Ritz Chamber Players Concert for Human Rights (Jacksonville, Celebration: live, trendy)

[projectmaximus]

For our MLK Concert this year we are honoring the Chartrand Family with our Humanitarian Award. Numerous community organizations will be on hand, including the Human Rights Campaign and Equality Florida. The program features music by all gay composers.

[Robyn55]

Totally bizarre IMO.

I went to a Ritz Players MLK concert in the early/mid 2000's - and the featured piece was one I'd never heard of by an American black composer I'd never heard of that dealt with the theme of "freedom". Guess they won't play his work again because he isn't gay . Robyn

[projectmaximus]

I don't follow your logic...can you clarify what you're saying?

We try to create a theme behind each program...it was decided that for this one we'd expand on the battle for human rights for all to focus on the current struggle of the LGBT community. The composers on this program are all gay and one of the works (the Tchaikovsky quartet) has musical references to the plight of Tchaikovsky's suppressed sexual preference.

That doesn't mean that the ensemble won't perform works by non-gay composers and I'm not sure why you'd think that. With the touring concerts and recital series we have about 8-10 different programs each year. And if that piece you heard was any good then we've probably used it a number of times. But I'm not sure which one you're talking about since we've performed works by a dozen American black composers, most of whom only the classical aficionado would have heard.

[Robyn55]

Originally Posted by projectmaximus

I don't follow your logic...can you clarify what you're saying?

We try to create a theme behind each program...it was decided that for this one we'd expand on the battle for human rights for all to focus on the current struggle of the LGBT community. The composers on this program are all gay and one of the works (the Tchaikovsky quartet) has musical references to the plight of Tchaikovsky's suppressed sexual preference.

That doesn't mean that the ensemble won't perform works by non-gay composers and I'm not sure why you'd think that. With the touring concerts and recital series we have about 8-10 different programs each year. And if that piece you heard was any good then we've probably used it a number of times. But I'm not sure which one you're talking about since we've performed works by a dozen American black composers, most of whom only the classical aficionado would have heard.

Let me try to be as polite as possible.

Black people don't have many days in the year where the country celebrates black people. And the MLK holiday is one of them.

The MLK concert I went to was part of the "Pipe Organ" concert series I subscribed to (which I don't believe exists anymore) at the Jacoby Symphony Hall. Maybe around the mid-2000's. It celebrated black artists - black musicians - and black composers (some famous - some not). A fair number of whom were present in person. There was everything from gospel music to obscure like you say "classical" music. Some things were familiar to me - some new. Perhaps you can look it up and get the concert details for me (I tried to look it up but couldn't find it).

It was the most attended "Pipe Organ" series concert I ever saw (it was "sold out" or almost "sold out" whereas a regular Pipe Organ concert usually only attracted a couple of hundred people at best). And the audience was about 80%+ black (which was a huge first for a Pipe Organ series concert). And everyone loved it. Not only me and my husband but the large number of black people attending - because the concert celebrated what black people do and have done.

This gay thing? That's some liberal garbage out of left field for the average black person in Jacksonville. And me too (even though I'm white - and you're Asian IIRC). Did anyone ask average black people in JAX about the content of this program? Most black people in JAX are kind of conservative in terms of this stuff. And - even if they weren't - don't you think they'd rather hear black music by black artists/musicians/composer on MLK day - as opposed to stuff by Tchaikovsky/Copland/Menotti - old white dead guys (music selected perhaps - like you say - because some bars perhaps express the composer's suppressed sexual preferences <rolling eyes>). I love the great violin concertos - including the Tchaikovsky - but not because they allegedly express suppressed sexual preferences - they're just great music.

There's a lot of great black music - and MLK day is certainly one day in the year that it should be celebrated IMO.

This is why the fine arts are failing financially IMO. There is just no connect between the people who plan these events for the most part and their intended audiences. Have we gotten so trendy in JAX now that we can't deliver great black music (of which there's a lot) to local black audiences on MLK day? Robyn

P.S. If you want to do something about suppression/repression/whatever on MLK day - why not Survivor From Warsaw? Which I think would be a totally inappropriate offering too.

[projectmaximus]

I think I know exactly what concert you're talking about. This one? Celebration of Negro spiritual music in T-U Center Sunday | Jacksonville.com

Anyway I actually don't disagree with most of your points, but I think the basis of your objections are a bit narrow-minded. First of all, we present black musicians and composers all year long, not just during the 1.5 months that pander to black america. Secondly, our musicians select the repertoire they feel most passionate about...and it's simply part of the artistic process. Third, they try to choose good music. If some work, even by a black composer, isn't great then they probably won't want to perform it again. Couple that with the fact that we also try not to repeat repertoire in the same city, means that there is a necessary shuffle in music.

