Museumification of Salsa

[bailar y tocar]

I thought this discussion buried in the videoclips section needs a broader audience.

youtube.com/watch?v=1B7QAQ0ItX8

I expect a number of classic Salsa will get classical music treatment in our lifetime - yes, even for Terence probably.

This by the way is a medley of Perez Prado. Second and third are Mambo No 5 and Mambo No 8. I'm not sure about the first piece.

Gustavo Dudamel is the next music director of Los Angeles Philharmonic starting in 2009.

There are numerous Gustavo Dudamel videos:
youtube.com/watch?v=S6q7RCAcaBk&feature=related
youtube.com/watch?v=Rqw-02GaS5w&feature=related

Why do you call the thread museumification ? Are you implying that classical music is stagnant ? Most people don't know that there are more new classical compositions performed every year than in all latin music combined, the comparison isn't even close. Practically every mainstream symphony orchestra has a cadre of composers who present new works every year. This is worldwide.

There are many reasons what I thought it appropriate. Two main ones are (1) Classical music historically tends to do better job of preserving music compared to other forms - which is one of main function of museums. For whatever its worth, the way Classical music gets preserved tend to involve more emphasis in written notations rather than by oral tradition or more recently with advent of phonograph and its successors via a particular recording compared to other type of music. Through classical music, what was more popular folk songs, etc now lost in the dustbin of history are still known in its modified Classical music form. Also (2) Classical music audience is similar to museum-going public - often older and intelligentsia type or people looking to have what they consider more bourgeoisie experience however fleetingly.

Having said all that, the main reason why I brought up the video was because I found it astonishing how much Perez Prado's music seemed to connect with what looked like common people (or upper middle class?) of Venezuela. It seemed like most people including the very young were very familiar or very comfortable with Prado. I can't imagine such scene in Classical music concert hall in Europe, Asia or U.S.A.

The systematic preservation of original music via classical music interpretations is only a factor in European music. In other intact cultures, the oral tradition works just fine. The African musicians and composers in Mali trace their musical heritage 700 years back through generations of griots passing on the music. That is also true of Indian traditional music. I think Balkan gypsy music has similar traditions. I think it comes down to how strong the culture is and do people give it up easily in the barrage of western media or is the native culture stronger.

Your point on classical music trying to modernize is right on though. Philharmonic orchestras are desperately trying to appeal to a younger more diverse crowd with thus far very limited success. It looks like LA Philharmonic is betting on Gustavo Dudamel. Btw, the vids I posted were at a British music festival.