Category: Daily Dispatch

This was a response to a comment by Dolores Cascarino on my hasty, impressionistic post yesterday about the overwhelming experience of hearing Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony on Friday afternoon with the Philadelphia Orchestra, an experience so sublime that for me it defied criticism. (The final performance of the three-concert series will be given at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts this afternoon at 2:00.)

Evidently, I warmed to the subject, so much so, that I think it bears repeating as a separate post. I hope you’ll find it worth reading, especially in light of Timothée Chalamet’s recent blithe dismissal of ballet and opera, remarks I have to say were stunning in their ignorance, and so unnecessary, especially from one whose mother and sister danced professionally.

But I am, after all, in radio. As one who has said some pretty boneheaded things off the cuff myself, perhaps I should cut him some slack. It’s just unfortunate that such a prominent figure – a teen heartthrob AND an Academy Award nominee for Best Actor – should make such a widely-seen, unhelpful flub.

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Increasingly, I’m realizing how lucky I am to be hearing any of this music live. I mean, I understand from years of concertgoing how rare it is to hear certain pieces performed that you might encounter on recordings or semi-frequently on the radio. If you miss them when they’re played by your local orchestra, they might not turn up again for decades. Of course, that is not the case with Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony, which is justifiably popular and guaranteed to pack the hall.

But as the recent remarks of Timothée Chalamet confirm (if you don’t know what I’m talking about, google it), classical music has become so marginalized, at least in terms of “relevance” to the masses, in a society in which education is in the toilet and maximum profit drives everything, performing arts organizations are in perpetual danger of withering and dying. These groups can no longer depend on the moneyed classes or corporations or even the government to help sustain them, and revenue from ticket sales are not enough to cover Mahler, much less a world class production of one of the great operas.

Anyone who hasn’t experienced these live has no idea what they’re missing. I’m not saying all of this music will connect with everyone, but there is nothing in the world of popular music that can make you shudder, shatter you, reduce you to tears, and elevate you, like Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony. It’s tragic that there are so many people who dismiss this kind of music without ever having experienced it or even considering it, or most criminally of all, even knowing that it’s out there. For me, life would be so much poorer without it.

The tendency to judge and compare performances is natural, and thoughtful criticism can be informative and helpful. (This part has nothing to do with Chalamet.) I am interested to read the thoughts of a person of some experience and see how they processed what they heard. As time passes, such writing takes on added significance as it becomes part of the historical record. It’s often helpful, or at least interesting, to see how a work or performance was received in the past.

It’s the easiest thing in the world to be supercilious – to nitpick or dismiss something out of hand because we think we know better – but we should never lose sight of just how lucky we are to be able to experience this music at all and how sublime it can be.

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PHOTO: Chalamet (right) makes an ass of himself with Matthew MacConaughey