In the End, You Can Turn It Around

I have just discovered Alex Ross' powerful article from The New Yorker, February 16 and 23, 2004 discussing what he calls 'the music'. I'm going to have to read it two or three times to absorb all of the points. Here are some highlights:

"It seems to me that a lot of younger listeners think the way the iPod thinks. They are no longer so invested in a single genre, one that promises to mold their being or save the world. This gives the life-style disaster called “classical music” more of a chance. Although the music is far from attaining any sort of countercultural cachet, it is no longer a plausible target for teen rebellion, given that all the parents listen to the Eagles."

"...new generations of musicians are dropping the mask of Olympian detachment (silent, stone-faced musician walks onstage and begins to play). They’ve started mothballing the tuxedo, explaining the music from the stage, using lighting and backdrops to produce a mildly theatrical experience. They are finding allies in the “popular” world, some of whom care less about record sales than the average star violinist."

Other interesting stuff:
-Joshua Roman, the 23-year-old principal cellist of the Seattle Symphony is going to play three concertos in one concert because "I was trying to think of something fun to do this summer."

-I keep reading about youth orchestras bringing in students from other countries to play with them. That sounds very enriching. Definitely needs to go in the 'ideas' file.

-Just love this insight from Life 2.0:

"If we turn on a room light it's not just us that benefits, is it? Everyone present can see better. As we give allow our own spark shine, the whole place has to light up too.
Isn't this our ONE responsibility?
The best way to avoid responsibility is to say, 'I've got responsibilities'... Richard Bach"

-I have read a lot recently about information overload. Not me. I guess I'm a continuous partial attention/communications underload kind of person.

-If you're having a bad day, this article from the Glastonbury Festival will make you feel much better about whatever you are doing. Don't read it near lunchtime, though!