The BBC was obviously trying to reach out to a new audience with its coverage of the first performance of its
Proms season tonight. Firstly, there was a whole hour of it on BBC1, which even delayed EastEnders when it over-ran. Secondly, the coverage itself catered subtley for those who aren't familiar with 'concert music', with captions explaining what was going on in the music. The captions weren't condescending at all though; they just described what was happening in each part of each piece, using the proper terminology in a way that allowed you (me) to decipher it from its context. The performances I saw were good, especially the leader of the Mendelssohn violin concerto who was really energetic, reasonably good looking and covered in sweat by the end.
Whether anyone actually watched it I don't know. But the captions seemed to me like a good way of adding a new visual element to the programme and of helping the uninitiated, like me, to understand the music. I'll have to try and watch out for
Points of View to see how many purists it annoyed.
3 Comment(s):
off topic, but have you ever heard of Carmine Pepe or Max Schubel? I have an old record featuring both on the Opus One label. Knocked my socks off when I heard it the first time a few weeks ago, especially the Pepe stuff.
Hi, Neil - Andrea here. Thanks for commenting on my blog. I'll return the favor with a commentary on the whole captions thing, which those of us supposed snobs call subtitles (or supertitles when they're above the main scene.) As you can tell from Jessica's website, it annoyed ALOT of purists!
Although I didn't see the performance (wish I could, I'm here in the US), that sub-super-title controversy still rages in the classical community. Some love it, many hate it, I personally love to hate it.
It's great because, as you said, they just described what was happening and weren't condescending and they helped you learn & enjoy.
Seems to me those who hate it do so because (1) they're so knowledgeable they think that all the info there is obvious and therefore it just impedes their own enjoyment. They need to (a) get a grip (b) remember there are others watching who might not know so much and (c) come into the modern age.
Having said that, I often hate them, the subtitles I mean, because they, well DO actually impede my own (knowledgeable) enjoyment. When you know the libretto (opera text) inside and out, in the original language, and the score (music and singing parts) backwards and forwards, all the roles, it can be distracting! But I can and do willingly set that aside for others' learning and enjoyment.
What derails my appreciation of supertitles is when there's a really glaringly bad translation (see my comment on Jessica's blog re a recent Baltimore Opera supertitles experience) or when it's otherwise just plain inaccurate. Then I get angry because others who don't know as much are getting wrong information. Like teaching a 5 year old that blue is green. Ha ha ha. Not funny.
I had a crazy good idea - and I'll try it out on you if you're game:
What if each concert or opera attendee could borrow (for free)a pair of headphones and/or a little wireless handheld 5 x 7 screen for the supertitles or commentary? That way, those who want it for learning and enjoyment(or who want to pick at it, like i sometimes to, just for blood sport ... uh, I mean for fun) can have it, and those who don't can just enjoy it their way, in peace, without commentary or translations.
Headphones work at the UN, and little wireless gameboxes work at bars, so I'm thinking --- why not with classical music?
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