Bernstein and Brubeck

Two of my favorite artists are Leonard Bernstein and Dave Brubeck. I was thrilled to discover this recording that brings the two together!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvA0rAfpNnQ

Sources of Classical Music

I had a conversation recently with a friend who does not know much about classical music. She wants to listen to it, and learn about it, but its hard for her to know "where to start" because there is so much of it. And, she said, she does not have a record or CD collection to pull from as I do.
So here are some tips for finding classical music.
I love Spotify. This is a free service (with some advertisements), and it has an amazing depth of music to offer. They have "introductory" playlists for every type of music, including classical. Within the classical folder are thousands of recordings from just about every composer from every period. As you listen to each selection, they provide a picture of the album it was taken from, the title of the work, the composer and the performer. Keep track of what you like. Use Google to learn more about a composer or work, and you will begin to develop a knowledge base in classical music.One of the playlists I have in my folder is the Sunday Playlist by Deutsche Grammophon. Each week they add music to it, some of which is brand new to me. A few weeks ago they added L'enfant et les sortileges by Maurice Ravel. The 2:43 clip was amazing, so I then went to Google to learn what it was, and then back to Spotify to search for the entire album - 4 versions were available. I also searched it on YouTube and found several concert performances of it. What a treat. I was not familiar with either of Ravel's operas....this being his second.
Pandora is also a nice music streaming service. I started with Pandora, and I do like it. You can also learn a great deal about any type of music here, and it is free, (it also has advertisements). They map your interests and make suggestions about other music you might like to try based on what you have chosen.
As I mentioned above, both Spotify and Pandora are free, but they do have advertisements. Personally, I am OK with that, and I don't find them very intrusive. Someone needs to pay for this service and the corresponding licensing fees for the artists. Both services also have paid subscription options as well.
I love YouTube. There is so much music here as well, although it helps to know what you are looking for before searching. And tonight at dinner, my oldest son Jack showed me a new app he was using called iTube-a combination of iTunes and YouTube.
I'm sure most of you use iTunes and have tried iTunes radio. They are both great resources for classical music too.
In the car I listen to Sirius XM radio. I have the Symphony and Pops channels back-to-back saved on my favorites list. They often play music that I am not familiar with. When this happens, I know I won't be able to remember what I heard later on, so I take a picture of the selection guide and look it up later. For example, the other day I heard a wonderful piano piece....reminded me of Scott Joplin. I took a snapshot and later looked it up:

Now I am very familiar with the music of William Bolcom. See what I mean? Like I keep repeating, there is such a vast amount of classical music to explore...but its never been easier.

Playlist Suggestion - Vaughan Williams

Last night was the Heritage Philharmonic's Spring concert. Our feature piece, in addition to the Young Artists soloists (who were wonderful!) was the Vaughan Williams Symphony #5. This is a wonderful symphony, and I was really blown away playing it. I love how Vaughan Williams brings the songs and melodies from his native England into his own compositions. My favorite is called Rhosymedre, a hymn written in the 1800's by John David Edwards, named for the town of Rhosymedre in Wales. VW used this tune in one of his organ compositions, and it was later scored for orchestra. Both versions are wonderful. Here is the orchestral version. Enjoy!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ie1nvYkdyig

I Heard Violins

Things changed for me big time in the Spring of 1973. I heard violins....up close. I was in 3rd grade, and a string quartet from the University of Texas String Project came to give a demonstration at Pillow Elementary School. I knew right then and there I wanted to learn to play the violin. And thanks to my parents, I soon began taking lessons....and the rest is history.
I had, of course, "heard" violins on recordings before that fateful day, but it was my fist experience holding one...trying to play one...and most importantly, hearing it right next to my ear as I held it under my chin and scratched the bow across it. I was....and still am...in love.
Violins are everywhere...in every kind of music. Paganini to Charlie Daniels. Brian Eno to Metallica. Sinatra to Stephan Grapellli. You name it.
The versatility of the violin is amazing and very special if you ask me. The best part of the Beethoven Violin Concerto is????.....the violin of course. The best part of Johnny Mathis's classic hit Misty? Well sure, his voice is awesome....but the background strings tie it all together if you ask me. How about the Verve's hit song Bitter Sweet Symphony? Right....the strings steal the show! When Frank Sinatra teamed with the Hollywood String Quartet and arranger Nelson Riddle, they created that amazing sound that became the basis for his legendary Capitol Records recording period.
So I plan to share great examples of violins in all kinds of music as part of this blog. Let's kick things off with Close to You, as recorded by Frank Sinatra in 1943.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxKf2STt-mc

Playlist Suggestion

Ottorino Respighi wrote the Symphonic Poem, The Pines of Rome in 1924. This is part of a "trilogy" of Roman poems along with the Fountains of Rome and Roman Festivals. I recently wrote about certain works and performances that lend themselves to climactic moments when the hair on the back of your neck stands up and your spirit soars with the power and emotion of the piece. This is one such piece. The last 5 1/2 minutes are stunning. Have a listen. This is a very good performance that is available on YouTube.
http://youtu.be/TQwGTe_MueM

As the Beatles proved, it's not about Education.

