"The work of the imaginatiion consists in attempting to formulate all that one wants that is best, everything that goes beyond reality... To my mind, art, and above all music, consists in lifting us as far as possible above what is."
(Gabriel Faure in a letter to his son, Philippe Faure-Fremiet, August 1908)
16 comments:
Check out the lively and thoughtful review of a book titled book "What Good are the Arts" at Andante.com
http://www.andante.com/article/article.cfm?id=25578
4:30 am here in the US. Awoke suddenly from a deep sleep concerned my previous post might inadvertently have offended you, Jessica. If so, please accept my sincere apology!
I truly have only the highest respect for you and your contributors, and hope to continue to listen, learn and blog here respectfully for many years to come.
Sincerely,
Andrea
Don't worry about it, Andrea - your good intentions are clear! I don't happen to agree with your last post, but it's an interesting consideration. I don't believe that listening to music like Elgar, Faure et al, even if it does help us 'rise above' things, does induce the sort of 'naive amnesia' you're worried about, at least not among reasonably on-the-ball people. I certainly don't think we should stop listening to Elgar, Faure, Coleridge-Talor etc in case they make us forget 9/11 - or 7/7 - because they WON'T.
I DO think that the kind of mindless, head-banging rock, rap and club noise that the vast majority of people in the western world think music is CAN do a lot of damage in that direction, however. Music should stimulate thought, not prevent it.
And if it helps provide a consolation, a vision of a better and more beautiful parallel universe, we shouldn't complain!
Now please go and catch up on your sleep...
"I DO think that the kind of mindless, head-banging rock, rap and club noise that the vast majority of people in the western world think music is CAN do a lot of damage in that direction, however. Music should stimulate thought, not prevent it."
I can't agree more and yet, holding these views has made me unpopular with people who I greatly respect - and that includes my wife, who like me, was once a professional musician. We recently argued over my refusal to show any interest in the Live Eight Concert. It seems self evident to me that real music - be it Chopin, Schubert, Mozart or Rameau - is more rewarding, feeds a deeper part of the soul, than anything that would have been played at that event, just in the same way that I never go to eat at McDonalds. Actually I think there is a deeper parallel - don't you think that the artificial flavourings in a Big Mac are designed to achieve an analogous base stimulation of the taste buds as the regular beat of rock music gets straight through to a person's base rhythmic sense?
But for having such "elitist" views I have been accused as "lacking any sense of joy" and being a snob. My wife even threw Maxim Vengerov's wide-ranging musical sensibilities at me, saying that if Pink Floyd is good enough for him, I must be narrow- minded to refuse even to listen to the concert.
Are my tastes the product of my upbringing (which was narrow) or a recognition of some natural superiority?
All the best
Jonathan
Hey, Jonathan -
You bring up some very interesting points about classical v. rock/pop/modern etc. and the "elitist" factor. It is ultimately an unanswerable question, since each human being, each with his or her own musical experiences, responds to different types of music (at different times of one's life, I might add, as well.)
Just let me offer one idea, for some perspective. There has always been, most assuredly, in each and every musical era, both great and garbage writing. For instance, I am certain that Bach had at least his fair share of hack colleagues!
Similarly, I know for a fact that there is good music being written now, but we have to be discerning, and find it, among all the (as you correctly called it) McDonald's level junk.
Does that idea help or no?
Hi Andrea. Agree with the "at different times of one's life" bit. But I had to smile when, having said that it was all a question of personal opinion, you said that you knew that there is good music being written now "for a fact". Leaving that to one side, are you talking about Ferneyhough and Ligeti (for example) or stuff that I haven't heard of and would turn my nose up at. In either case, what, by whom?
Someone - I think it was Chabrier - once said that there are only three types of music: good music, bad music and the music of Ambroise Thomas [who was then head of the Paris Conservatoire].
Seems to me, after careful reflection, that our friend Jonathan is facing a true dilemma, one many of us who were raised with "narrow upringing" will recognize.
Does he, do I, do we, having received such a good, valuable and solid foundation in knowledge and love of classical music, congratulate ourselves on being "elitist" and having found music containing "natural superiority" and stop there?
