I haven’t blogged in a long time.
I’ve been quiet lately. Not storming the world with ideas about the future of classical music. Just peacefully teaching at Juilliard (remotely, of course), doing some composing, doing some consulting.
That’s how I started a newsletter I’ve sent out. My first in quite awhile. It marks a reemergence into a life more public than I’ve lately had.
In part I’m motivated by a performance of my music, coming up soon, both live and streaming. This is part of a big project launched by pianist Min Kwon, called America/Beautiful.
To quote my newsletter, about the two pieces I’ve written for this:
These are variations on “America the Beautiful.” Min commissioned variations from more than 70 composers.
Pause now…to imagine her learning them all.
But she’s got boundless energy. A pleasure to work with!
She’ll unveil her commissions from July 4 to July 9, streaming and live. With my pieces coming July 8, both ways.
More details coming!
You can read my newsletter here. And you can subscribe to it.
Also from the newsletter:
My spiritual life is more central to me now. Caring, forgiveness, and peace.…
But I haven’t talked about it much before. Let it quietly emerge. Of course it centers my teaching. And, I hope, all of my life.
There’s so much I’ll share. On Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and here.
Glad you’re back. I’m looking forward to your take on the pandemic and how it’s affected classical music
Hi, Rich. Thanks for your response! I don’t know if I have any original thoughts on the pandemic and classical music. I think we’ll see streaming continue, but everyone’s saying that. I think this will be a great opportunity.
But I don’t think recovering from the pandemic is the most serious problem for classical music. The more time I spend outside the classical music world, the more clear it seems to me that we just don’t participate in the wider culture. And that, hope this isn’t too heretical, we don’t have much to offer it. Even me, a classical music person, I’m far more eager to see a great new TV series or Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In the Heights movie than anything classical music has to offer.
I think we’ve been left behind, and it’s our own fault. A vibrant contemporary culture, vibrant musically as well as in other ways, deeply engaging to smart, educated people who in past generations woukd have been in the classical music audience — and we’ve chosen not to take part in it. Our own fault!