More About Snobbery

from mtvu.com

Following my recent snobbery post, Monday's bloggery post, and a wonderful commentary a few weeks back by our Yankee Diva*, I want to a share marvelous piece from John Terauds at Musical Toronto. 

He called it “People should never be made to feel bad about what they are listening to" and 28 other things to tell a classical music snob 

Mr. Terauds based his list on a book snob list, substituting the words “classical music” every time he saw the word “book.” 

I think it works equally well, or even better, if you replace “classical music” with “opera.” (I will let you do that little mental exercise yourself.) Here are a few excerpts:

People should listen to classical music. 

Classical music is good. But many are intimidated. 

There is something innately snobby about the world of art music…

...here is my message to classical music snobs:

3. If something is popular it can still be good. Just ask Mozart. Or the Beatles. Or peanut butter.

10. You don’t have to be serious about something to be serious about something.

15. Mozart didn’t go to university, and he loved fart jokes.

17. Freedom is a process of knocking down walls. Tyranny is a process of building them.

22. Never make someone feel bad for not having heard or played something. Music is (often) there to heal, not hurt.

You can find John Teraud’s full post and complete list here.

 *I know, it looks like this is becoming a Joyce DiDonato fan site, 

but it’s not…

really…

I think…