Pedantically Protective Tradition

My parents are the definition of over protective. Ever since I can remember I have been under their cautious eye and even in college I cannot escape the reach of their paranoia when it comes to my physical well being. And I get it, I really do. All that they want is for me to be happy and successful which makes them fearful of anything that may endanger me or my chance at that future. Yet, it is stifling to live inside the box of what they have decreed to be “safe” when I can so clearly see the opportunities which lie outside their comfort zone.

People are the same way about music. Clinging the past, new interpretations of classics scare devoted patrons away immediately, simply because it is different. Regardless of my love of the classics lately I have found myself suffocated by the need to maintain tradition, simply for traditions sake.

UMGASS will be presenting The Gondoliers this April as an update. Rather than setting the operetta in 20th century Vienna as is tradition, it will be presented in modern time during a Venetian Carnival. Couple the concept with a student director (historically directors are community members) and the UMGASS Board has been preparing for damage control since the decision to do an update was made.

After Renee Fleming’s rendition of the National Anthem my Facebook newsfeed painted a similar picture. Music majors (specifically Vocal Performance and Collaborative Pianists) seemed split into two distinct sects: those who loved her performance and those who disapproved of the change of meter, scooping and colors which she used in her lower register. In all of the disapproving posts, no one challenged her evident mastery of technique, rather, criticized her for becoming less “operary” in order to appeal to the masses.

At the end of the day, music and art is about moving the audience. It is about being the mouthpiece for thoughts and feelings which they dare not express because they are at a loss for words, are frightened by the ramifications or have repressed so strongly that they have forgotten they exist. To do this, music must communicate. If this can be accomplished through tradition without it becoming trite and robotic than I am all for honoring the foundation upon which classical music has been built. Yet I fear the blind obligation to tradition which seems ingrained in society. I fear that by clinging to the past we are endangering the possibility of a future for classical music.

So like my parents, I think it is time we a little less protective of what we hold so close. Mistakes will be made but without change there is no opportunity for growth, and without growth there is no life. Without life in classical music, society will move on. Other means of expression will fill the role which classical music once held firmly. It will be in the death of classical music to modern society that those who spurn change will be satisfied. For in death, there is neither change nor growth, allowing the tradition of classical music to be remembered for what it was without fearing that it might have a future.