tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post7345013332819420773..comments2024-01-06T06:11:22.963-05:00Comments on Mary Kunz Goldman: What I have read, and what I have failed to readMary Kunz Goldmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02691118577179541037noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-80039152541661130932010-12-02T09:43:49.431-05:002010-12-02T09:43:49.431-05:00Bill, this is an interesting discussion. I can'...Bill, this is an interesting discussion. I can't respond now but I will later!! thanks so much for your thoughts and your time.<br /><br />Prof. G, congrats on being mentioned on Norman Lebrecht's blog today!!Mary Kunz Goldmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02691118577179541037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-52261154364267395312010-12-01T13:59:04.555-05:002010-12-01T13:59:04.555-05:00You play piano at a sufficiently accomplished leve...You play piano at a sufficiently accomplished level to have entered competitions, no? That level of knowledge and ability tells us that you know what you are listening to on a technical level, and that you probably have a good appreciation for the skills displayed by others. I think it also somewhat belies your statement that you didn't get your love of music through formal education, but only you can really speak to that. <br /><br />I suppose here are other ways in, but learning an instrument is a particularly good one. People who play pick up a great deal of background in music that other people do not-- as you are learning that Brahms piece your teacher tells you about the Romantic period, and how it is different from, I don't know, the Jurrasic period, and about Vienna, and you acquire a friendly familiarity with it all. <br /><br />Classical music is intimidating for many people because it is not familiar. Is this recording of The Nutcracker any good? Should I get the Moscow Symphony or the Boston Philharmonic? Do I want The Nutcracker, or this thing-- Leonard Bernstein's Mass? I've heard of him....<br /><br />Even if I were prepared to just go out and buy armloads of old LPs and a suitable playback device-- something that most people in their teens or 20s are unlikely to do (something that would seem very odd in most people, I think), there is an investment in time. <br /><br />Beyond that, I think we can agree that most music is something that is best enjoyed live, and that is expensive. One could, I suppose, hang around churches and listen for free-- I'm not saying that it is impossible to learn to love music inexpensively. Doing that, however, presupposes an interest. What I am saying is that the easiest and most dependable way to learn about music and develop an interest is in school. If a kids parents don't listen to string quartets or opera at home, the only other place it is going to happen is at school, and it mostly isn't happening there much.<br /><br />Your question, as I understood it, was 'Why are people less familiar with great works of music than they are with great works of literature?' The answer is that people need to be exposed to something before they can learn to like it. You know who likes classical music? Russians. You know why? Because the Soviet Union thought it was good for them to like it, so it was played on the radio (instead of decadent Western pop), and orchestras were subsidized, and tickets were cheap, even when things like soap were expensive. Maybe that's not the best way to expose people to classical music-- there are side effects which may include genocide, political repression, and the ultimate collapse of the national economy-- but it indisputably works. Me, I'd rather see music programs in the public schools.Billhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16100176174975448724noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-36261456113616127072010-12-01T10:23:32.978-05:002010-12-01T10:23:32.978-05:00My drawing up a list would guarantee its being per...My drawing up a list would guarantee its being permanently unpublished. It would also tell too much about myself...Prof. Ghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17373409433777507238noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-72800603491257304542010-12-01T09:38:28.696-05:002010-12-01T09:38:28.696-05:00Bill, thanks for your thoughts! I am not sure musi...Bill, thanks for your thoughts! I am not sure music is that expensive a hobby though. I've bought millions of records through the years and now they are cheaper than ever. And you can borrow stuff free from the library. I thought of the school funding business too ... but I'm not sure school is always the answer. I did not get into music because of school and I don't think we should count on schools to do everything. None of the music classes I ever took in school did beans for me. <br /><br />I really do not know what the answer is. I do think it's important to keep the Philharmonic going, though I also do not know how much should be up to the government. That is a whole other matter for another day ...Mary Kunz Goldmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02691118577179541037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-65401330388684002262010-12-01T09:34:11.160-05:002010-12-01T09:34:11.160-05:00Prof.G, I have not seen a non-fiction list. I thin...Prof.G, I have not seen a non-fiction list. I think you should draw one up.Mary Kunz Goldmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02691118577179541037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-38106985285287260392010-12-01T09:33:52.650-05:002010-12-01T09:33:52.650-05:00Larry, I agree, about music being where it is at! ...Larry, I agree, about music being where it is at! BTW Pennario liked "The Divine Comedy" too.Mary Kunz Goldmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02691118577179541037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-33265150983293417422010-12-01T09:33:11.259-05:002010-12-01T09:33:11.259-05:00John, I saw a lot of the movies too, that were mad...John, I saw a lot of the movies too, that were made from the books. That should have been a separate category: "didn't read the book, but saw the movie." Some movies are better than the books!Mary Kunz Goldmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02691118577179541037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-90041829245046697362010-11-30T12:26:29.031-05:002010-11-30T12:26:29.031-05:00Why isn't music regarded as being as culturall...Why isn't music regarded as being as culturally important as literature? Well, it is, among people who take culture seriously. People are less knowledgeable about music than about literature, but that's a different question. Why are people less familiar with great works of music than they are with great works of literature? Because books are more accessible. The first thing that gets cut when school budgets are chopped is arts education (and music programs, because they are the most expensive, are the first to go). <br /><br />Our own Buffalo Philharmonic survives on the whim of Chris Collins; and other opportunities to learn about music are rare and expensive. This is regrettable, in my view: cultural life is what makes much of everyday life endurable for many, and sweeter for the rest.Billhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16100176174975448724noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-44431138641761100832010-11-30T11:08:14.927-05:002010-11-30T11:08:14.927-05:00Anyone done a non-fiction list?Anyone done a non-fiction list?Prof. Ghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17373409433777507238noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-4611042599887960292010-11-30T10:28:12.572-05:002010-11-30T10:28:12.572-05:00My mom got me a set of the Harvard Classics back i...My mom got me a set of the Harvard Classics back in 1960 or so and, over the years, I finally slogged my way through them. The Divine Comedy really impressed me and I re-read it several times. Have not read a whole lot else though. Music is where it is at!Larryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01731934188822581378noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5011528072573771541.post-50084433734672907722010-11-30T10:01:20.652-05:002010-11-30T10:01:20.652-05:00I always think I should read more, but what some p...I always think I should read more, but what some people are to books, I am to movies, amongst your list I can say that I haven't read many of those, but I have seen the movie, and while some might say its just not the same, I'm more of a visual person I guess, and watching the story play out in front of me is just more enjoyable.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com