The real problem with classical music

[A] young woman, sat down to Schumann, bending her back, lifting her head
and gazing straight up. Maybe God was sitting in the rafters just above her, and
she was using the opportunity to say hello. Both pianists were perfectly fluent.
They kept time, played the right notes and sounded expressive when they were
supposed to.

...lugubrious gymnastics like these advertise the feelings of performers, not of Beethoven or Schumann. Music is asked to stand in line and wait its turn.

Our two pianists might simply have been talking themselves into playing well and sharing the conversation with us. Maybe they didn’t trust their own ability to make music without a little theater to juice up the proceedings. Elaborate arm waving and heaven-bound gazes, at any rate, seem to have become part of the conservatory curriculum, like accurate scales and counterpoint.

I think Holland is missing something essential. This isn't about the performers stepping aside to let the music stand on its own, to let Beethoven or Schumann shine. This is about how people get a chance to perform in an expressive manner in much the same way that artists of other genres do. Now that classical music isn't reserved for the record player and to the elite in a concert hall...now that everything is televised and wild gesturing is a part of today’s performance currency, why do we expect differently. An audience that consumes MTV and BET expects a bit of showmanship.

What would make watching some stoic guy on television playing Bach be more compelling than watching my favorite rap star command the stage with lyrics and dance? Take away 20 years of music training and there is no way I’d be turning on Great Performances. With Emmanuel Ax’s style of performance that put me to sleep in no less than five minutes or Glenn Gould’s strange habits including moaning and humming through the Brandenberg Concerti; a little change in style of performance is right up my alley.

Granted, I have not seen the competition that set Holland in motion. There has to be middle ground. There has to be a way “classical” music can still appeal to contemporary musicians and audiences. I just don’t see how we are supposed to dismiss the performer who has got the camera’s focus and just concentrate on the music as if the performer doesn’t exist. I believe those days are over.