Or do we continue to grow, to learn, to risk feeling "ignorant" in order to seek greater joy and intellectual appreciation in other composers, performers, styles, eras and cultures of music?
I wonder which one he will choose? I wonder which one each of us will choose as we journey along this road together ...
I don't believe any classical musician or music lover takes to the music we love for the sake of feeling superior or being elitist. We just like what we like, and why shouldn't we? Everyone who likes ANY kind of music - pop, jazz, classical, gamelan or anything else - thinks it's the best there is. The only difference is that we who love classical somehow feel we have to keep APOLOGISING for it. We should stop apologising! Nobody else does!
I totally agree, Jessica. We can and should be perfectly proud of our musical heritage and conent to like the music we like, even if others might label us!
Maybe I'm worried the previous blogger likes classical, won't give anything else a chance (not even the Beatles) and feels satisfied being "elitist"?
My point is, having said we love classical music, do we just stop there? What harm can there be to listen to others' favorite music (of whatever style or era) every once in a while, with a spirit of appreciation and respect?
Indeed, I believe that much good might come of a spirit of such respectful curiosity in music, not only on an individual basis, but also on a cross-cultural, intergenerational or even international peace building basis.
(I'll step back now and let others chime in ...)
I'm really pleased to have started such a good debate. Going back to me, I never set out to be elitist ("which kind of music does nobody like? Oh well I will pretend to like that"). Serious music was entered my bloodstream at a very early age, I responded and have rarely got the same nourishment from other musics. And as I often remind people who accuse me of narrowness, there is a very big range from Monteverdi to Ligeti.
I do wonder now and again if I am missing out on anything. But after a while you don't keep going back to MacDonalds to check if the burgers are going to grow on you. So I just accept that there might be stuff out there that I am missing out on, but that's my loss. And I do extend to Roby Lakatos, Blossom Dearie and a few others.
Andrea - you didn't come up with your list of the worthwhile music being written now - any chance?
Jonathan
Okay, Jonathan, since you insist, I'll take you on! I can and will give you examples of good music currently being written. But I am curious to know about your own existential search before I do so.
You seem to be saying that you occasionally wonder if you are missing out on something, musically speaking, but you also say that going back to McDonald’s, as you repeatedly put it, does not seem to be satisfying. To continue your metaphor, if you are hungry for more, why on earth do you keep going back to McDonald’s???
Why not go to the finest five star hotel and try their restaurant? (That would mean getting a season Symphony subscription.)
Why not ask the local newspaper food critic for a recommendation, since he/she knows all the restaurants in the area? (That would mean reading music reviews, books and blogs, like Jessica’s. She and the rest of us have put together quite a listening list amongst us just in the last week or so. Some were very specific recordings, with very specific artists.)
Why not go to the local gourmet shop and sample some fine wines and cheeses, then buy one or two you like, throw in some fruit and a blanket and have a picnic by the fireplace at home? (That would mean going to your local record shop and audio sampling some, buy one or two, and listening at home or in the car.)
Why not ask a chef? (That would mean asking your wife, who is a professional, what music she likes.)
Why not take a cooking class? (That would mean taking voice lessons or learning an instrument, then joining a community orchestra or local chorus. That’s an education in itself, both humility and repertoire-wise, I promise you!).
To sum up, if you insist on going back to McDonald’s, of course all you’re gonna get is burgers and fries.
Write back and let me know if this helps, which was MY original question to YOU. Then I’ll tell you who I think is writing excellent music right now.
Sincerely,
Andrea
Sorry Andrea you have misunderstood me. Possibly misunderestimated me too as I was also a professional (serious) musician in the past and still devour a lot of reviews, websites etc.
My most recent point about MacDonalds was pretty much the same as yours - I don't keep going back there as I know what I will find. In other words, I don't keep checking out what is going on in more "contempory" musical forms because I am sure it is not going to appeal. But if like me, you made this decision a very long time ago, you can seem rather isolated and unaware of what is going on. Hence my question about what music being written today I should listen to.
If you insist on me telling you what does appeal to me I would mention (ignoring obvious big boys like Bach, Beethoven)
Rameau
Purcell
Hummel
Alkan
Symanowski
Fauré
Elgar
Tippett
Chabrier
Smetana
Will that do?
