John G. Deacon wrote:

>Surely the proof lies in the fact that less than 3% of serious music
>lovers can actually tolerate the stuff that passes for modern music
>today (and before someone gets all angry with me I'm basing this on
>actual record sales).

I think that this is exactly the problem.  "Serious music lovers"
have often be trained in "conservatoires de musique" for years (as music
schools are called in the french-speaking countries) to appreciate only
the conservatory, harmless, very classical intervals, rhythms from the
old generation of composers, and a lot of them are already disgusted by
music of that I wouldn't even call contemporary anymore, such as Bartok
or Stravinsky.  After such a long training, they need several years to
open themselves to other music, if they ever do so!

I myself discovered music completely on my own, and I loved contemporary
music I heard over the radio better than the very classical one which bored
me from the start on.  By the age of 16, I had some friends who were also
interested in classical music, mostly because because they were playing
some instrument, but who wouldn't even hear what I was listening at.  I
wasn't submitted to any formal training, until I started playing cello at
the age of 22.  This was 5 years ago, and I still play about an hour a day
with love, and I even learn to appreciate some works of the "old boring",
as I called them, as Haydn and Mozart (perhaps I will even listen to
Vivaldi in 50 years.  But that rather an illusion, I think).  Anyhow,
my favorites didn't change: my preferred composers are still among the
Shostokovitsh, Gubaidulina, Janacek, Martinu, Bartok, Ligeti, Schonberg,
Berg, Vasks, etc (would take at least 4 lines to make a noncomplete list).

All this to say that there would be certainly more people interested in
modern classical music if the mafiosi of music teaching would offer some
more of that music in their teaching, and if the "old" music would not
always be considered as the "normal" one.

I am not getting angry, even if you speak of record sales.  You'll always
see that record sales are not rewarding the best things.  Open your eyes,
and look at bestseller movies, books, and music.  Actually, I don't think
a lot of Julia Robert movies, Stephen King books, and some Neujahr-concert
where everybody wants to go.  Give me some small-budget unknown movie, some
subversive literature, and some Kancheli music!  (Trauerfarbenes Land, for
example).  The message I would like to transmit, is: let children discover
some of everything, and don't impose your taste on them!  The message of
the 11-year old Cecilia Payne.

Nadine Meertens (26 years-old!)