This week sees the longest day and midsummer, but also Make Music Day. This is a chance to do just that – to play around with sound and to make music, on your own or with others – but also to think more about music and its role in our lives, whether or not we make music ourselves. I never progressed far at all with violin or guitar, and only fared a little better with recorder. Yet music is part of my life. I listen to music every day. Not for long – I like and need silence. But I also like music and the different moods it can awaken in just a few notes.
Which music genre do you turn to? I like different genres at different times – songs from the shows, dance, soul, classical. The other day I heard that streaming is making music tastes more eclectic and varied. It’s boosting classical music listening. Streaming makes it so easy to try out different music styles that people are more willing to think widely.
I’ve heard other new research into music tastes and habits too. Another positive discovery was that more younger people now attend classical music concerts. 20-29 year olds in the Royal Opera House’s audiences have doubled since 2020. Classical music audiences overall have also become more open to new music by contemporary composers, not just the traditional repertoire.
How do you reflect these changes? Is streaming widening your listening habits? Do you enjoy new classical music?
Not all the news is good. First, concert-going. It’s great that younger people are going to concerts, but overall classical music audiences have fallen by 65% since 2020. I wonder if this is partly Covid’s impact – thinking more about infection, and also changing habits – as well as now the cost of living. Then there’s music education. Uptake ofgraded music exams has fallen considerably, and a third fewer students sat A Level Music last year. Fewer than half of state schools now offer A Level Music.
Yes, this is a wellbeing blog, about how music, art and nature can help wellbeing. It’s not about the wellbeing of the music sector! But knowing how important music is for our own wellbeing, it’s vital that music-making thrives, rather than declining. Encouraging people of all ages to play and experiment with music matters, if we are to go on having this store of riches to draw on for wellbeing. Moreover, many orchestras and music groups now run wellbeing initiatives, sharing music’s benefits. While this will allow ensembles to diversify away from performance alone, it could also be threatened if orchestras and music groups struggle to survive.
It would be great if you have thoughts to share. Just go to Medley’s Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/359291215486002 . Thank you.
Medley 