Another (New) Year
Folks of my generation grew up in what might conservatively be described as “interesting times” - the 1960s and 70s. We have dim recollections of the Beatles’ “She Loves You,” the first heart transplant and the deaths of Winston Churchill and John F. Kennedy. We have clearer recollections of the moon landing and the deaths of Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Igor Stravinsky and Pablo Picasso. We have very clear recollections of the deaths of Jimi Hendrix, Elvis Presley and John Lennon. We remember the first color television sets, eight-track tape players and the first cassette tape recorders. We remember when computer programs came on hole-punched tape and the Internet was something no one could imagine they would ever use.
Despite all of this there was surely one event in particular that drew our attention, something we knew we would witness. In fact, we even knew how old we would be when the time came. 1984 came and passed without incident. So did January 1, 2000.
So, here we are, January 1, 2009. Of course, a few things have occurred since New Year’s Eve, 1999. But they’re not quite the kind of things I imagined as an eleven-year-old back in 1969.
In 1986 Reginald Smith Brindle told me that the classical guitar had just reached the “Paganini” stage of development, and he was right. In 20 years time, looking back, will we be able to recognize a year in which the classical guitar reached its musical stage of development (not to mention its artistic stage)?
I hope that we will be able to say, “Yes, it was 2009.”
Nevertheless, even though there are positive signs, I feel it will be yet another year…
SY
Stanley, welcome to the world of blogging! I too share your varying degrees of recollections for most those events, “She Loves You” was my very first record, I was 2 years old, but my memories date from SLIGHTLY later than that! I think I may still even have that old 45 RPM somewhere!
I’ve been running a log for a year now, re-launched on a new domain last October, a classical guitar appreciation. I am from a similar generation to yourself, did not rise to the level of excellence that you yourself have in guitar technique, it’s never been my living, but my passion for the music is still there.
I hope to read more of your articles on classical guitar very soon
The beauty of the guitar is in its intimate subtleties, which disappear in a crowded hall or in ensemble, where the guitarist has to “redline” the instrument just to be heard.
The old Segovian crusade has run its course. Let’s go home.