(4 Rewrite) Blogorama- My 3 Posts

1) Welcome Blog
Classical music has always been a huge part of my life. Ever since I was a little kid I have played an instrument. I started with the piano (could not stand it) and then eventually switched over to the oboe because I was fascinated by all of the shiny keys (true story). Once I reached my senior year of high school and the dreaded period of college applications, I decided that the best way to get into a good school was to apply as a music major since it seemed like the area where I would be most successful. To be honest, I was not certain that I wanted to play oboe professionally, but I was fairly sure that I wanted to be a part of the music world. My peers questioned my decision because they did not understand how someone could be drawn to an industry that no one pays close attention to anymore. Sure, everyone hears about the latest Britney developments, but how many people can say that they know the latest happenings of the L.A. Philharmonic?

Though I will admit I listen to more pop, rock, and country (mostly country, as it is my guilty pleasure), I feel that there is something about classical music that connects at an entirely different emotional level than any contemporary song. The music we have today only skims the surface of emotional satisfaction. Musicians have roughly three minutes to tell a story, and that is just not enough time to go anywhere significant. Songs that portray love for example, though they can sometimes be insightful, do not dig deep enough. More importantly, many of them rely on a techno beat to capture the attention of the audience. Classical music takes the time to capture the human spirit and send the audience through a multitude of emotions. I find that this adventure, for a lack of a better word, is important for any person in our society today. We are constantly on the move and we do not take the time to think for ourselves. Instead, we want immediate satisfaction, no matter what the costs might be.

The purpose of this blog is to express the importance of classical music in the lives of everyone in our society, especially in the United States. This is not to say that I believe it should be the only form of music we have on the radios and that everyone should boycott all rock concerts. Also, the point of this blog is not to suggest that classical music is "real music" because most classical musicians go through years of training. Rather, the idea is to teach people just how powerful of an art form classical music is. All genres of music are important in this world. My hope is that classical music does not become forgotten and something we can only learn about in history books.

When I applied to colleges, I wrote that the point behind me becoming a classical musician was to find a way to keep classical music alive. There is no denying that classical music has taken the back seat in the music world. In the future, I will discuss what is happening in the world to keep classical music a living and significant art form. For example, music education in our school systems has become a controversial topic. Many believe that these programs do not deserve funding because there are other areas that are more important to a child's development. I would like to research schools that have made music education a primary academic subject as well as schools that have rid of their music programs all together, and how the children have been effected by said actions.

Another topic that is of interest is the idea of cross-over music. Many artists and groups are taking classical music and putting a pop twist on it. For example, Josh Groban is a well known classically trained musician that has taken his skills to create music that uses many aspects of classical music, but adds a modern twist to it. Another inspiring group is named The Planets. This group of classically trained musicians take classical music and add new ideas, like synthesizers and electrical instruments. Their sound is new and edgy, but they still create an authentic portrayal of the music that they are playing. The question behind all of this is whether or not these artists are actually helping the classical music scene. In other words, are their efforts hurting the efforts of the live orchestras still performing and trying to make a living from playing symphonies the way they were originally supposed to be played?

Orchestras themselves are also taking on new tactics to help keep audience members interested in the genre. For example, they are adding new visual effects to their concerts to help the audience understand the music. Though the audio aspect of the concert is the most important, a visual component might help make the music more understandable.

My goal is to find ways classical music has had a positive impact on modern society and hopefully show that classical music is of vital importance. Classical music is an art form that is helping the human race from spinning out of control as our world moves at a faster and faster rate. There is more to life than just immediate satisfaction. We have the ability to think and feel things that almost seem impossible and out of this world. Classical music is a fuel that can help drive these natural human feelings.

