Neo Classical

The Future Of Classical Music Is In Venezuela

by

If you could create a culture of classical music from scratch, how would you do it? That’s precisely the sort of question Venezuelan José Antonio Abreu asked himself 30 years ago when he began his classical music course which would evolve into what is now the Fundacion del Estado para el Sistema Nacional de las Orquestras Juveniles e Infantiles (Foundation of the State for the National System of the Orchestras Youth and Children), which is commonly referred to in Venezuela as FESNOJIV or El Sistema. Back in 1975 Abreu may not have … Continue Reading

The Business Behind The Musicians Of Tomorrow

by

If you talk to most professional classical musicians and ask them where they gained the bulk of their performing experience before attending college you’ll likely have them telling you what it was like growing up in their respective youth orchestras.Over the past several years, youth orchestras have exhibited reverse trends to their professional counterparts. Whereas many professional orchestras are forced into scaled back artistic offerings and shorter seasons, youth orchestras are bursting at the seams. Many suburban areas are even forming their own youth orchestras separate from the traditional groups associated with … Continue Reading

It’s All About Ambiance

by

When it comes to live entertainment, getting there is rarely half the fun. More often than not, once you finally arrive the actual venue is often lacking. Concert halls are typical victims of uncomfortable seats, too few bathrooms, poor lobby facilities, expensive refreshments, inconvenient (and usually expensive) parking, and the décor usually makes you feel terribly underdressed or overdressed (rarely “just right”). The average mega-screen Cineplex is no different. Tacky faux décor usually try to make the inside of the building look like a swanky knock off of the Art Deco theatres … Continue Reading

Finding Proponents for Contemporary Music in Unlikely Places

by

Throughout the middle ages, the Catholic Church controlled the development of music throughout Europe, much of what became the great works of classical music’s standard repertoire were directly influenced by the church’s persuasion. It wielded the sort of control that only a handful of powerful organizations have exercised over recorded time; it controlled what people thought. Over time, that power waned but the church remains steeped in tradition. As such, you wouldn’t expect that one of the church’s enduring leaders, Pope John Paul II, would have a passion for contemporary classical music, … Continue Reading

No Matter How Much Things Change, They Stay The Same

by

“Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it”, or so goes the old saying. As such, in order to divine where classical music is headed it’s wise to examine the past. Fortunately, there was an active culture of music discussion at the early part of the last century in the form of journals and magazines dedicated to specific interests. One such outlet for this discussion was a magazine entitled The Etude, a monthly journal for the musician, the music student, and all music lovers. Theodore Presser began publishing … Continue Reading