I'm glad someone is talking about this. Classical music has been almost entirely relegated to background music at this point.
There's also a definite stigma related to classical music being for the privileged few rather than the everyman, and telling someone that your favourite genre of music is classical will almost certainly be met with a prompt rolling of the eyes and "really?"
But I think that part of the problem of its inaccessibility. There are just so many composers, and so many different versions of their performances - if you go to Spotify and look at albums listed under Bach there are hundreds of entries, of every kind imaginable, from compilations, to versions of his work on piano, or classical guitar, and each of these are performed by different artists, so deciding which one to choose is 90% of the battle, with the other 10% being that the music is too complex so as to be boring, or off-putting for the musical palate of a listener brought up on the Billboard Hot 100.
I love that there are Youtube channels finally addressing this, and attempting to make the music more accessible, but I think this is a large part of the problem. It's a question of where do I go and what do I listen to. We need to make it as easy as putting on a Hendrix record, which given the musical output of these greats isn't easy.
But I'm glad people are out there making an effort towards doing so.
"I wrote that the notion we should simply enjoy the music is valid but incorrect.
Valid because we don’t know better, incorrect because we’re quite literally accepting the absolute mediocrity that is being enforced to us by mainstream culture. It seems like it’s a victimless crime but the consequences run deep.
Mainstream music lets you indulge in over-simplistic emotions. A powerful spell that highjacks you current state of mind with nonsense and trivial pondering.
Classical music allows you to explore subtle textures and an overall larger emotional spectrum. You just have to let it simmer and settle.
The internet has bridged the gap between high-brow elitists (to their dismay) and the “common folk”.
This last paragraph is fantastic btw, as is the overall piece. Really enjoying the Lindy newsletter articles as well. What's old is becoming new.
I think "normalizing" classical music will require a renaissance. We're very much disconnected from the culture that produced this kind of music. This is why I'm passionate about this. I believe it's part of a bigger problem, a symptom that cannot be addressed in a vacuum.
A society that appreciates this kind of music will also be able to compose pieces of a similar caliber. And to do that, we'll have to change our perception about the system itself. From education to consuming media to politics. Goes without saying that I'm not very optimistic, even though the internet seems a step towards the right direction.
That disconnection from prior culture is one of the most worrying parts. Read a book written in 1910 then read one written in 2010. The quality of writing, the articulation of ideas, even the baseline level of comprehension and clarity of thought that the average person had is a far cry from today.
I remember reading Dickens and thinking about the fact that these were kids books not too long ago, but would be completely unreadable for the vast majority of kids today owing to a lack of concentration, as well as a much lower level of reading comprehension.
The trends don't look altogether too promising, which is unfortunate. Who knows, maybe widespread decentralisation may lead to that renaissance in the coming decades - I'm certainly hoping that it will.
I'm glad someone is talking about this. Classical music has been almost entirely relegated to background music at this point.
There's also a definite stigma related to classical music being for the privileged few rather than the everyman, and telling someone that your favourite genre of music is classical will almost certainly be met with a prompt rolling of the eyes and "really?"
But I think that part of the problem of its inaccessibility. There are just so many composers, and so many different versions of their performances - if you go to Spotify and look at albums listed under Bach there are hundreds of entries, of every kind imaginable, from compilations, to versions of his work on piano, or classical guitar, and each of these are performed by different artists, so deciding which one to choose is 90% of the battle, with the other 10% being that the music is too complex so as to be boring, or off-putting for the musical palate of a listener brought up on the Billboard Hot 100.
I love that there are Youtube channels finally addressing this, and attempting to make the music more accessible, but I think this is a large part of the problem. It's a question of where do I go and what do I listen to. We need to make it as easy as putting on a Hendrix record, which given the musical output of these greats isn't easy.
But I'm glad people are out there making an effort towards doing so.
"I wrote that the notion we should simply enjoy the music is valid but incorrect.
Valid because we don’t know better, incorrect because we’re quite literally accepting the absolute mediocrity that is being enforced to us by mainstream culture. It seems like it’s a victimless crime but the consequences run deep.
Mainstream music lets you indulge in over-simplistic emotions. A powerful spell that highjacks you current state of mind with nonsense and trivial pondering.
Classical music allows you to explore subtle textures and an overall larger emotional spectrum. You just have to let it simmer and settle.
The internet has bridged the gap between high-brow elitists (to their dismay) and the “common folk”.
This last paragraph is fantastic btw, as is the overall piece. Really enjoying the Lindy newsletter articles as well. What's old is becoming new.
I think "normalizing" classical music will require a renaissance. We're very much disconnected from the culture that produced this kind of music. This is why I'm passionate about this. I believe it's part of a bigger problem, a symptom that cannot be addressed in a vacuum.
A society that appreciates this kind of music will also be able to compose pieces of a similar caliber. And to do that, we'll have to change our perception about the system itself. From education to consuming media to politics. Goes without saying that I'm not very optimistic, even though the internet seems a step towards the right direction.
That disconnection from prior culture is one of the most worrying parts. Read a book written in 1910 then read one written in 2010. The quality of writing, the articulation of ideas, even the baseline level of comprehension and clarity of thought that the average person had is a far cry from today.
I remember reading Dickens and thinking about the fact that these were kids books not too long ago, but would be completely unreadable for the vast majority of kids today owing to a lack of concentration, as well as a much lower level of reading comprehension.
The trends don't look altogether too promising, which is unfortunate. Who knows, maybe widespread decentralisation may lead to that renaissance in the coming decades - I'm certainly hoping that it will.
Yes. Although, it'll get worse before it gets better.
Just got to keep the head down and power through I suppose.