Essential Classics - The Continuing Debate

[Serial_Apologist]

Personally I couldn't give a monkey's how he pronounces foreign words and names. I just wish he'd keep quiet and play the music.

You wonnabott!

[Victor Meldrew II]

This Easter Monday, during a conversation with Charles Dance, RC made a comment about Leonard Bernstein's score for "On the Waterfront",
saying Elia Kazan found it "too overwhelming". No more overwhelming than many scores from the Golden Age(Korngold, Waxman, Newman, etc.).
Bernstein's score is one of the greatest ever composed, intending to portray the tensions and violence of the docklands under mob control.
RC, you have no idea what you are talking about and you are NOT as knowledgeable as you think!

This morning Radio 3 was still tuned in on my radio after last night's Chailly concert.

I had the serious misfortune to catch ten minutes or so of this programme. It was like the worst sort of dumbed down schmaltz on Classic FM.

Rob Cowan whilst highly knowledgeable comes across as oily and irritating and there was an absurd " Who am I " segment - with Stephen Johnson doing his impression of the Mystery Voice from I Am sorry i have't a clue and then all manner of gooey e-mails read out about Rossini .

What is this trash doing on radio 3 ?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

This Easter Monday, during a conversation with Charles Dance, RC made a comment about Leonard Bernstein's score for "On the Waterfront",
saying Elia Kazan found it "too overwhelming". No more overwhelming than many scores from the Golden Age(Korngold, Waxman, Newman, etc.).
Bernstein's score is one of the greatest ever composed, intending to portray the tensions and violence of the docklands under mob control.
RC, you have no idea what you are talking about and you are NOT as knowledgeable as you think!

But, on this education, RC was reporting fact, not expressing his own opinion - Kazan had a very low opinion of Bernstein's score :

I think the Music hurt that picture. Bernstein's a brilliant guy, but ...

(Kazan, quoted in Anthony Bushard's Leonard Bernstein's "On the Waterfront": a Film Score Guide.)

[Black Swan]

But, on this education, RC was reporting fact, not expressing his own opinion - Kazan had a very low opinion of Bernstein's score :

I think the Music hurt that picture. Bernstein's a brilliant guy, but ...

(Kazan, quoted in Anthony Bushard's Leonard Bernstein's "On the Waterfront": a Film Score Guide.)

This is an interesting discussion. I did not hear the program. I am a fan of Charles Dance and would love to hear some of his comments. I am, as I believe some of the posters, not a big fan RC. I really for me don't like his style. I won't argue his knowledge which is extensive but I just don't like to much commentary and getting his opinion leave it to me to make up my own mind. I really don't see any significance to Kazan liking or disliking the score. He used it and that is fact.

[Victor Meldrew II]

RC and On The Waterfront

Yes I know Kazan often reduced the music's power at points in the movie but the mistake here is RC making this comment
but NOT backing it up with a supportive one. Bernstein thought highly of it, enough to make it into a concert suite.
I still say RC is knowledgeable but not enough.........and I agree about him passing on his opinions. I don't need them.

But, on this education, RC was reporting fact, not expressing his own opinion - Kazan had a very low opinion of Bernstein's score :

I think the Music hurt that picture. Bernstein's a brilliant guy, but ...

(Kazan, quoted in Anthony Bushard's Leonard Bernstein's "On the Waterfront": a Film Score Guide.)

[teamsaint]

presenters giving well founded and well expressed opinions is a good thing, IMO.

Presenters just saying things are great is pointless and irritating.

[french frank]

prssenters giving well founded and well expressed opinions is a good thing, IMO.

I would generalise by saying that the music in an early morning programme probably needed less said about it than, say, the afternoon music, or TEMS/CotW &c. But the invariable rule is that it should always be worth saying.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Today's bit of texty-tweety time wasting: Someone thought the Sinfonia of London/Barbirolli Elgar Introduction and Allegro first appeared on World Record Club, but Rob said it didn't.
CAN'T THEY KEEP THEIR SILLY PRIVATE CONVERSATIONS PRIVATE?

[Nick Armstrong]

There seems to be a new little mantra on EC

"EC... where the music always comes first".

Is this indeed a novelty, or have I missed it till now? If so, several questions occur:

1) is it a plea to the controller that despite the daft Tittering and competitions, they deserve to survive?

2) given said Tuesday competition, should it not in fact be

"where the music always comes first but not necessarily the right way round"

3) is it poke in the eye to Breakfast - and other shows for that matter - where, it seems to be implied, the music therefore does not always come first?

Whatever, it strikes me as a particularly naive and unnecessary bit of 'branding'

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

Essential Classics is harmful to health; it creates hypertension, dulls the mind and causes breakages in the bed/chair vicinity. That lagoon thingy! Please!

Dear Mr New Controller,
Please may we have new programmes and new people to present them on Radio 3 in the mornings.
Your faithful listener
aka

[Honoured Guest]

Dear Mr New Controller,
Please may we have new programmes and new people to present them on Radio 3 in the mornings.
Your faithful listener
aka

Dear Mr Bilk,
Thank you for your letter. We welcome feedback from our faithful listeners. All our programming is under constant review.
Mr New Controller

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

Dear Mr New Controller
You might consider spelling lessons a wise investment in your ongoing professional development.
All your programming is indeed under constant review - by the listeners. The issue is your programmes must change. Whatever else the constant review might achieve within the halls of Broadcasting House; improvement of the low quality morning programming on Radio 3 remains unaddressed.
Your comment "We welcome feedback from our faithful listeners" is at best a promise. Feedback from faithful listeners at the trivialisation of a once valued broadcasting service has been ignored for many years now.
Your faithful listener,
aka

[Stanfordian]

Today's bit of texty-tweety time wasting: Someone thought the Sinfonia of London/Barbirolli Elgar Introduction and Allegro first appeared on World Record Club, but Rob said it didn't.
CAN'T THEY KEEP THEIR SILLY PRIVATE CONVERSATIONS PRIVATE?

Hiya Eine Alpensinfonie, I heard this and I too couldn't not understand the point of it.

[Bryn]

Hiya Eine Alpensinfonie, I heard this and I too couldn't not understand the point of it.

A couple of anoraks discussing their obsession. No more. No less. You should hear bus anoraks going on about theirs. Bores me to tears, but does no real harm.

[french frank]

Let's repeat the Fowler (2015) definition of that not-to-be-uttered phrase: "to make more simple or less demanding, especially in order to appeal to a broader audience, with pejorative connotations". (Perhaps you could guess it if I repeated it backwards? "Connotations pejorative with, audience broader a to appeal to order in especially demanding less or simple more make to")

Five reasons to love ...
Guess the piece of music we're playing backwards
The names of all the people who didn't guess it correctly, along with wrong answers, read out on air
Stand-up comedians who know little about classical music as guests
Lumpish nuggets of information tweeted in by listeners and promptly contradicted by the presenter
Slogans like "where the music always comes first"
Giving a programme a specific (written) brief to attract a broader audience
Calling a programme Essential Classics

"No programme ever failed to attract listeners by underestimating the intelligence of the British public."