A Little Simplistic, But Not Far Wrong

T

im Mangan, writing for The Arts Blog of the Orange County Register (we do wish he'd set up his own personal blog), has several hundred choice words to say about how the average classical music listener limits both his own musical horizons as well as those of classical music concert programming. Writes Mr. Mangan:

The average classical music listener – that is, the majority of those who attend concerts and opera performances and listen to the radio – is a simple soul. Looking into it, one finds that he prizes melody above all else. But not just any melody. The melodies of Hindemith, Stravinsky or Schoenberg, Lutoslawski, Glass or Adams, to name a few, will not do at all, and the average listener, in so far as he is able to define what a melody is, would not recognize these composers' efforts as such. No, by melody, the average listener means something narrower in scope, a tune, really, a song.

His definition of melody, though he doesn’t realize it, also includes a type of phrasing, regular and foursquare, and a question-and-answer design to the harmony. It’s this whole melody package that he enjoys most, which limits his aesthetic scope to the music from roughly 1750-1900. Beyond that he can find himself in rough waters.

RTWT here.