Monday, October 18, 2010

String Quartet concert for kids!


The Cassatt String Quartet gave a very nice concert this weekend at the Symphony Space in NYC entitled "Arriba!" featuring contemporary Mexican composers.   What made this particular evening special is that they said the concert was FAMILY FRIENDLY!!!!  I took my 9 and 7 yr olds who sat through a full-length evening of contemporary string quartet concert for the first time in their lives.  It wasn't exactly an easy program for kids to sit through, but they did.  There were other children in the audience, and yes, they were some murmurs, soft-spoken-then-hushed comments such as "I'm bored....", and occasional squiggling and walking around, but all in all, I can't thank the Cassatt enough for giving the kids this opportunity.

And it is a brave thing to do, risking some noise while performing which can be very distracting and disrupting, but if you don't nurture the future generation, how would we survive?   

Of course, I was armed with Clif bars (snack bar), husband, and his iPhone which has some games on for them, but still, it was great for my kids to be able to wave at the players at the front row.  There is something to listening to actual acoustic instruments live, instead of sounds coming out of speakers.  You feel the vibration in your body differently, and it is kinetic; it's a physical sensation, and it's an emotional experience seeing someone moving their bodies and making music.  Next up, symphony concerts and opera  :)  well wish us luck!

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