2) Profile Blog
After spending hours trying to find blogs centered around classical music, I have concluded that the classical music world does not seem to be using technology as a tool to communicate with society and its fans, at least not to its full potential. I came across several bloggers who spent time on one, possibly a few posts describing their feelings about the classical music world. However, there seem to be very few people truly dedicated to the well-being of this art form. I know for a fact that there are tons of people out there who love this music, especially all those who actually play instruments in orchestras and other ensembles. Perhaps a little less time practicing and little more time marketing and spreading the word is just what the classical music scene needs to create a bigger impact.

One blog that did catch my eye was entitled Backstage-Chicago Classical Music. This blog was established to bring together the Chicago classical music community in an attempt to give people a chance to express their feelings about classical music, as well as inform the community about important events. This blog is open to anyone, which I found to be interesting because it means they are using a similar concept as Youtube or Google (it is easy to use, and anyone can do it). More people can express themselves this way and more discussion can take place. Most of those participating are musicians or have careers in the classical music industry. Participants post every few days with new and exciting news about events happening in Chicago.

One of my favorite posts from the site was Jen Glegory's depiction (ASIMO--an eyewitness perspective) of a concert she went to in Detroit. The Detroit Symphony had a very special guest during the month of May, a guest conductor to be exact. ASIMO, a robot, made its debut as it conducted the piece The Impossible Dream. Here is the video of the performance from Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRUyVCfFh1U

Jen described this evening as one she would never forget.

the evening was about more than ASIMO’s conducting prowess. From the moment I handed my ticket to the usher, it was clear that this concert was something special. The back of the hall was crowded with reporters and television cameras, and there wasn’t an empty seat in the house (I heard several subscribers commenting that it was nice to see the hall so full).

Though I am personally not a huge fan of the idea of robots ever being conductors, I found it interesting that the audience was so curious about this idea. Even the media paid attention to this break through in technology. Technology has practically become the center of the universe. If one is not using it, you are considered to be living in the dark ages. Robots may not be the best decision for an orchestra, but it is nice to see a professional group bring something new to the table that caught public interest.

A second fascinating post from this blog was written by Jim Hirsch, an affiliated with the Chicago Sinfonietta. Hirsch brings up the hardships classical music faces in difficult economic times in his blog entitled It's The Economy, Stupid.

The challenge for organizations like the Chicago Sinfonietta is that we make artistic commitments and budget assumptions up to 18 months in advance. Who knew last January when we were finalizing our 2008-2009 season that the stock market would decline significantly and that gas prices would set daily records? Would we have done anything differently had we known that the economy was headed for a downturn?

I found this post insightful because the economy takes a huge toll on the music world, not just classical music. Budgets must be made in order for music to survive. Gas prices also take a toll because when society has to pay over $4 a gallon for gas, they are less likely to venture out of their homes, especially to go and see a concert.

Based on what I have read so far, I think this blog will be a good reference in the future. Bloggers are talking about why it is that classical music is having trouble staying above water, and what new ideas and concepts are being used to keep classical music alive. This blog is also reliable because most of the posts are written by those actually experiencing the affects of the music world. In other words, they are the ones who have made classical music their careers and lives. They are insightful and clearly want this blog to be a helpful tool for all those who are interested. This is not just a blog all about saying, "I love classical music, so there." This blog has inspired me to expand my blog by providing my own critiques of performances as we as creating a page that could advertise future performances that might be of interest to my readers. In order for classical music to be a part of society, we must discuss it. So, hopefully my posting concert dates and such will help spread the word about the events that are going to take place in the Los Angeles area.

3) Voice Blog
Self expression is incredibly important, especially in a time when we communicate so often through mediums that do not require any actual talking. There are so many ways to connect with a reader, whether it is one's tone, choice of phrasing, level of formality, use of visuals; everything we do in terms of presentation effects our voice.

