We’re B-a-a-a-ck In Business….Almost

We’ve been listening, we’ve been reading, we've been thinking and we’ve got stuff to tell you.

But first if you care about classical music or about China or both, there’s something you absolutely must read. "Symphony of Millions Taking stock of the Chinese music boom" by Alex Ross.

“After a recent visit to Beijing, I had some doubts about China’s putative lock on the musical future. Concert halls may be full and conservatories mobbed, but classical music is hobbled by commercial and political pressures. The creative climate, with its system of punishments and rewards, still resembles that of the late-period Soviet Union, which heavily influenced the development of China’s musical institutions. At the same time, the wider soundscape of Beijing is as chaotically rich as that of any Western city: nights of experimental music, indie-rock shows soaked in hipster attitude, pop idols cavorting on HD monitors in malls, retirees singing Peking opera in parks. In the “Li Chi,” or “Book of Rites,” it is written, “The music of a well-ruled state is peaceful and joyous . . . that of a country in confusion is full of resentment . . . and that of a dying country is mournful and pensive.” All three kinds of music, together with others that might well have confounded Confucian scholars, intersect in the People’s Republic….”

It’s a very long piece, but Ross is one excellent critic, the best ear and eye in the business say some. Whether you agree or disagree, his words to be not to be taken lightly.

http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/atlarge/2008/07/07/080707crat_atlarge_ross