Why dont more young people like classical music?

Question

They cannot say it is noise, because it is about about as complex as music gets. It takes many years and skill to play an instrument well; while with rock, all you need is a loud guitar and three or a few more chords.

They need to teach music appreciation in school. Pop music just is junk, nowadays.

Answer 1

i like it :)

Answer 2

It can be their attention span. When I was young the songs were about 2 minutes or so. That's how radio was on the AM side. My father played a lot of classical and I really started paying more attention to the music rather than lyrics. The older I got, the more complex music like jazz gained appeal. Now I think I have a good ear for it and the internet has opened up a lot of artists that I would have never known.
But I agree, start the kids as early as possible.

Answer 3

Asking why they don't enjoy classical is like asking why you don't like pop music. There could be so many different reasons that it's impossible to generalize and say that they don't like it for just one reason.
For one, classical music is, like you said, complex. It takes more experience with music to fully understand and appreciate the full intricacies of classical than the general "young person" has, unless they are musicians themselves.
Also, they can't play it themselves, for the most part. It takes a lot more practice to play a classical concerto than it does to hammer out a couple guitars on a chord. So for the people that prefer music they can play along to, Pop/Rock is more in tune with their needs.
Another, less musically-inclined, reason is that older people listen to classical. Did teens in the 60's listen to the standards? Did kids in the 90's listen to disco? No, they didn't. It's their parents music, and thus isn't fresh and cool. People no more want to listen to the same music as their parents than they do want to dress in their fads. Pop/Rock/Rap/etc. is the music of the generation, it's whats being marketed right now, so it's what the general majority listens to.

On another note, it wouldn't hurt for you to take a music appreciation course yourself. Pop music does actually have musical merit on the basis of it's being catchy, memorable, and easily accessible to the general public. Just because it's newer doesn't make it bad or "junk". Besides, remember: Classical music was the pop of it's day!

Answer 4

I adore classical music and rock music.

I've been trained as a classical pianist since I was 5, and I plan on going to music school after I graduate. Classical music is beautiful, and those who play it should be respected. In fact, they are. In the end, musical greats are the only ones who are remembered. Mozart, Chopin, Beethoven are in the history books, along with the Beatles and Elvis Pressley.

Rock and pop music is really just for fun. Going to an Aerosmith concert is a whole different type of fun from going to the symphony.

Answer 5

Classical music has never been popular - up until the 20th century it was only for the rich and elite. Today's rock is just modern folk music - it's simple, repetitive, and appeals to the masses, the same as it's been for hundreds of years. In some ways (the development of recordings, radio, etc) classical music is getting more exposure than it ever did.

The true argument you're bringing up has more to do with our society than art or music specifically. One could argue "In literature, the masses only read trashy magazines at the grocery store instead of classic novels"; "we watch worthless tv shows instead of watching classic movies which are works of art"; "we go to cheesy craft fairs instead of art museums"; as soon as we leave school our general sense quality goes out the window.

Around the 20th century, when pianos started appearing in common homes (and not just the upper class), there was more literature written for parlor piano and novice pianists - I'm sure the classical artists of the day were completely appalled by the watered down music you could buy from the local music stores. If it weren't for the accessibility of instruments to the masses we probably would have never seen music by Scott Joplin or George Gershwin, both who are now considered "classics" in our century.

There are innovative artists who have embraced both classical and pop/rock - Check out artists like Tony Mcalpine or Yngwie Malmsteen; the other day I heard an amazing classical piano arrangement from a Radiosong song.

(btw it's attitudes like this that made me leave the classical music field to work in other areas of music that are willing to embrace all musicians and every aspect of music education)

Answer 6

I disagree with Tanya, because I hate current music with a passion. I'd sooner listen to classical music than this bullshit that is out now. But then, there are some exceptions -- most of the rock I listen to is from the early 2000s or before that.

Answer 7

I agree. Schools today don't teach appreciation for music any more. We have also quit the dancing that goes along with the classics. Not many people today can dance a ballroom waltz or any of the others!! It really is sad, especially it is making learning a musical instrument "un-cool" even though it is one of the coolest things I know how to do!!

Answer 8

Music goes in trends and classical music is about 200 years out of date.

The view that populaur music is junk pisses me off. i did a university unit on populaur music and all the books were written on classical music and entirely irrelevent to today's society. classical music does not essentailyl chnage like populaur music and thus does not really tell us anything about the time it came from.

Classical music isn't called populaur music for a reason - it's not populaur anymore, it's more of a genre than a type of music. Remember classical was once popualur music that parents and conservatives frowned upon as the devil's tools or watever.

Answer 9

Young people nowadays aren't as motivated as they once were so there are fewer people listening to classical music. Plus, most classical music in my opinion sounds the same and unless you listen to it all the time, you don't really know the different songs. I'm 20 and I listen to my parents music all the time because I think it is better than the music out now because the music out now is pretty much about sex and relationships and things being complicated whereas the music my parents listened to is a lot simpler and easier to listen to and you don't need to blare it to look cool.

Answer 10

It’s the parents that don’t like classical music and fail to inspire this appreciation on to their children! If classical music is played occasionally at home during times of study, relaxation, and reflection children will accept and appreciate it. Any genre of music should never be excluded as being “bad music”; all music is meant to be enjoyed. My children have enjoyed classical music, along with their contemporary favorites though childhood into adulthood.

Answer 11

Classical music is very intricate and complex and very hard to understand to the untrained ear. You actually have to sit and listen and feel the movements, whereas in today's music, you hardly have to have any training at all to play, and you really do not have to sit and try to feel the music because the bass is usually shaking your whole body at the time.