Jonathan
I do truly respect your experience as a former professional musician, Jonathan. Thank you for telling me – it makes a better foundation for our discussion.
I was a serious classically trained flutist and attended Peabody Conservatory to become an opera singer. My father is from Austria, steeped in the classics, who taught us to listen and make up our own minds. So although I couldn’t be considered professional, my credentials and vocabulary can certainly hold their own.
I'm also 42, a woman, a wife and a mom and I’m an American, who grew up here throughout the mid 1960’s and 1970’s, but I lived and traveled overseas way more than most, so I speak a bunch of foreign languages. You could not by any stretch of the imagination call me a shrinking violet when it comes to expressing my own personal musical opinions, yet I remain very open to others’ opinions and varied influences.
What I’m getting to is that my own personal experiences, musical training, and multicultural exposure form part of my own musical tastes and personal philosophy, such as it is.
Right now, I am awed by the vast, interesting, entertaining, enlightening and influential opus of John Williams. Don’t laugh (or laugh I don’t care) – he’s written beautiful stuff in any and all musical style required by the film at hand, music that is already WAY imbedded in our collective Western consciousness – who can’t sing the Jaws leitmotif or Darth Vader leitmotif or Laya’s theme or Young Love, or hasn't seen Harry Potter?
Williams is a genius at setting the mood and creating dead-on memorable leitmotifs. And his music is influential in a good way, not, as you say, headbanging. His music is influential and listenable, he is a good classical style modern composer, in the direct lineage of, you guessed it, our friend Korngold.
Another example is my ex-mother-in-law, Vivian Adelberg Rudow. She is a living composer writing good, accessible, unique, fully conservatory trained, technically accurate yet enjoyable, music.
Her full orchestral work, Force III, was premiered in 1982 by the Baltimore Sympony under Sergiu Commissiona on a program with Itzak Perlman. No shortage of talent there. Her work, part classical, part electroacoustic, is still internationally award winning.
Well into her 60’s, she’s the mother of 3, grandmother of 6 and still active, composing at home and traveling internationally for performances. Check it out at http://www.vivianadelbergrudow.com/
Right now, I’m just still trying to figure out what exactly it is that you like about Rameau, Purcell, Hummel, Alkan, Symanowski, Faure, Elgar, Tippett, Chabrier and Smetana. You obviously know that there are many who would not identify those as the greatest, most famous or all-time best loved composers. (I really laughed right out loud when you said Rameau but didn’t mention Bach. Rameau? Ligetti?? However, I personally would rather listen to Albinoni oboe concerti rather than Bach cantatas, most days, so I guess I can understand.)
And I don’t have the first clue who Roby Lakatos and Blossom Dearie are, but I’d be willing to give them a listen, if you say you think they’re good.
Jonathan, maybe we can find new stuff you’d like. What musical instrument or voice part did you play professionally? What training and/or experiences, and what personal or cultural background leads you to love Rameu, Purcell, Hummel, Alkan and company best? Can you give us visual images or emotion words (not your forte, I’m guessing).
Better yet, can you please list some foods and flavors that might help us understand your musical taste?
Where are you, Jonathan? We were having such fun with our debate/conversation!
OK I am back again. Got impatient because you weren't quite reading what I was saying. I said "ignoring Bach Beethoven and the big boys" and then you wondered why I listed Rameau and not Bach. I think it is pretty self-evident that most people like Bach etc so it wouldn't tell you much about me to mention him. I find in Rameau a wonderful wistfulness - especially in his scoring for flute or bassoon - combined with tremendous physical energy in his dance movements. If you don't know much of him, try the Ballet Music from Hypolite et Aricie or the Pieces de Clavecin en Concert.
Also you asked why do I keep going back to MacDonalds. The point I was making was that I have formed the judgement that I won't like anything that they sell there so don't keeping checking up on developments in other musical genres ie the contemporary stuff that I am content to dismiss. Then instead of pointing me to some band that demonstrates real musical quality in an non "classical" idiom you direct me to a composer of "accessible, unique, fully conservatory trained" who I am sure is very good but off topic if we are considering whether I am missing anything by remaining ignorant of modern popular music.
Maybe we like that old quote about UK and USA being divided by a common language!
Jonathan
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