spike

- friends
7,877 link karma
4,102 comment karma
send messageredditor for
what's this?

TROPHY CASE


  • Five-Year Club

reddit is a source for what's new and popular online. vote on links that you like or dislike and help decide what's popular, or submit your own!

How to market Opera. by spikein opera

[–]spike[S] 1 point2 points ago

Actually, American's attitude towards soccer is changing, slowly.

I'm new to all this, and I'm wondering if my old beater of a bike would stand a chance touring. by drayb3in bicycletouring

[–]spike 3 points4 points ago

It's a perfectly good bike, nothing "low-end" about it. You might want to invest in a better seat, it will pay off in terms of comfort over the long run.

The gears look to be about medium-range, the lack of a really low gear might be a problem if you're carrying a load up a long steep climb, but I'm assuming you're young and healthy. If you find that you enjoy bicycle touring, then you might want to think about either upgrading the bike (lower gears, more powerful brakes), or getting something "better", but for now this bike looks perfectly acceptable.

r/books, what's your favorite classic? by luceypbearezin books

[–]spike 2 points3 points ago

Plutarch's "Lives", especially the lives of Mark Antony and Julius Caesar.

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

I'm curious about this Mozart "Equilibrium". Is that real, or is it Auto-correct?

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

Try concerts at your local music school. Lots of hot girls at Juilliard concerts, for example.

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

"Strictly Baroque"? That's an interesting comment. In too many concert seasons, Baroque music is in a sort of "Early Music Ghetto", cut off from the rest of Classical.

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

Before Beethoven's later quartets and piano sonatas, and even afterwards, most chamber music and piano music was intended to be played at home by good amateur musicians. In fact, most chamber music that was published was actually "reductions" of orchestral or operatic music, specifically intended for home performance, because before recorded music this was often the only way for people outside of major cities to hear any great music. Yes, it was a communal experience, but often on a very small scale.

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 3 points4 points ago

Classical music has lost its way. It's hard to believe, but that stuffy, pretentious art form we know today used to be alive, used to be "popular" music. People whistled Mozart in the streets, women fainted when Lizst walked on stage, people cheered when Farinelli hit a high note, people rioted when Stravinsky introduced The Rite of Spring. It's too easy to say that the music hasn't changed, we've changed. The music, and even more importantly, its surroundings, has changed. New music used to be the lifeblood of concert-going. Showmanship was an integral part of music. The human voice was front and center. Hard as it is to believe today, improvisation was not only accepted, it was mandatory in "classical" music. Music was altered to fit the occasion, it was recomposed to fit the performers, it was not a mummified sacred cow. Most classical musicians, incredibly talented as they are, have no ability to improvise or even loosen up, musically or even physically. There's no need for tuxedos or evening gowns when the music speaks. There's no need for absolute perfection in everything, but there's a need for passion and communicative skills. Many of the greatest performers of the last 100 years could not even qualify for an average classical competition today, they would be considered technically deficient or interpretively too wayward. I would be willing to bet that if Mozart were transported to our present time and put on stage to perform one of his piano concertos he would be booed off the stage by the average classical-music audience, much the same way Jesus would be crucified by his present-day followers. Classical music cannot survive as a museum culture.

The fragmentation of the classical music scene is a problem. Not just the strict separation between instrumental and vocal music, but the separation of opera from the rest of classical music. Look at the comments: people want lyrics. Also, the separation of "Early Music" from the rest of Classical music. Young people respond to modal music and Chant, don't wall it off into a ghetto. I know this has to do with technical requirements, but that's as much of a problem with musicians and the musical culture as it is with audiences. There's nothing wrong with transcriptions, by the way; they were once an accepted, even a mandatory practice to bring music to concertgoers.

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

I have friends who think nothing of dropping $200 for tickets to a Heavy Metal concert. One of them asked me about the Metropolitan Opera. I said "You might like it, but it can be expensive". "How much?" he asked. "At least $100 for decent seats." He seemed amused. "That's nothing, I spend way more than that going to see Metalllica".

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

Friends of mine think nothing of spending $200 to go see a Heavy Metal concert.

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

With all due respect, much classical music is complex enough that the orchestral musicians do need to have the music in front of them. Soloists often memorize their pieces.

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

Beethoven's piano concertos are not really about the performers's technical skills, and if you don't find them interesting, well, the fault is more with you than the music, I would suggest. You could legitimately complain about Lizst, Rachmaninov or Prokofiev concertos in that sense, however.

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

Recently I've been going to classical concerts at a night club, "Le Poisson Rouge" in New York City. The events are either free or cheap (although there's drink minimum) and the atmosphere is informal and fun, which seems to energize the performers as well as the audience.

There's really no need for the formality of the average concert. I really don't care for the rituals, like the singers and conductors walking on and off the stage like they're the second coming of Christ, wearing tuxedos or evening dresses.

Reddit, as a classical musician, tell me what we could do better. What is it about classical music that keeps you away from our concerts? by a12345678910in AskReddit

[–]spike 0 points1 point ago

The expense (although friends of mine think nothing of dropping $200 for a Heavy Metal concert), the stultifying atmosphere and lack of spontaneity of most classical concerts, the preference given to "subscribers" who often don't even show up, the lack of imaginative programming for the most part.

I love going to Juilliard concerts; those kids really rock.

What's the worst thing that happened you while touring? by Wonderbarin bicycletouring

[–]spike 1 point2 points ago

Great cave, I climbed that same hill with my girlfriend in 1980, but we had an easier time getting in...

What's the worst thing that happened you while touring? by Wonderbarin bicycletouring

[–]spike 3 points4 points ago

Rain 20 out of 21 days.

view more: next