MPR: Endangered Art: The Future of Classical Music?

Classical Music: An Endangered Art?
Part 3

Hear additional comments from Wallace Smith
(Real Audio 2.0 14.4)

Interview 1 (3:21)
The "new sound" of classical music and why current definitions are no longer adequate.

Interview 2 (2:04)
An experiment called KUSC; audience reactions, university responses, and ultimate resignations.

Interview 3 (1:50)
The waning influence of western European music on our increasingly diverse population and a comparison of the institutional church and the institution of classical music.

Interview 4 (2:30)
Current options and predictions for the future. Will classical music be relegated to the antiquity section of a museum?

McFerrin tries to tailor classical music to appeal to younger, more diverse audiences, which begs the question, has classical music simply failed to connect with 20th century American audiences? "Yes," says Wally Smith, former program director of KUSC, a classical music station in Los Angeles.

Smith: If you look at what's happening to the population in the United States, you recognize that western Europeans are becoming the minority population in this nation. And with that, the influence of western Europe is beginning to diminish.

Two years ago - with Smith at the programming helm - KUSC launched a controversial new direction on its airwaves, incorporating "traditional" classical music in an eclectic format with jazz, world music, and American classics. The idea was to expand the definition of classical music.

Smith: There is the possibility that we can simply say 'Okay, lets forget all that. Let's focus our attention on providing the western European musical repertoire to the people who know about it and want it; accept the fact that we are not going to be growing audiences; throw out all of our marketing, make these boutique and conservatory-based projects; and people who want to hear this music will come to it, the same way they go to the antiquity sections of museums to see the art that represents the history of the world.' But then don't pretend that you want to build audiences.

The experiment did not last. Public opinion over the change was mixed. Support from the nervous university licensee was withdrawn, and Wally Smith and several announcers were forced to resign from the station. L.A. Times critic Mark Swed wrote - despite KUSC's failure - the new programming ideas ARE the future. Swed says KUSC simply went too far, too fast.

The Future of Classical Music

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4

	Sign up to receive e-mail newsletters

	Audio help

	Text: Sm : Md : Lg