I spend a lot of time thinking about ways to increase the popularity of classical music in today's world. As I said in one of my earliest posts, it's a fact that very few Americans listen to classical music. Period. And historically, classical music sales are a tiny fraction of the overall pie. Those of us who love classical music have tried to understand and explain this for generations now. What I find to be the most fulfilling and joyous of all musical forms is unknown or unappreciated by most people. I hear most experts and music educators say education is the way to expand the understanding and appreciation of classical music. But they have been saying that forever, and it has not changed a thing. I have made up my mind: loving classical music does NOT require any specific education ....it's not ABOUT education. In some ways, I think this school of thought hurts classical music. Saying you need "education" to enjoy something makes it seem out of reach....exclusive.....cut off. Sadly, classical music has earned this label, at least here in America where many feel it is for the rich....for "snobs". And face it, many of the traditions of classical music put it in this box. (Performance tuxedos are a good example).
Back in February 2014, America celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Beatles' performance on the Ed Sullivan show....the beginning of Beatlemania....a revolution in music, style and popular culture. When those 4 young men (or "lads" as they were called) took the stage and played, no one needed any education to love what they heard and have their minds blown. What they were seeing and hearing changed everything! And it just happened.....no explanation, preparation, nor education....just BAM. Pure. Simple. Fun. Amazing. I discovered the Beatles 14 years after that night (also covered in my first blog entry). And for me in 1978, the result was the same.The Beatles blew my mind. BUT, I experienced the SAME profound moment the very first time I heard Vivaldi's Four Seasons....and Beethoven's 5th Symphony....and Bruckner's 8th Symphony, and Mahler's 5th Symphony, and Strauss' Death and Transfiguration, and Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik......etc, etc, etc......they all blew my mind. And education had nothing to do with it. I heard it....and I loved it. WHY? I suppose that's the mystery. A Schubert Piano Sonata or "I Wanna Hold Your Hand"? They are both great in my mind.
Maybe the challenge is to get classical music in our ears without having to look for it. I don't see much, if any, classical music on live TV...or any TV for that matter. (It's there....but you do have to search for it). Please don't tell me I am an education hater! I am not saying education is not important, valuable, fantastic......none of that. I love education. Just like the motto of Faber College in Animal House...."Knowledge is Good".
But classical music can be enjoyed by anyone and everyone, education or not.

Remembering Anne

I have been thinking about an old friend recently. I met Anne Winter in 1982 working at a restaurant called the Baking Company in Omaha. My friend Claudia Herzog, whom I played violin with in the Omaha Youth Symphony, got us a "gig" playing duets at the Baking Co. the summer after my junior year of high school.(Claudia's mother-in-law owned the Baking Co). Anne worked in the bakery. We became good friends. Our primary connection was music. She had a huge record collection and was up on all of the latest new wave and punk music of the day. She also liked classical music too. Our friendship stayed in tact through high school and college. We drifted apart for awhile, exchanging letters occasionally, but we re-connected in 1995 when Cheryl and I moved to KC. Anne and her soon-to-be-husband Kurt had opened a record store at 39th and Main Street called Recycled Sounds.

After college, I joined a jazz big band called the Men of Note, playing the upright bass. I worked with those guys for nine years, gigging on weekends. It was a wonderful experience for me, and I have many fond memories of those years and that wonderful music. But it came at a price; I didn't play my violin much at all during those years. When Cheryl and I moved to KC, we connected with Anne and Kurt. We were in the same stage of life....beginning families, nurturing careers, moving into homes etc...They invited us over for wonderful dinners many times, and introduced us to their friends. Shortly before their wedding, Anne asked me to play something on the violin for Kurt's parents' 50th wedding anniversary. I was honored, even though I was terrified, not having played in such a long time. I found my violin and frantically began practicing. I was very nervous when the celebration began, but once I started playing, I relaxed and managed to play well. I was happy not to ruin such a special occasion, but even more importantly, my interest in playing the violin was rekindled. Within a few weeks, I started looking around for other opportunities to play. I soon discovered the Independence Community Symphony was auditioning string players. I auditioned and have been with them since 1995. (We are now known as the Heritage Philharmonic). I also started working as a strolling violinist, as well as performing at church. A couple of years later, I joined the faculty at the Music Arts Institute in Independence and taught violin there for several years.

Anne and Kurt had 2 children (Max and Eva) while Cheryl and I had Jack and Ethan. We enjoyed many family "get-together s" and life seemed perfect.

But as is often the case, life got busy, and we soon drifted apart again. Our circles became harder to cross once the kids started school and other activities. We lived in Lee's Summit and they lived in Brookside...2 separate worlds. Kurt and Anne sold Recycled Sounds in 2006. She told me it was just too hard to keep that lifestyle going with children. She wanted to do something else. She got a 9-5 job downtown. Kurt became a massage therapist. 

I had phone conversations with her occasionally...we talked about the old days...and how we needed to find some time to get together for coffee. After another lengthy gap in contact, I was shocked to read her obituary in the paper. She took her own life in October 2009. I was stunned....deeply saddened.....I still am.

I didn't know about her battle with depression, prescription medication and alcohol. I never would have suspected it. 

It is just so sad. It eats at me. I have not had any closure. But the more I have thought about this, I see now that my closure is my music....my violin. She brought me back to it. She made me whole again. And I will always be thankful to her for that. I miss you good friend.