A Classical Education

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun

In November 1954, the young Leonard Bernstein appeared on the program “Omnibus” standing on a gigantic score of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. He began the program by pointing to the opening four notes with his shoe. As he explained the creative process and Beethoven’s struggles, Lennie illustrated his talk by playing the piano and by having members of the Symphony of the Air play passages while seated at their particular line on the larger than life music paper, with the camera shooting from high in the studio rafters.

Classical music is much more marginalized now, at least in American life, and any appearance on television is to be enthusiastically celebrated. This week PBS will begin screening “Keeping Score,” a video journey by a protégé of Bernstein and a committed music educator, Michael Tilson Thomas. The program, which features Mr. Thomas leading his San Francisco Symphony, has a corollary Web site and a guide for teachers. Altogether it is a noble experiment, albeit a flawed one.

On the surface, Mr. Thomas seems to be the best possible candidate for this assignment. He is obviously deeply motivated by his mission and extremely enthusiastic for the opportunity. His success in San Francisco lies largely upon his likability and his community outreach, and over the years he has become somewhat of a local celebrity whose fame transcends his art. Like Kurt Masur in Leipzig, Mr. Thomas would be a sure winner if he wanted to run for office.

Mr. Thomas does a fine job explaining the historical context of these pieces, going to St. Petersburg to discuss why a Russian work like Stravinsky’s “Le Sacre du Printemps” had to have its premiere in Paris. He is also adept at demystifying Nijinsky’s choreography for the work. But when he tries to explicate the music itself, he takes too much for granted. His casual employment of such terms as “unison harmonics” and “ostinato” may leave his viewers diving not for their Groves dictionaries but rather for their remote controls. By contrast, when Bernstein talked to his audience, which consisted of small children, he did not shy away from sophisticated musical terms or concepts, but always took the time to explain them so that his young disciples (and their parents) could understand them.

The common denominator of the “Keeping Score” programs is musical innovation, or, as Mr. Thomas insists, “revolution.” Thus all three pieces presented in the early weeks — Copland’s “Appalachian Spring,” Beethoven’s “Eroica” Symphony, and “The Rite of Spring” — are deemed revolutionary. A bit of an oversimplification perhaps, but if hyperbole is necessary for the propagation of the faith, then so be it. If even one listener becomes interested in serious art music as a result of this series, then everyone involved has achieved an admirable goal.

Mr. Thomas and his ensemble players, who often offer their own comments, are undeniably energetic about their proselytizing, but are somewhat slipshod in argumentative skills. Occasionally, the charismatic conductor will sit at the piano and play a chord or short passage, exclaiming how revolutionary it is. But unlike other programs of a similar ilk — Englishman Howard Goodall’s “Big Bangs,” which airs periodically on the Ovation network here in New York, for example — Mr. Thomas never presents any musical evidence to support his claims of one eureka moment or another. If he instead performed a measure or two of the “Eroica” and then followed it with some contextual passage from Haydn or Mozart, then neophytes might quickly see the wisdom of his remarks. Rather, he simply asks us to take his word for it.

And, more embarrassingly, the players of his orchestra try too hard to be contemporary. One describes the music as “sexy” while another exclaims, “It’s like rock ‘n’ roll!” Gee, when they get around to filming the episode about Hector Berlioz and his “Symphonie Fantastique” — supposedly inspired by opium — they may be in danger of incurring a television rating of “MA” for mature audiences.

Still, spending time dissecting the classics should help to build an audience, especially since the shameful abdication of the American public school system has rendered the entire subject obsolete. It is often said that young people do not like classical music. This is patently untrue. Rather, it is simply no longer on their radar screens. The best orientation for classical music is in the home, which is why Eastern European and, increasingly, East Asian immigrants are better prepared to study such music at the conservatory level. Here’s wishing Michael Tilson Thomas every success in his endeavors as we let him into our homes.

“Keeping Score” airs November 5, 12, and 19 on PBS.


The New York Sun

© 2025 The New York Sun Company, LLC. All rights reserved.

Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The material on this site is protected by copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used.

The New York Sun

Sign in or  Create a free account

or
By continuing you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use