L’Enchantement De La Musique Classique
L’Enchantement de la musique classique- the enchantent of classical music.
I have had a genuine love of classical music ever since I was a child, when my Aunt Ria thankfully introduced me to it. I still have the cassette tape of Mussorsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. This was when I was at the height of being a geek as a middle schooler, the Internet was new, and I (God am I really admitting this?) would participate in these Role Playing Games. They were always innocent enough, and for this budding writer it presented me the chance to interact with others who were just as fascinated with the idea of being someone else. For me, I liked the stories revolving ages like King Arthur and Guinevere. And classical music would be playing in the background, allowing me to write and create, feeding my mind with ideas and characters- which would later become the foundation of a book I’ve been working on for several years now. (Hey now- George R.R. Martin gets to work on his books full time now, I’m sure it was slow going for him at the start, too.)
Even now, classical music will make it’s appearance in pop culture. Clair de Lune made its appearance in the first Twilight movie. Classical music is used over and over in movies to make an emotional impact, either with familiar tunes or with new songs composed for that particular movie:
Personally, classical music is something that I believe gives me the chance to pause, and to think and meditate. Whether it be an inner peace that I am looking for, or inspiration for the moment.
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I have a whole playlist of classical songs on my computer that I would listen to whenever I was working on a paper to finish up my degree this past year. Appalachian Spring was a piece that I got to see conducted by Ward Stare on the campus of Mercer University, and performed by the students and faculty of Mercer. It was simply breathtaking, and I was reminded of how much I love those songs.
And the really cool thing is- we have a fantastic orchestra here in Macon. Since 1976, we have had the Macon Symphony Orchestra. That’s pretty damn incredible when you think about a town like Savannah, as amazing as Savannah is- they’ve only had their symphony orchestra for a few short years. This year’s line up for the Macon Symphony includes a tribute to Mrs. Neva Fickling, our own Miss America, who passed away this year.
And in March the guest artist will be Robert McCormick- something I am excited about because there was a time when we went to school together at Stratford Academy. He was incredibly talented, even back then.
There’s also the McDuffie Center for Strings at Mercer University, which has put on some amazing shows for the community, along with the Townsend School of Music. Oh and by the way- did you know we have a first class vocal performance group at Wesleyan College? The Wesleyannes vocal ensemble are led by my former voice teacher, Nadine Cheek. The resources we have here are incredible.
My greater point to y’all, is make sure you take advantage of the classical music scene we have here. It’s fantastic that we have a growing access to emerging musical talents, but sometimes- you gotta get back to your (musical) roots.
Love to all y’all,
Molly