And your conjecture that black people would appreciate black compositions more than others simply because they're black is very debatable. I say this having done this for a long time now. Sure, there's a natural bias to begin with but it doesn't seem to carry very far if they don't connect with what they're hearing. This is particularly diminished by the fact that we have the best black musicians in the world performing. That seems to be the greatest spark for audiences...that these black musicians can perform any classical music as well as any other musician.

btw, the program had some music by a black composer...with text written by Langston Hughes...the famous poet who happens to also be gay and black.

Oh, and one last thing...the part that you rolled your eyes at...thats easily one of the most important aspects of classical music: the meaning and interpretations. It's literally the essence of classical music, because of what the genre is. Since being a classical musician nowadays means predominantly (almost exclusively really) performing someone else's music, the musicians spend much of their time simply understanding and interpreting the composer's thoughts and feelings. Yes, the natural aesthetics are important most of the time as well, but the lion's share of studying/practicing (and appreciation from audiences) is focused on the substance of the music.

[Robyn55]

Originally Posted by projectmaximus

I think I know exactly what concert you're talking about. This one? Celebration of Negro spiritual music in T-U Center Sunday | Jacksonville.com

Anyway I actually don't disagree with most of your points, but I think the basis of your objections are a bit narrow-minded. First of all, we present black musicians and composers all year long, not just during the 1.5 months that pander to black america. Secondly, our musicians select the repertoire they feel most passionate about...and it's simply part of the artistic process. Third, they try to choose good music. If some work, even by a black composer, isn't great then they probably won't want to perform it again. Couple that with the fact that we also try not to repeat repertoire in the same city, means that there is a necessary shuffle in music.

And your conjecture that black people would appreciate black compositions more than others simply because they're black is very debatable. I say this having done this for a long time now. Sure, there's a natural bias to begin with but it doesn't seem to carry very far if they don't connect with what they're hearing. This is particularly diminished by the fact that we have the best black musicians in the world performing. That seems to be the greatest spark for audiences...that these black musicians can perform any classical music as well as any other musician.

btw, the program had some music by a black composer...with text written by Langston Hughes...the famous poet who happens to also be gay and black.

Oh, and one last thing...the part that you rolled your eyes at...thats easily one of the most important aspects of classical music: the meaning and interpretations. It's literally the essence of classical music, because of what the genre is. Since being a classical musician nowadays means predominantly (almost exclusively really) performing someone else's music, the musicians spend much of their time simply understanding and interpreting the composer's thoughts and feelings. Yes, the natural aesthetics are important most of the time as well, but the lion's share of studying/practicing (and appreciation from audiences) is focused on the substance of the music.

Thank you ever so much for this link - that's the concert. I hate it when I can't find something . And will bookmark the link for future reference. It *was* a memorable concert.

I might rethink the stuff about not repeating repertoire if I were in your position. I'm not talking about symphony orchestras doing the same "50 Greatest Hits In Classical Music" again and again and again in front of increasingly geriatric audiences (using Itzhak Perlman as much as possible). But of replaying selected things perhaps every 5-10 years so they can be introduced to younger/newer audiences. At least IMO - I don't think that any outfit doing anything black at any time of the year is pandering to black people (just like Fiddler on the Roof doesn't "pander" to Jewish people - Fiddler On The Roof *is* my grandparents - and I connect with it).* Considering the % of the population in Jacksonville that is black - I think the offerings directed to black audiences are pretty slim for the most part.

Sometimes I have wound up in the FTU building at a "white thing" - and there's a "black thing" (a show - a performer - usually something/someone I've never heard of) in the venue across the lobby. And have been amazed how these performances are packed. "Build it and they will come."

Except perhaps for the pipe organ concert series. My husband is a big Bach fan - which is one reason we subscribed for quite a few years. OTOH - two of the best concerts in that series were performed by this guy (he was a repeat performer):

Pipe Dreams: Flamboyant international organist Cameron Carpenter has garnered as much attention for his skills as for challenging tradition: Feature Story section: Metro Weekly magazine

And his concerts were pretty well attended compared with most in the organ series. Because just about every gay person in the area showed up to watch him. I guess they (and I) all thought he was gay. And now we find out he's bisexual. What a let down <LOL>.

I guess we have fallen out of the habit of going to concerts downtown. Not only because we've gotten older - but because downtown in general has been going sideways/down for quite a while. I'd give my right arm to have a revitalized downtown where the dining/drinking experiences before and after concerts are as good as the music (the music scene is very good IMO). So it wouldn't be a question of going into Dodge only for the music. Robyn

*Funny story about being one of the few Jews in Jacksonville. Quite a few years back - we were invited to preview/criticize Jackie Mason's new Broadway show at - of all places - FCCJ. I got invited because I'm on a lot of local Jewish mailing lists. We went. And Jackie Mason said he did the preview/tune up in Jacksonville because - if parts of the show were lame - he only wanted 20 Jewish people in the world to know!