09/11/98

Delicious Sundays

Sunday is my favorite day of the week. It begins with classical music, breakfast, and the New York Times, an exquisite trio of sensations. The luxurious harmonies of a symphony mingle with the aroma of freshly ground coffee beans, bacon spitting around sunny eggs, and crisp toast with strawberry freezer jam.

I linger over page after page of international news, fashion, and travel until I reach the irresistible nugget on the last page of the magazine section: the New York Times crossword puzzle. The worse the weather, the cozier the Sunday, as sounds of wind and rain rattle the shutters and wrap me in.

Classical music has stirred my soul since infancy -- my son’s, too, in utero. As I drove to orchestra rehearsal, he slept, only to awaken and celebrate as soon as the maestro’s baton came down. It was a bit distracting to my fellow musicians to see my belly keeping time with the percussion section; he kicked especially vigorously during brass fanfares.

Throughout childhood, beginning in elementary school, I played the piano and flute. My friends and I marched in the band, played in the orchestra, and saw every live production of opera, jazz, ballet, or symphony that came to town. We performed in school and community theater productions, too. It seemed like every kind of entertainment was popular enough to draw a crowd.

Today, tight school budgets, fewer classical radio stations, and rare TV broadcasting of classical performances have reduced the exposure children experience to the classical arts, both as participants and observers. Many schools offer only vocal music at the elementary level, which means students aren’t being introduced to instrumental music until middle or high school. Through no fault of their own, the quality of music some of these late starters make is so abysmal, they’re embarassed to perform for friends and family! As a result, many of them simply stop playing.

A friend of mine, who conducts choral music, has noticed a decline in young listeners at classical concerts. They aren’t interested in coming because they know so little about the music. She showed me an article from the magazine, "The Voice of Chorus America," which described a clever way to pre-educate audiences about concert programs. Called “Dial a Preview,” people use their telephones to hear a three-minute audio program about upcoming concerts. In a test run before a Minnesota choir’s final concert of the season, more than 1,000 people dialed the preview, resulting in a “Standing Room Only” crowd for the first time ever. Concert promoters were correct in their thinking that people rarely buy tickets to something unfamiliar, but will buy in great numbers when they know what to expect.

Live entertainment stirs the soul in ways no recorded or taped renditions can. It is a tremendous loss to our young people to miss experiencing the incomparable beauty of the classical performing arts. We must bring them to the well over and over again, where eventually they will drink long and deeply. Their favorite days will be enriched for it.

Please send questions or comments to bbruno@snet.net.