Another Brick In The Budget
July 18th 2008 06:02
On opening a copy of some music magazine, or other (I can’t quite remember which) a large advertisement proclaimed that The Queensland Orchestra would be performing arrangements of Pink Floyd songs…. WHY - was the immediate question that came to mind on seeing this!? And that was on the same day that I happened to have the ABC radio on and was swiftly brought down by some string ensemble arrangements of Beatles songs. (It was quite a disgusting day, weather-wise, and that really didn’t help!)
The objection is not about The Queensland Orchestra or whomever it was chaffing their bow strings over Back In The USSR – we’d all agree that they’re fine ensembles of considerable worth, so why do they feel the need to recycle vintage rock music? Well, yes it is understandable that one’s immediate response is:" bums-on-seats". In this age of ever dwindling arts funding budgets, artistic directors are desperate to net that X thousand allocation that has so many hungry, pleading hands in dire need of it also vying for a slice with some equally bland yet marketable programme for the season.
Yes, paying the rent is important, but is there really nothing new out there that an audience is willing to take the risk and part with their hard earned dosh to be enlightened by? Where are all the new composers and why don’t we want to listen to them…? Then there is the argument of bringing a new audience to classical music by luring them in with something that is familiar. If so, then the likes of a Pink Floyd and a Beatles audience seems a most unlikely choice as these artists have always navigated this territory!
What’s wrong with us that we can’t be tempted to engage in a musical experience simply by the fact that it IS something new and that we might enjoy the experience of something unfamiliar?
The objection is not about The Queensland Orchestra or whomever it was chaffing their bow strings over Back In The USSR – we’d all agree that they’re fine ensembles of considerable worth, so why do they feel the need to recycle vintage rock music? Well, yes it is understandable that one’s immediate response is:" bums-on-seats". In this age of ever dwindling arts funding budgets, artistic directors are desperate to net that X thousand allocation that has so many hungry, pleading hands in dire need of it also vying for a slice with some equally bland yet marketable programme for the season.
What’s wrong with us that we can’t be tempted to engage in a musical experience simply by the fact that it IS something new and that we might enjoy the experience of something unfamiliar?
Bums On Seats (or Ears)
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