases as well. Along with the yourself and the author, I concur that film music may be a gateway into wider appreciation of classical music.
- hilbert42 3y ago
  "Classical music may have fallen out of popularity, but film music in the classical style is certainly popular." That's true, same with musicals, but it's a great shame that many more people don't listen to say Mozart/Da Ponte's Don Giovanni and Bach's B minor Mass. Those works are a part of the great musical canon and two of the greatest works of musical art ever to come out of the Western Tradition, and if people were given the right opportunity and environment I believe many, many more people would appreciate them. Moreover, whilst I'm unashamedly biased in saying that, I've even heard learned musicologists echo similar sentiments about those works. I selected two examples I love but I could have chosen other very accessible classical works such as Magnificat BWV 243, and the The Marriage of Figaro. or other equally famous ones. Sure, opera has fallen out of favor, but if given half a chance I'd defy modern audiences not to like Don Giovanni. As you'd know, even if one doesn't speak Italian, once one understands its synopsis one is compulsorily drawn in by its drama—which is the equal of many a modern work—sex, rape, murder, a macho he-man who's often the secret envy of many men, an uninvited ghostly figure who comes to supper and demands the villain's repentance and his refusal to give it, then his inevitable descent into Hades—and all that to WAM's divine music. Even today, drama doesn't get much more intense. The Don was such a scandal in 1786 in that it was banned in Vienna and first performed in Prague. Similarly, there are many other works that ought to be easily accessible to modern audiences but they seem to be only appreciated by the small cognoscenti, Die Zauberflöte for instance. You refer to certain classical works or excerpts as being still popular and I'd agree, but I'd make the point that as far as general popularity goes they are the vestiges of a past era. No doubt these works will remain popular but that they are mainly excerpts shows that most modern audiences have little tolerance for the remainder of such works, or the patience to investigate them further and deeper. One sees this trend even on FM stations dedicated to classical music, instead of playing the full work they'll play an excerpt. Frankly, I find just hearing Dies Irae alone and apart from Requiem somewhat annoying, the context, mood and setting are lost by not hearing the complete work. Carmina Burana is a wonderful work so why wouldn't someone want to hear all of it? Incidentally, have you seen or heard the modern interpretation of Carmen called The Car Men? I once caught it by accident on TV and was mightily impressed. I understand the reason for excerpts and the popularity of works such as Eine kleine Nachtmusik, they don't require much effort to appreciate and these days people are overloaded with information and activities and have little time to listen and digest the more complex parts of a work. Moreover, that's not always easy and it often takes considerable time to develop one's full appreciation. I use myself as an example, when I was a kid and young teenager, I'd listen, say, to Beethoven symphonies and love them, but it wasn't until my 20s that Schubert's lieder like Die schöne Müllerin, and Winterreise, had the power to reduce me to tears.

OldGuyInTheClub 3y ago

> I've tried to get interested in much of the mainstream rock and popular music and much of it does nothing for me. I simply cannot understand why I like classical music and why so many others have no interest in it at all. This resonates with me. I got hooked young and it has stuck with me through the decades. There are vast swathes of 'classical' that I won't listen to but just about everything I do listen to fits within the 'classical' umbrella. > Except for a tiny percentage of oddballs like me, classical music is essentially dead. It is possible to be more optimistic if one looks at South Korea, Japan, and China. There are superb young instrumentalists and ensembles coming from there and they have enthusiastic audiences.

