By Robert D. Thomas
Music Critic
Los Angeles News Group
Pasadena Star-News/San Gabriel Valley Tribune/Whittier Daily News
“Have you ever thought … what the world would be like without music? … We would all be humans and life would go on, but it would be much more difficult to mourn our losses and celebrate our loves. God gave us music, I think, so that we would have some hint of what She is like. God sings to our hearts with music, telling us of love about which we would know much less if it were not for music.”
This quote from a gem of a little book, Star Bright, by one of my favorite authors, Father Andrew Greeley, rings especially true as we approach the season of Thanksgiving. “Give thanks with a grateful heart,” wrote the songwriter Henry Luke, and there are, of course, many things for which I like to give thanks, among them, classical music.
First, of course, I give thanks for the magical, mystical medium of music, which speaks to us in ways that mere words cannot. So today I give thanks for those who continue to compose music, often battling significant odds. Every week it seems that wonderful new compositions appear, sometimes when we least expect it. I find this particularly true in choral music, but perhaps that’s because my heart resonates especially to music that can be sung.
Let us never forget that music is not just notes on a page. It comes alive when musicians perform it. So I give thanks for instrumentalists, conductors, choristers and soloists who make the music. As a critic my job is to report on what I saw and heard at a program, but because I am also a performer I never forget how difficult is the art and craft of performance. Being a critic is almost always a juggling act.
Unfortunately, not every everything in music is a happy story. Once again this year we need to give special thanks for music educators in schools, conservatories and churches who struggle to keep the music candle shining in a society that finds it hard to believe that art is an indispensable part of the educational process.
Moreover, let us remember parents who know the value of music and the arts and who work hard to find the extra income necessary to give their children a music education. I believe there is a direct correlation between the decline in music education and society’s increase in violence, bigotry and mistrust. May we come to our senses before it is too late.
There are so many others — administrators, volunteers, boards of directors, financial supporters and others — who come together to enrich our lives through concerts, recitals, opera productions and other events. We need to remember, support and give thanks to all of them, especially at this time of the year.
The best way of saying thanks is, of course, to attend concerts and, fortunately, there will be plenty of musical cheer offered during the holiday season. December will be EXTREMELY busy and you will read about them in upcoming posts on the Los Angeles News Group Web sites. Take time from the hectic commercial season and spend an hour or two in a concert. Consider it a present to yourself. And give thanks with a grateful heart.
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(c) Copyright 2014, Robert D. Thomas. All rights reserved. Portions may be quoted with attribution.