Eddie Louise and Chip of the blog entitled Interchanging Idioms, have decided to use their voice to express their feelings about classical music, the performing arts in general, as well as their own efforts to create an opera that speaks to modern audiences. The initial feeling one gets from reading their posts is that these bloggers like writing in a very cohesive way so as to give the reader an informative and straight forward post. They are both from the United Kingdom and work together (Eddie Louise is a writer and Chip is a composer). In a collaborative effort, they post every three or so days. These two bloggers are an interesting change from what I have seen so far because they bring a perspective that is different from those in the United States. Since they live in the United Kingdom, they have a much different exposure to music because of their culture, an exposure that may be useful in recreating classical music in the United States.

In one blog post Is the Monkey searching for Immortality, or is Opera searching for something new, the bloggers create an informal, yet incredibly insightful and informative atmosphere.

The original production was done at the Manchester International Festival last year to rave reviews and will likely get the same in the US. Damon Albarn, the composer and lead singer for British pop band Blur, says "Monkey" is a "new kind of thing." And so it is, sort of…

I was struck by his last phrase that ends with the "...". His choice of words was interesting to me because it is more as if he is in the room talking to you rather than writing his thoughts. Instead of "sort of", he could have written "to an extent", or something along those lines. While he writes a bit more as if he is actually talking, he likes to be descriptive by giving several details. For example, in this section be brought up the Manchester International Festival and the rave reviews the play received at this festival.

In a twist of informality, the bloggers used an abbreviation that even I had never seen before. IMHO, after looking it up on Google, stands for "In My Honest Opinion." Even though it took me a minute to understand what these four letters stand for, I liked the fact that the bloggers decided to use this abbreviation of a common phrase. I felt as though they were trying to have a "modern" tone. Connecting with your audience, especially when the topic revolves around an art form that is hundreds of years old, is important. Readers will continue to focus of the post when abbreviations are used because this style of writing has become part of everyday culture.

In a second post entitled, Broadway, Music worthy a listen, I found the choices they made in tone to be compelling. There were a couple of instances in which they could have gone on into a rant, or used a touch of sarcasm, yet they avoid both entirely to keep the integrity of their post.

Maybe it's not the music that is treated so disparagingly - but the performers. Maybe, because Broadway is ultimately about making a profit so fewer musicians are hired (often a sticking point for negotiations with the musicians union), or orchestrations are trimmed to make it easier to mount productions without extensive rehearsals. The drive for profitability drags down the quality and so the classical world looks down on the music form in general.

There is a lack of adjectives in this section of the blog. The words used are very safe and to the point. The writers do not take time to poke fun at or demean the topic by using flowery language that would take away from the main points Eddie Louise and Chip are making.

I found that this blogger's voice is a bit more serious than some other bloggers on the internet. The topic of classical music and the performing arts is incredibly important to them, especially since they are in the business and creating an opera of their own. Though they are knowledgeable, I feel as though they sometimes let their writing get in the way of their voice. It is clear they like the idea of being more informal with their readers so as to create more of a discussion atmosphere. However, I think there was room for them to be more light hearted with their posts. Their "too the point" voice could have been a bit more fun had they used different adjectives and less "flowery" language. By doing so, they would still provide the reader with an educational post, but they would have shown a bit more personality. For example, in his post Obscuring the Beat, he begins with the line

A number of modern composers, in an attempt to create interesting rhythms, obscure the beat - this is to say, they create counter rhythms or off beat stresses that do not fall on the beat of the bar thus giving the feeling the beat is actually somewhere other than it is on the written page.

Though I understand he was trying to educate his readers about contemporary rhythm, I think he could have used this opportunity to find different words. A slight change in language could have helped make this sentence more fun to read, as well as create a clearer message for the reader.

Overall, I have enjoyed reading this blog so far. I love learning about the perspective of someone not from my own culture and seeing the similarities and differences between our ideas. Though I would have liked to have seen a little more personality, which these two clearly have (made most obvious by their pictures posted on their site) they have created a strong voice that makes readers want to continue reading their future posts. They used a subtly of "Internet language" (i.e. IMHO), and they capture the reader by being honest about what they think about the music industry as well as their own work.