hilbert42 3y ago
"There are vast swathes of 'classical' that I won't listen to but just about everything I do listen to fits within the 'classical' umbrella." I understand that. There are classical works that I've little time for. Like any classical music lover, I have strong preferences for certain composers and compositions. I indicated several in my reply to musicale. In your quote of me I chose the words 'much of the mainstream rock and popular music' with care as I do like some modern music, and some of it I find very inventive and cleaver. That said, I can't stand to listen to rap and most stuff with a monotonous repetitive beat, it's boring and doesn't make sense to me. How people find it interesting I'm damned if I know. I fully take your point about those Asian countries and classical music, they are producing many performers of world class. Several weeks ago I was listening to the Sydney International Piano Competition and the young Asian performers were remarkable for their age. I stumbled across the Competition by accident on FM not knowing what it was. I came in part way through a stunning performance of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 22 in E flat major —a work I know very well, I not only have multiple recording thereof but also a copy of the score (but my piano playing doesn't extend to me being able to perform it). Anyway, I was quite transfixed by the brilliant playing. During the performance I was trying to figure out who the artist was but to no avail. When the back-announcement said it was Jeonghwan Kim I was very surprised. Kim, although Asian, is based in Berlin, it shows the lengths these Asian performers will go to achieve excellence. What I'm still unclear about is why the West has largely lost interest in classical music, it's essentially ditched its own cultural heritage. By way of example, that FM station broadcasting the competition has less than 1% of the radio audience. Proof enough I reckon that people have little interest.

musicale 3y ago

> Except for a tiny percentage of oddballs like me, classical music is essentially dead Opera may have fallen out of popularity, but stage and screen musicals are still popular. Classical music may have fallen out of popularity, but film music in the classical style is certainly popular. I also keep noticing how certain popular classical works or excerpts (such as O Fortuna from Carmina Burana, Dies Irae from Mozart's Requiem, the overture from Carmen, etc.) are used as stand-in music and in film promotion, and many classical pieces show up in film releases as well. Along with the yourself and the author, I concur that film music may be a gateway into wider appreciation of classical music.

hilbert42 3y ago
"Classical music may have fallen out of popularity, but film music in the classical style is certainly popular." That's true, same with musicals, but it's a great shame that many more people don't listen to say Mozart/Da Ponte's Don Giovanni and Bach's B minor Mass. Those works are a part of the great musical canon and two of the greatest works of musical art ever to come out of the Western Tradition, and if people were given the right opportunity and environment I believe many, many more people would appreciate them. Moreover, whilst I'm unashamedly biased in saying that, I've even heard learned musicologists echo similar sentiments about those works. I selected two examples I love but I could have chosen other very accessible classical works such as Magnificat BWV 243, and the The Marriage of Figaro. or other equally famous ones. Sure, opera has fallen out of favor, but if given half a chance I'd defy modern audiences not to like Don Giovanni. As you'd know, even if one doesn't speak Italian, once one understands its synopsis one is compulsorily drawn in by its drama—which is the equal of many a modern work—sex, rape, murder, a macho he-man who's often the secret envy of many men, an uninvited ghostly figure who comes to supper and demands the villain's repentance and his refusal to give it, then his inevitable descent into Hades—and all that to WAM's divine music. Even today, drama doesn't get much more intense. The Don was such a scandal in 1786 in that it was banned in Vienna and first performed in Prague. Similarly, there are many other works that ought to be easily accessible to modern audiences but they seem to be only appreciated by the small cognoscenti, Die Zauberflöte for instance. You refer to certain classical works or excerpts as being still popular and I'd agree, but I'd make the point that as far as general popularity goes they are the vestiges of a past era. No doubt these works will remain popular but that they are mainly excerpts shows that most modern audiences have little tolerance for the remainder of such works, or the patience to investigate them further and deeper. One sees this trend even on FM stations dedicated to classical music, instead of playing the full work they'll play an excerpt. Frankly, I find just hearing Dies Irae alone and apart from Requiem somewhat annoying, the context, mood and setting are lost by not hearing the complete work. Carmina Burana is a wonderful work so why wouldn't someone want to hear all of it? Incidentally, have you seen or heard the modern interpretation of Carmen called The Car Men? I once caught it by accident on TV and was mightily impressed. I understand the reason for excerpts and the popularity of works such as Eine kleine Nachtmusik, they don't require much effort to appreciate and these days people are overloaded with information and activities and have little time to listen and digest the more complex parts of a work. Moreover, that's not always easy and it often takes considerable time to develop one's full appreciation. I use myself as an example, when I was a kid and young teenager, I'd listen, say, to Beethoven symphonies and love them, but it wasn't until my 20s that Schubert's lieder like Die schöne Müllerin, and Winterreise, had the power to reduce me to tears.