Musicians: The fiddlers are back! Classical is back!

[Manifestor_of_Light]

I felt so good watching Itzhak Perlman and Yo Yo Ma, and the pianist and clarinetist.

Never thought I'd see chamber music performed at an inauguration.

Bush has shut out all music with any subtlety at all -- no soul, no good rock, no classical, no R&B.

Finally, we have a wide range of music that is accepted.


Note: When I say "fiddlers" I mean classical violinists, violists, cellists and bassists.
It's easier for me to say "fiddlers" than "string players".

I've been a pianist since I was five, and a fiddler since I was ten years old.

And Aretha rocked!!

[snot]

1. Culture, taste, fun in general are back!

[timtom]

2. But, as an ancillary, don't disregard fiddlin' fiddlers

(nor mandolins nor Irish harps, to name a few)

These are my instruments.

[sweetpotato]

3. Mandolins - always nice

Have you ever been to one of the big Blue Grass music festivals? Suwanee Music Park in Florida holds some great shows - they last several days and everyone camps out. Fun stuff.

[timtom]

5. Yes. That very one.

But, not since 1996 (money's been short).

[Bake]

13. I love the mandolin!

The F-style mandolin originated by Lloyd Loar is still one of the most visually beautiful instruments - like a work of art. And of course the sound of a mandolin is beautiful. (I play one too!)



Bake

[Karenina]

4. Piano, Garbiela Montero, Clarinet, Anthony McGill

THEIR names are also relevant,

[Le Taz Hot]

6. Wasn't that wonderful?

And Renee Flemming at the concert the day before. And how about that new piece by John Williams? I LOVED the "Simple Gifts" theme.

[DemoTex]

7. Oboist for Obama here ..

I give the Garbiela Montero, Anthony McGill, Itzhak Perlman, Yo Yo Ma performance an A=440!

(I'm also a bass violinist)

[tilsammans]

8. Hear, hear!

Change has come to cultural appreciation, too!

[saltpoint]

9. Kings and folks in power set a long tradition of inviting talented folks

for court celebrations.

Musicians. Dancers. Poets. And so forth.

I last felt this elevation with the Kennedy White House, a bit in Clinton's Renaissance gatherings, and certainly yesterday, we got a clear, strong signal.

Anytime you have an event that includes both Aretha Franklin and Yo Yo Ma, you're doin' it right.

Amazing stuff.

[Poiuyt]

10. Yo Yo looked like he was having a fun time

[KittyWampus]

12. that struck me as well. He was smiling broadly across to Perlman. Essentially, they were playing a

dance tune

[originalpckelly]

11. It certainly was nice, wasn't it?

It was better than hearing some redneck screech out "Proud to Be an American".

[Book Lover]

14. While I completely agree with your sentiment, the Names You Can Name performance

seemed to me to be not that close to classical music. John Williams wrote a pedestrian piece of music not out of place at an NPR fundraiser, and the two classical musicians who "everyone" can name (and two who nobody knows) were asked to perform, which they did well enough. When given a crust instead of crumbs, we should still demand the loaf.

[Karenina]

16. Are you a snob or just mean-spirited?

Enquiring minds want to know...

[Book Lover]

17. What I am is a musician, and what I am not is a sycophant n/t

[Karenina]

19. Well, TRA-LA-LA!

[DavidDvorkin]

18. True

With so much classical music to choose from, that was disappointing.

[JitterbugPerfume]

15. The Kennedy Whitehouse

often featured classical music.Pablo Cassals (sp?) was featured a couple of times.Even Harry Truman played the piano in the Kennedy whitehouse if memory serves mw well


This was a very good omen. Yo Ma Ma and Itzhak Pearlman are wonderful artists.I hope we see more of them.

[Taverner]

20. Who did Bush have?

I just remember Ricky Martin and ZZ Top