DISCONNECTED?

posted by James Reel

Greg Sandow announces:

I'm making a list—and checking it twice—of all the ways in which classical music doesn't connect to our larger culture.

I won’t reprint the seven items Greg has initially compiled; you can read it here. But when I look at the list, my reaction is, for the most part, so what? Consider this item: “Even when new music is played, much of it doesn't sound like the world around us. The sounds of popular music aren't much heard, though they were in past centuries.” Well, that’s only partly true. Nationalist composers like Dvorák certainly used elements of popular music in their concert works, but these composers consituted a mere subset. Very few major concert works by the leading 19th-century German and even French composers incorporated much popular music, and in the case of Verdi, the influence went the opposite direction: his melodies became popular streetcorner favorites in Italy.

Why, really, should classical music reflect contemporary popular culture, as Greg repeatedly urges? We don’t expect all movies or novels to do this, although many of course do. And in any case, what’s wrong with diversity? Why can’t concert-hall music provide an alternative to the pop elements that saturate our culture? Do we really want to live in a homogenized culture?

Do read Greg’s post and decide for yourself; also, pay attention to this comment (which is not by me), stating some good objections to Greg’s premise and points.