“Classical music is dying.” “The Arts are dead.” “There is no future for Classical music.”
We have all seen the articles and Op-Eds crying out about the sad state of Classical music in today’s cities, schools, and communities. We may even be guilty of having thought for a few minutes that there is some truth in these claims. As shrinking budgets in schools throughout the country continually cut music, symphonies struggle to remain solvent, and audiences have countless other types of entertainment competing for their limited free time, it is easy to feel discouraged. Additionally, some think that in order to appreciate Classical music one must have earned an advanced degree, or have been raised on the stuff to truly appreciate its power and beauty.
All you have to do to prove every one of these notions wrong is go to a Sphere performance. Sphere shows have a special energy and connectedness that prove every one of those above claims false.
My entanglement with Sphere began years ago when some buddies of mine whom I had gone to music school with told me about a concert they were playing at a local church here in Boulder. I went, not sure of what to expect, mostly out of moral support to my fellow musicians, and was completely blown away. I have been one of their number one fans ever since, and for the past year and a half I have volunteered on their board.
If you read the Sphere blog regularly, you’ll come across stories of musicians who are explaining how they decided to study music, and why it is such an inspiring way to make a living. This post is not like those others. I was trained as a classical pianist, and worked as a freelance pianist, collaborator, and teacher for years after earning my Masters in music. However, I am one of those who eventually flipped over to the “dark side” and decided to pursue a career in business instead. After a hard-won MBA, I landed in business development at a large med tech company in the group focused on opportunities related to interventional oncology and radiology. As a 2x cancer survivor, it is an extremely challenging and rewarding place to be and I absolutely love what I do. I am a believer that one can have many callings in life, and while I am grateful to have landed where I am now, my musical roots run deep, and I continue to stay involved in the arts in many ways.
Working with Sphere is an interesting challenge. What Sphere is doing is truly novel and different from most of today’s musical offerings. It can be difficult to “package” what they are to get the word out about what exactly a Sphere show is and why you should go. Sphere audiences are made up of a wide variety of ages, backgrounds, and interests, making it difficult to pin down our “target customer.” Throughout the past year and a half there have been many challenges that we continue to face as Sphere grows to hopefully become a sustainable organization that is a well-known and permanent fixture in the CO music scene.
I love getting a chance to be involved in helping Sphere reach its goals and giving as many people as possible the chance to experience the joy that each audience member feels at their shows. Their outreach performances ensure that students from all backgrounds can have exposure to the arts and a chance to benefit from them. They are redefining how audiences experience all types of music, and injecting life into each piece that they play. Sphere is proving with each of their shows that Classical music is not dead. Not even close.
