My Music "Education"

I'm not always sure what my grandchildren think of me.  Generally, I think they believe I'm an old fogey who doesn't know nuthin' about nuthin' when it comes to music and modern life.  Sometimes, they try to trick me by playing a song and asking me who sings it, or what song it is.  Most of the time, I fail because I just don't listen to contemporary music, but every once in awhile, I shock them because they play a Beatles song (something they think their generation invented) and I can not only ID it but sing it by heart!

Robin (age 12) has reached an interesting place in life.  She enjoys reading and music and insists that the rest of us need to share the books and songs she likes.  She could secret herself in her room to listen to her music (and does), but when she can, she makes me listen to her favorite songs, too. What I have discovered is that the stuff she loves is stuff that impresses me, too!  This past visit, she was having me listen to (and read the lyrics of) songs from a musical called Wicked, which is an offshoot of The Wizard of Oz.  She could sing every word in a clear and pretty voice, and was gratified to have a captive audience in me.  (I understand this!  How many times have I forced others to listen to or watch things that I enjoy, just because having company in the moment feels so good!)

I was tickled this summer when Robin was in band camp.  The leaders posted a video of the kids watching the movie Frozen.  When it came time for the song Let It Go, every stinkin' kid in the assembly sang it loud and proud along with the movie!  What a moment that was!

Last week, when Robin played the song Wicked for me on her iPod, I mentioned that the singer sounded like the woman who sang Let It Go.  Both Robin and my grandson Ryan quickly informed me that it IS the same woman.  Do I win????

I notice that a lot of choral music directors these days have the children singing songs they like.  That didn't happen to me.  We were "educated" in the classics.  The first music teacher I remember was the one I had for three years in Oak Park as a 6th-8th grader...Mrs. Boehm (rhymes with "game").  We sang songs out of a songbook that was filled with American classic songs--Negro spirituals, songs of the frontier, patriotic stuff of course, but Mrs. B also made us listen to (and tested us on) orchestral pieces:  Beethoven, Handel, Prokofiev, Mussorgski, Tchaikovsky, etc.,--all themes that I recognize to this day.

When I hit high school, I was in the high school choir at my church, First Methodist, led by a very serious choir director.  I was introduced to more than just the normal hymns.  We did Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring and many other classic church songs:  Ave Maria, and too many others to list.

When I graduated to high school, there was a hierarchy of vocal music statuses.  The whole vocal music department was directed by Miss Edna Ruth Wood who was a no-nonsense woman.  I'm not sure if others were afraid of her, but I was!  Freshmen went directly into "chorus".  If you were good enough and wanted it, the following year was "choir"--usually separated by men's choir and women's choir.  Then, if you wanted to try out for the creme-de-la creme, you could audition for A Capella Choir--only available to Juniors and Seniors.

Since only A Capella Choir could participate in the musical each year, I definitely wanted to be in that choir.  It was comprised of the best singers of the entire (huge) school...but auditioning was terrifying.  The worst part of the audition was sight reading, done while the rest of the contenders sat and listened.  Each student was given probably four bars of music to read, given the starting cord, and asked to pick out the beginning note and go from there.  Ack!  I managed, praying all along that I wouldn't embarrass myself.  In any case, I made A Capella and was a very happy young lady!

A Capella participated in a Christmas Concert (with massed choirs), and then a Vespers Service near Christmas with only us, alone.  Then there was the yearly musical, and later, a spring concert.  As offshoots, there were solos and solo bits in larger concerts and and a group called Mixed Ensemble, which would be today's answer to show choir.  I was in it all!  I had a tiny solo in the musical my Junior year (Brigadoon) landed the lead in the musical my Senior year (Plain and Fancy), and a concert solo as a Sophomore, plus a solo bit in Vespers my Senior year.  The ending song of the Christmas concert each year was the Hallelujah Chorus.  To this very day, I get goosebumps when I hear the first measure of that song!  There are many other songs/arias that I can sing because I was part of them way back when...and ya know?  I don't regret a minute of what I was forced to learn then.

I had lead parts in two musicals as an adult (Damn Yankees, and Razzmatazz), and two solo parts in Easter cantatas, also as an adult.  I have sung solos at funerals and weddings, in churches and schools.  I came, I saw, I sang!  My singing voice is totally gone now, but I still "feel the music in me".

My grandchildren are in band now.  They are being exposed to good instrumental music, but there is a part of me that really wants them to be a part of vocal music, too.  Both children have nice voices and both children seem to have the same eclectic taste in and appreciation of music that my daughter and I have, largely (I think) because of exposure in our younger years by parents, grandparents, and excellent music teachers.  There are very few Christian hymns that I don't know.  I can recognize (if not name) classic symphonies and well-known opera arias.  I'm up on classic Italian art songs (thanks to my voice teacher).  I know much of classic sacred music and came of age during the 60s which was rich with folk music, protest songs, rock music, and bands that are still playing today.  Marching bands get my blood going.  I think part of the reason that I love my church has to do with the fact that we have a Director of Music/organist who brings his enormous talent and taste to our sanctuary every week--music that makes me cry and music that gives me hope.  

Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast.  I have been blessed by good teaching and exposures. I'm actually quite proud of that.  I sure hope my grandbabies get the same!