That is cool! I don't buy a huge number of classical CDs but I have several of hers! I heard her interviewed on NPR quite a few years ago and that led me to her CDs. She is a wonderful artist!
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A millennial's rant on classical music
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Russell484
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Well I grew up listening to Beethoven, Chuck Berry, Schubert, Horace Silver, Gesualdo and Dizzy Gillespie, Mozart and Mingus, Couperin and Coltrane, Bach and Bukka White, Ravel and Bill Evans, Mendelsohn and Martha and the Vandellas, de Falla ad Dylan, etc. I only liked classical all periods, jazz all genres, rock and roll, bluegrass and classic country, Celtic music and Flamenco. It wasn't till later than I came to appreciate, Son House, and Mike Bloomfield, Little Walter and Magic Sam, Japanese music, gamelin music, Gregorian chant, Bluegrass and Indian music. I attend lots of Ballet and dance events and the music is varied from Tchaikovsky to modern minimalist classical, R&B, Reggae and Ragtime, atonal classical, Ornette Coleman, etc. and I enjoy all of it. Variety in music as in food is the spice of life.
I have always found classical music deeply moving, Beethoven's sonatas, Schubert's songs and chamber music, Bach's choral preludes and sonatas and partitas for solo violin and cello, Gesualdo's madrigals, Ravel's orchestral and piano pieces, De Falla's mysteries of Spanish music, etc. I find something different in Jazz rythmns, excitement, musical surprises and adventure. I find a mix of both deep feeling and rythmn and dance in the blues. Oriental and Indian music is fascinating in its different tonalities and scales, in that way like jazz.. Finally Rock is a fascinating mixture on of influences and an ever evolving stew of American musical traditions..
There were my most profoundly moving live musical experiences: 1. Hearing Muddy Water's band with Otis Spann and James Cotton for the first time. I was astounded and speechless, big city blues, loud, electric, screaming like the Chicago El. 2. Hearing Tony Williams hard driving the Miles Davis Quintet, black music, black jazz, ripping and tearing, crying and sobbing the guts of jazz. 3. I was choked up and teary eyed hearing the incredible Son House playing and singing, filling the auditorium with his voice - pure emotion, pure soul, pure blues and all the way back to the absolute roots of Black American Music. When I think of strength and pride and soul I think of Son House. 4. Hearing Heifitz perform Bach's D minor partita was was an out of body experience. Bach builds and builds and builds the music, builds the emotion until the Chaconne grabs you and lifts you to the other world. Only Beethoven or Bach could build great cathedrals out of musical popsicle sticks. 5. Finally at, Winterland, listening to Jimi improvising between songs, taking us on an impromptu journey through R&B and Soul, and Blues. Just palying casually to see where it would take him, and us. Then into the next song, always fresh, as if he'd never played it or sung it before. What an incredible musician. Jimi was. He was so fresh, literally discovering the music as he played it, taking you with him on the journey - reminding me in that way of another great musical tour guide, Beethoven.
What do I like? I like was is real, what is genuine, what is hearfelt, what is creative and original, what is beautiful, what is honest, what takes me somewhere new, what someone has cried over, and what people can't help dancing to, or dreaming to. Forget what it is called, just listen to the music.
I have always found classical music deeply moving, Beethoven's sonatas, Schubert's songs and chamber music, Bach's choral preludes and sonatas and partitas for solo violin and cello, Gesualdo's madrigals, Ravel's orchestral and piano pieces, De Falla's mysteries of Spanish music, etc. I find something different in Jazz rythmns, excitement, musical surprises and adventure. I find a mix of both deep feeling and rythmn and dance in the blues. Oriental and Indian music is fascinating in its different tonalities and scales, in that way like jazz.. Finally Rock is a fascinating mixture on of influences and an ever evolving stew of American musical traditions..
There were my most profoundly moving live musical experiences: 1. Hearing Muddy Water's band with Otis Spann and James Cotton for the first time. I was astounded and speechless, big city blues, loud, electric, screaming like the Chicago El. 2. Hearing Tony Williams hard driving the Miles Davis Quintet, black music, black jazz, ripping and tearing, crying and sobbing the guts of jazz. 3. I was choked up and teary eyed hearing the incredible Son House playing and singing, filling the auditorium with his voice - pure emotion, pure soul, pure blues and all the way back to the absolute roots of Black American Music. When I think of strength and pride and soul I think of Son House. 4. Hearing Heifitz perform Bach's D minor partita was was an out of body experience. Bach builds and builds and builds the music, builds the emotion until the Chaconne grabs you and lifts you to the other world. Only Beethoven or Bach could build great cathedrals out of musical popsicle sticks. 5. Finally at, Winterland, listening to Jimi improvising between songs, taking us on an impromptu journey through R&B and Soul, and Blues. Just palying casually to see where it would take him, and us. Then into the next song, always fresh, as if he'd never played it or sung it before. What an incredible musician. Jimi was. He was so fresh, literally discovering the music as he played it, taking you with him on the journey - reminding me in that way of another great musical tour guide, Beethoven.
