Len Fehskens wrote:

>I do not go to the BSO to hear music I have never heard before or do not
>yet like in an attempt to come to terms with it.  I can do that far more
>productively with CDs.  I go to the BSO to hear music I know and love in
>live performance, which is a qualitatively different experience from
>hearing it in my home.  And I suspect much of the rest of the BSO's
>audience feels more or less the same way.

I agree with Len's general point that separating out "mid-brow,"
"hyper-modern," and "beginners'" concert series would be a very bad
idea; I think the practice of mixed programming is generally the best.
And I think Len is right that most of the BSO audience (and not only
that orchestra's audience) agrees with him that orchestras should leave
unfamiliar works alone and just play the stuff they already know and love.
But I strongly disagree with that programming philosophy.

I like to be surprised by things I don't already know, and am prepared to
come away from such experiences fairly often without a desire to hear the
work again.  I would like to think that I can trust the music director and
whoever else is involved in programming to be able to choose works that at
least deserve a chance at public exposure.

In other words, I don't belong to the school of CM fans who feel that the
role of a great orchestra is to confirm the musical prejudices they already
happen to have.  If that's your approach, how can you grow as a listener?

Jon Johanning // [log in to unmask]