Prom 16: Ibiza/Cobblers Prom (29.07.15)

[ahinton]

If Terry, then Pratchett; if Riley, then the life of old, thanks!

[ahinton]

Aaaah a discussion about MUSIC

What do you feel about this?

Well, it's a tad short of Pacific 231, n'est-ce pas?...

[MrGongGong]

Well, it's a tad short of Pacific 231, n'est-ce pas?...

Pete Batchelor's train piece is good n'all

(probably should be in another place?)

[Norrette]

One last comment on this prom.

I do a classical stint once a week on a local community radio station. All the rest is popular music or speech. I asked my fellow DJs for their opinion on this prom - couldn't get an answer out of most of them - the only response I got was: "I confess that I did not watch it. For me the mixing of two significantly diverse brands doesnt work for me." and that was from one of the, let's say, senior generation on the station.

[Beef Oven!]

One last comment on this prom.

I do a classical stint once a week on a local community radio station. All the rest is popular music or speech. I asked my fellow DJs for their opinion on this prom - couldn't get an answer out of most of them - the only response I got was: "I confess that I did not watch it. For me the mixing of two significantly diverse brands doesnt work for me." and that was from one of the, let's say, senior generation on the station.

Not a lot you can say to that................

[MrGongGong]

Not a lot you can say to that................

"brands" ?

[pureimagination]

Last Prom season on this very forum I posted a comment calling people snobs and I didn't get the acres of publicity/thousands of comments. This was regarding the upset in some quarters that Paloma Faith/Laura Mvula etc were performing at the Proms. I haven't read all the comments on this thread - it's sooooo long. Thanks to french frank (though you too now sometimes sound like you're not willing to allow others to appreciate genres you don't) for continuing to ask us how we think the Proms/Radio 3 should encourage new listeners and how should classical music be brought to a wide as possible an audience? However I struggle with the term classical music as it has many self imposed definitions.
Thanks also to MrGongGong for reminding us that you can like classical music but you don't have to like all of it - and that you can have broad or narrow tastes regarding other genres of music - just keep your ears open and who knows what new delights you might discover (to paraphrase what I gain from what he's arguing). I am over 50, love a lot of classical music, dislike or am ambivalent towards some. I like rap/hip-hop [been following it from the 80's] and dislike comments including here that dismiss it as just a noise or a beat. I listen to everything and then make up my mind whether I want to hear more or not.
I suggest that André Rieu should do a prom next season cos he plays classical music, doesn't he? (No, I'm not being serious in case anyone's not sure).

[Richard Tarleton]

Hi pureimagination, if I may unpick this slightly:

Thanks to french frank (though you too now sometimes sound like you're not willing to allow others to appreciate genres you don't)

Citation needed (as they say in Wikipedia) - I don't remember ff sounding like any such thing?

Thanks also to MrGongGong for reminding us that you can like classical music but you don't have to like all of it -

Respect to gongers but loads of people on this forum could have reminded you of this, no?

and that you can have broad or narrow tastes regarding other genres of music - just keep your ears open and who knows what new delights you might discover

Well, er, yes

I am [over 50], love a lot of classical music, dislike or am ambivalent towards some.

Again, this applies to many/most

I like rap/hip-hop [been following it from the 80's] and dislike comments including here that dismiss it as just a noise or a beat.

I think the point that a lot is age or demographic-dependent is true. The soundtrack to my teenage years was 60s Bob Dylan, which my nieces don't get at all

I listen to everything and then make up my mind whether I want to hear more or not.

As time gets shorter, you realise time is too short for some things - Ibiza Proms when you're in your 60s, perhaps

I suggest that André Rieu should do a prom next season cos he plays classical music, doesn't he? (No, I'm not being serious in case anyone's not sure).

Nothing in your post thus far warned me this was a joke

[ahinton]

Pete Batchelor's train piece is good n'all

(probably should be in another place?)

So's Alkan's Chemin de fer...

[MrGongGong]

I think the point that a lot is age or demographic-dependent is true. The soundtrack to my teenage years was 60s Bob Dylan, which my nieces don't get at all

Nothing to do with age of demographic IMV just that Dylan is cr*p

[Beef Oven!]

[french frank]

Thanks to french frank (though you too now sometimes sound like you're not willing to allow others to appreciate genres you don't) for continuing to ask us how we think the Proms/Radio 3 should encourage new listeners and how should classical music be brought to a wide as possible an audience?

'Willing to allow'? Rather an odd way of expressing it. What I've said is that the Proms now 'belong' to the BBC and they have the power to 'allow' anything they want. Disagreeing with what they allow doesn't disallow anything: it's just an expression of opinion. Three opinions:

1. Promoting an Ibiza dance music Prom doesn't bring classical music 'to as wide an audience as possible' (your words), or even to any audience at all. It provides the fans of dance music with an evening of live dance music, which is what they've booked for.

2. Not offering a Prom of dance music does not prevent anyone from appreciating the genre (especially during the week before Radio 1's Ibiza Weekend - with Pete Tong).

3. I think it's one of several gimmicks to attract press attention to the Proms: you can't go wrong with providing people with the music they want and journalists with a good story or three each year.

[doversoul1]

Nothing to do with age of demographic IMV just that Dylan is cr*p

That’s because you are in the wrong age group.

[pureimagination]

french frank please read my post (no. 25) in the Prom 41 thread. I don't disagree with your comments in post 552 of this thread - but let's encourage suggestions about how those at BBC Radio 3 might get to hear concerns like yours and those who share them - they don't really seem to be listening. One final thing, you have at times in some of your many posts occasionally strayed into the territory of knocking other musical genres which helps no one. Nor does your comment somewhere that you don't attend live performances any more. How can we encourage others to seek out and appreciate classical music if this is now your attitude? Do you want others to adopt it as theirs?

[french frank]

french frank please read my post (no. 25) in the Prom 41 thread.

Yes, I had already taken your comments in, pureimagination

I don't disagree with your comments in post 552 of this thread - but let's encourage suggestions about how those at BBC Radio 3 might get to hear concerns like yours and those who share them - they don't really seem to be listening.

It's absolutely true that 95% of the time neither the BBC nor Radio 3 listens to listeners' views. But after 12 years of encouraging them to listen, we (FoR3) have probably pursued more avenues than most people could even think of!

One final thing, you have at times in some of your many posts occasionally strayed into the territory of knocking other musical genres which helps no one.

I'm puzzled by that. As a rule, I only consider two factors:

1. I like it/don't like
2. I find it interesting/I don't find it interesting.
(or both)

Not liking or not finding interesting shouldn't be interpreted as 'knocking' anything. Not thinking a Mahler symphony appropriate music for Strictly Come Dancing doesn't 'knock' the dance music or Mahler. But people often seem to read criticism into neutral comments on the basis of 'If they don't like it, they dislike it'. Of all the music that exists in the world I find most of it uninteresting. There's so much of it that there has to be some initial spark of interest for me to spend more than a minute or so on it. But that isn't to 'knock' it.

Nor does your comment somewhere that you don't attend live performances any more. How can we encourage others to seek out and appreciate classical music if this is now your attitude? Do you want others to adopt it as theirs?

I don't attend for health reasons. I would love to attend concerts and recitals, especially recitals. It is not an 'attitude'.