And for our finale, a standing ovation!

Remember kids, there are no "outs" and we don't keep "score" and everyone gets a turn every "inning" and you are all "winners."

At some point when I was growing up, there was a cultural shift in the way we educate and expose children to life. When I was in Little League, we kept score. There were winners and there were losers; this was not a reflection of us as human beings, simply an illustration in numerical form that one team was superior to another team in the singular sporting competition that all agreed to participate in. When I was in elementary school, if I spelled cat with a “k,” I got a red mark next to that answer signifying that it was wrong. Cat is spelled cat. It just is.

Nowadays we’ve empowered children in an effort to promote independence and free-thinking, occasionally in some pretty interesting ways. Little League teams that don’t keep score. Montessori schools that allow kids to direct the course of their own instruction. Whole language education that suggests that phonics aren’t necessarily something to be hooked on. The list goes on, but the list isn’t what’s important. The mindset of the adults behind them is.

I was at a concert: Opening night!

If Legolas got a violin and a perm…………

The Kansas City Symphony began their final season in the Lyric Theater this Friday with a splashy concert featuring a new composition, a world-renowned guest artist, and some popular 20th century masterpieces.  By the way, this is the final season for the Symphony in the Lyric Theater, which will no longer be used for symphonic concerts, opera performances, or the Ludovico technique.  The brand new Kauffman Center will open in 2011, with much fanfare.  Also, this will be the final season in the Lyric Theater.

Politics In The Concert Hall

I read this brief complaint from columnist Jay Nordlinger of the National Review regarding politics on the podium.  Here is an excerpt:

So, on Friday night, I go to Carnegie Hall for a Christmas concert. The King’s Singers are performing with the New York Pops Orchestra; Marilyn Horne is a special guest. This should be an evening away from politics — just a little fodder for my next New Criterion music piece, you know?

Shortly into the concert, the conductor turns to the audience and speaks about “the holidays.” This year, he says, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa are overlapping with Christmas. (According to what I can find, Kwanzaa begins on December 26, but never mind.) Then we have New Year’s Day. And “on January 20, there will be a new beginning for our country.” The crowd, of course, erupts into cheers. Then he says, “I see I’m not the only one who’s ready.”

This type of behavior seems to be commonplace among artists of all disciplines.  The Sean Penns, George Clooneys, Green Days, and Dixie Chicks of the universe seem to have an incessant need to keep us informed of their political slant.  We listen, at least enough to keep them talking.  They makes films with veiled political messages (The Day The Earth Stood Still is about global warming now?), not-so-veiled political messages (you can’t fight terrorism with guns, right Munich, Syriana, The Kingdom, Body of Lies?), and satires about sitting presidents.  Music and art are also filled with such examples, like “American Idiot,” one of the most popular albums of the year.

Choosing to express your political views in your chosen medium is something I have no problem with…I can choose not to go see Tim Robbins’ stupid war journalist flick, I can not buy the Dixie Chicks album (of course, I wouldn’t buy it if it was about Mahler, the 49ers, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and The Big Lebowski), I can skip a politically charged art exhibition if I don’t want to see it.  As the saying goes, “there’s a time and a place.”

A concert is not one of those places.

I don’t know who the conductor in question at the performance is, but I agree with Mr. Nordlinger’s call for some degree of condemnation for this breach of at best intelligence, at worst etiquette.  The types of comments being made absolutely do detract from what you’re doing, and what you should be doing is providing the best concert you can.  Taking stupid cheap shots in the political realm should be off-limits, mostly because it can ruin an otherwise noteworthy performance for the patrons.  Your service must be to art, not your opinions.

I consider myself one of the most annoying loud-mouthed, opinionated people out there, and I have extremely strong opinions about many things (like the fact that Joe Montana IS the greatest quarterback of all-time…I DARE you to argue with me on this!).  I’m not Captain Couth either…I’m almost happy to embarass myself with foul language, off-color humor, and a hearty, boisterous, obnoxious laugh.  But I’ve continued to improve my decorum, and I’m happy to pass judgment in this case.

There is never an appropriate time to bring politics into the concert hall.  Even if you are performing a piece like El-Khoury’s “Lebanon In Flames,” it is important to try to give the audience an understanding of where the composer is coming from without injecting your own opinions into the situation.  Feel free to talk about it in private circles, or on your blog.

Which reminds me…hunting bears and wolves from a helicopter is wrong.