Rob Utterback wrote:
>Art music once thrived on a musically literate audience, in whose lives it
>was considered vital.  Classical music is moribund because the household,
>amateur experience has shifted in the decades following World War II from
>active music-making to passive music-listening
<snip>
 
I think that the HIP movement can really contribute to this situation.  Many
of our instruments were made to be played in amateur, or at least mixed
amateur/ professional, groups.  I think here primarily of the viol consort,
but it also applies to clavichord/hps.  The literature of the modern string
quartet, primarily professional- and performance-oriented, really cannot be
played by amateurs unless one dedicates quite a lot of years and time to the
instrument, whereas anyone could be holding down a part in a viol consort,
with a vast, rich literature (designed for just that purpose), after a few
months of study.  We should take every opportunity to introduce children to
these instruments and literatures, since they are, IMHO, much more suited to
a life of musicmaking than many modern, primarily professional, instruments.
I am NOT suggesting that these "early" instruments are less demanding than
modern ones, just that the learning curve for much of the literature is not
as steep.
    Of course, one problem that the viola da gamba society has had in
establishing educational programs is the prohibitive costs of the
instruments themselves, since they are still hand built, and the market does
not support the sort of mass production, and consequent economies of scale,
that the violin market supports.
 
 
Tim Hall