What do I like? I like was is real, what is genuine, what is hearfelt, what is creative and original, what is beautiful, what is honest, what takes me somewhere new, what someone has cried over, and what people can't help dancing to, or dreaming to. Forget what it is called, just listen to the music.
Robin L
Master Contributor
Gotta hear that.Dennis Brain "owned" the first Hindemith Horn Sonata. . . 
Again, what I'm talking about with Duke Ellington is different in that Duke's pieces were intended to be used in performances that were mostly improvised. The "dedicated" works of past masters might have cadenzas or other opportunities for improvisation, but improvisation is central to Jazz. Duke wrote frames for specific performers to fill in. Fundamentally different in the same way that Indian "classical" music is fundamentally different from 'Western' classical music while requiring an analogous level of musical skill.
Know Dennis Brain's Mozart & Richard Strauss, also his:
I am a huge Gerard Hoffnung fan!
OK, but what do you listen to? To read your post, if a person listened to music 10 hours a day he couldn't become conversant in "everything" , in a life time. So when you sit down in front of your HiFi, to involve yourself in the music that you love, what genre(s) do you listen to.
And don't say "everything" again cause I don't buy it.
Robin L
Master Contributor
When someone is asked "What kind of music do you like?" and they say "everything", I find that dubious. First off, no one has heard everything. Second, everybody has some music they hate, or even worse, music they are indifferent towards. I hate metal at its rawest, am bored with most "modern country."
I like good music, and have heard good and bad music in most every genre. (Percentages do vary.)
It's like any art--the landscape photographers look down their noses at the street photographers, who think of the landscape photographers as being as fossilized as the pretty rocks they photograph. Whatever--there is plenty of good photography that is not hip or current or even popular right now, and plenty that is. Art is like that. People spend too much time arguing about what is or isn't art, instead of focusing on the art that moves them and trying to expose its wonders to those who haven't heard or seen it.
Rick "life it too short to complain about art I don't like" Denney
It's like any art--the landscape photographers look down their noses at the street photographers, who think of the landscape photographers as being as fossilized as the pretty rocks they photograph. Whatever--there is plenty of good photography that is not hip or current or even popular right now, and plenty that is. Art is like that. People spend too much time arguing about what is or isn't art, instead of focusing on the art that moves them and trying to expose its wonders to those who haven't heard or seen it.
Rick "life it too short to complain about art I don't like" Denney
Agreed. Same as "What kind of
paulraphael
Active Member
You might be interested in this article by Alex Ross, classical and jazz critic at the New Yorker 17 years ago.
Opening line: "I hate classical music."
It's one of my favorite music rants.
Robin L
Master Contributor
"Here's your omelet with sheep's eyeballs, sir".
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OTOH one can like a selection of a wider range than others and be interested in finding new things. When people say they like "all" kinds of food usually think sushi covers Japan and General Gau's chicken and fried rice covers China.
I once got a look at the register when I bought a CD of Tibetan chanting and one of Minor Threat. I told the clerk, "Well they both shave their heads".
I don't like fine wines, beers, cigars. I know I'm missing out on some great experiences people are having with all kinds of fine things. I've eaten at a 5 star restaurant and while the presentation and setting was amazing I preferred Skipper's Fish and Chips to the fish they served me. I also felt like a fish out of water in that place. The fact is we're all going to miss out on a lot of really great stuff because of the limits of our mortal minds. I wouldn't worry about it. Don't have too much FOMO! You've given classical music a decent chance and it just ain't working automatically for you.
That being said, you may be able to force it if you are determined and curious enough, which brings me to my experience with Caesar Franck's Symphony in D minor. I was 12 years old and discovered my dad had this work in his record collection. I listened to it all the way through, read the cover notes on the album, and was thoroughly unimpressed. It was so bland and meaningless to me. Why would anybody write that? For some reason I decided that there must be something there or they wouldn't have bothered making the recording so, like a monk, I meditatively listened to it over and over trying to find a "hook" that my mind could connect with. In time it happened. The piece became magical to me and it was shocking at that point that I ever heard it as bland and meaningless. Was it Stockholm syndrome setting in? I don't know, but it was amazing and I still find that piece to be very moving now. So it might be possible if you're willing to sensory deprive yourself long enough from the music you already like and earnestly seek a connection that you could force yourself to like classical music.
