Mark Simpson, 17 years old, was named the BBC’s Young
Musician of the Year in
this summer. He’s a clarinetist, and also a composer; is principal clarinet
with the National Youth Orchestra in w:st="on">Britain
Clarinet Concerto at the major Sage Gateshead concert
hall. And he’s working on some major compositions, including one for the new
music group of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.
And here’s how he was quoted, when I read about him in
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>The Guardian on July 17:
I’ve stood in front of audiences,
including at the Sage, and you just see a sea of white hair. When I watched the
final [of the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition] on TV, I could see
only a few people who were my age — and they were mostly my friends. It annoys
me so much that classical music is pigeonholed as something aristocratic and
uptight, snobby and above itself. Ultimately things will have to change,
because once the current group of concertgoers are
dead, no one will be listening.
So. This supports reports I’ve
heard about a survey of young British classical musicians, who said they didn’t
want to go to classical concerts. Too many older people, they said, not enough
younger ones.
And it also supports my own idea, which I’ve certainly
talked about in this blog and in my online
book, that classical music education won’t bring young
people into the classical concert hall. The problem, I’ve argued, isn’t the
music; it’s the atmosphere. Even if you love the music, you still have to buy
into the ambience of classical concerts. Mark Simpson might be living proof of
this. He loves classical music, obviously. But he seems to have major problems
with the classical concert hall. And if he — a top teen classical musician — has
problems, other people his age, without his commitment to the music, must feel
the problems even more strongly.










Recent Comments
Herbert Pauls on The Monday post
I wonder if this issue can be clarified a little by bearing in mind that music consumption stats sometimes seem...Greg Sandow on …for…
I've run into this, too, people in classical music who disdain any data on what the audience likes. Too bad...Greg Sandow on The Monday post
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"One can play around with supposed facts to suit whatever outcome is desired." So there's no such thing as truth? And it's...Greg Sandow on …for…
Very nicely said, Yvonne. And very important. The audience isn't the arbiter, even in the long run, though its taste...