That being said, you may be able to force it if you are determined and curious enough, which brings me to my experience with Caesar Franck's Symphony in D minor. I was 12 years old and discovered my dad had this work in his record collection. I listened to it all the way through, read the cover notes on the album, and was thoroughly unimpressed. It was so bland and meaningless to me. Why would anybody write that? For some reason I decided that there must be something there or they wouldn't have bothered making the recording so, like a monk, I meditatively listened to it over and over trying to find a "hook" that my mind could connect with. In time it happened. The piece became magical to me and it was shocking at that point that I ever heard it as bland and meaningless. Was it Stockholm syndrome setting in? I don't know, but it was amazing and I still find that piece to be very moving now. So it might be possible if you're willing to sensory deprive yourself long enough from the music you already like and earnestly seek a connection that you could force yourself to like classical music.
John Mayer, of all people, said (about the Grateful Dead, no less) that some music may just come to you at a time of life when you are ready for it. I loved the Mozart wind concertos when I was a little kid. They seem repetitive to me now. In high school I was all about the romantics - Debussy, Ravel, Barber. In college it was Beethoven and Schumann piano music. Then chamber music. I've come back to symphonic music more in my 50s, and I have a greater appreciation of some 20th century music. Classic be-bop was my main jazz thing when I was younger, but it gets a lot less play now, in favor of song interpreters like Bill Charlap and Brad Mehldau.
Aging/living seems to expose different musical nerves.
It's Science!
https://www.bsomusic.org/stories/the-power-of-musical-repetition/
I do try to give new music several listens before dismissing it, unless it's just a horrible experience.
Was the Franck record this one?
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Regarding the culture and apparent snobbery of classical music, I played in an orchestra up to the college level and never felt really comfortable wearing a tux. But there is a way of looking at it that I think is important to what classical music is often about. If you think about dressing up as a means to honor those around you and the event itself rather than to show off, I find it works to set the tone of mind. My enjoyment of classical music comes from a sense of wonder it creates, a sense of reverence for all those around me and all of the world we live in. Somebody said it's like a walk in the woods and I think that's a good way of looking at it. Glenn Gould complained about too much attention on the performer as a celebrity and I agree with him there. He wanted to portray the music and get out of the way as much as possible. He quit doing live performances and focused on recorded works. It might have worked but his grunts and groans while he played made it hard not to notice him.
You mentioned the separation between the performer and the composer as strange. Stranger still perhaps is the separation of the performer from the sound they are making. Most pop musicians seem to have strong stage presence and it really seems it is all about them and their style and personality. The music matches it and to like the music is to like their charisma. When I saw Isaac stern play on stage, he really didn't have much stage presence or charisma. Just some polite guy in a tux holding a violin and another polite guy sitting at the piano. When the music started it was like a magic veil came over the place. They were just a couple guys up there that knew how to do this magical thing. It wasn't about them. It was about the message in the music.
You mentioned the separation between the performer and the composer as strange. Stranger still perhaps is the separation of the performer from the sound they are making. Most pop musicians seem to have strong stage presence and it really seems it is all about them and their style and personality. The music matches it and to like the music is to like their charisma. When I saw Isaac stern play on stage, he really didn't have much stage presence or charisma. Just some polite guy in a tux holding a violin and another polite guy sitting at the piano. When the music started it was like a magic veil came over the place. They were just a couple guys up there that knew how to do this magical thing. It wasn't about them. It was about the message in the music.
Shoot, I was in a full "Big Band" ensemble and we wore tuxes.
Btw, if the audience weren't super quiet in traditional classical performance, much of the program would be inaudible.
Interesting article! I know that repetition helps, and it also can create nostalgia later in life. Guns n Roses was big when I was in boot camp, although I wasn't a fan. My company commander asked me "Recruit Link, do you like Guns n Roses?" I said no. He said "You will someday!" And he was kind of correct! I've never felt the desire to buy a Guns n Roses album but I sure get nostalgic feelings when I hear their music now.It's Science!
https://www.bsomusic.org/stories/the-power-of-musical-repetition/
I do try to give new music several listens before dismissing it, unless it's just a horrible experience.
Was the Franck record this one?
Repetition can also drive a person nearly mad. How many times in my life am I going to hear Hotel California??? I used to work in a shop with the radio stuck on the classic rock station. I think they played that song several times a day for 10 years straight.
I don't know if that's the album or not but I do recall it had a blue cover so there's a good chance it is.
The tux only accentuated the zits on my face.
Robin L
Master Contributor
I had something like the opposite experience. When I was 13, our family moved from Altadena California, to Fresno. 1968. My 7th grade homeroom teacher took a liking to me. Mrs Way was a classical music fan, and allowed me to borrow her records. The one that really snagged me was the Dimitri Mitropoulos/NYPO recording of Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique, totally magical from the moment I first heard it. There were other classical pieces I liked and heard before, but in the wake of 1967, having been hooked on the psychedelic sounds of top 40 that year, it was a revelation to hear a psychedelic symphony. Tying the whole thing together with witchcraft---what's not to like in the 13 year old imagination? This led to an obsession with Beethoven that continues to this day, in part from seeing Beethoven as a revolutionary figure, one that would have fit into the revolutionary hype of the late 1960's/early 1970's.
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