What's changed at the BBC???

[mohthom]

For all you UK slutz out there,

I don't know whether any of you watch any TV (I know how busy everyone can be), but when did the BBC's reporting on music events go down the hill so quickly? I'm not talking so much about Glastonbury (though I'm not counting it out - coverage this year was piss-poor), but more about classical music and shows dedicated to the exposure and promotion of classical music. There's three shows in particular that I was pretty offended by, and wondered whether my reaction was atypical.

Firstly, it would have to be the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition. Aside from its relegation (bar the 'final') to BBC4 (reject TV . . . ), the emphasis has shifted 180 degrees from the talent to the presenters - and the 'judges' - so the show is now far more biographical than music. Coupled with Aled Jones' inability to pronounce the names of composers past and present, the Blue Peter presenter's tendancy to interrupt performances with his inane chit-chat, and the frequent 'Backstage' (how exciting . . . ) action with the popstar once-removed, there was almost nothing on the performances themselves. This is perhaps most aptly displayed on the BBC's Young Musician Archive - at the top of the list is the video titled 'Dramatic Mishaps.' Need I say more? I didn't see a category for 'Dramatic Performances' . . .

Second, I was pretty disgusted by the show featuring manner over substance, 'The Choir.' Not content to showcase quality talent (of which there is plenty), we have to be shown the process of turning a bunch of unrulies in to barely passable singers. I sang my way across Europe for a couple of years and knew some *fantastic* choristers and some even better directors/conductors. Why in the hell would a stick-a-pin-in-the-map school fare any better than either the National Youth Choir, one of the better regional Youth Choirs the country has to offer (Berkshire etc.) or, failing that, Laudibus etc. etc. Couple this with low production values (the final episode, in which aforementioned choir sang at the MFY Schools Prom - something for which every other group was required to pass at least two stages of competition against some of the finest young musicians the country has to offer - didn't have any audio fades, only oblique cuts . . .) and what is the public perception of classical music likely to be?

The final one has to be this 'Last Choir Standing' that's on at the minute. Again, nothing about the music, all about the 'journey.' While I am classically trained, I don't mind a bit of more popular music every now and again - particularly when done exceptionally well. No such luck. Out of the ten songs performed on the show this week, only one (Adiemus only counts as a concession) was approaching classical music - in fact, it was the only song written for the forces that performed it. Choirs and selective amplification? No thanks! Choirs and beatboxing? Surely that's not even choral - it's a vocal ensemble. Any why do we have the former presenter of DIY and hospital reality shows when there's some bona fide expert musical broadcasters out there? Last time I checked, people wrote doctorates on performance studies, so why give us a glorified joiner?

Oh, and Mike Brewer relegated to provincial events and a by-line on the BBC site? UNFORGIVABLE!

I work with professional classical musicians with daily regularity, and am constantly amazed by their ability to adapt, create and perform with such consistancy and style. While there surely is a need for the feeder-system for professional music and the facility for amateurs to excel (and I'm not against broadcasting that in context), is there any reason to have it brandished as the leading light of music in the UK? My biggest fear is that people see shows like this and imagine that;

• This is the maximum standard of acheivability, particularly for young people - from whom sometimes the most accomplished performances come
• This is choral singing and that this is what choirs do
• This is difficult (in comparison to a thousand things I've seen, it's a doddle . . . give me Take That over Berio every day of the week, give me a Beatles medley over Stravisnky . . .)
• This is all that is out there

Has the standard fallen, or am I sensationalising? Other musician friends seem to agree, but how did the BBC go so badly wrong in the last couple of years? Apologies for the rant . . .

MohThoM

[viewingstuff]

Be lucky you don't live in Canada! All we have is 'Canadian Crydol'. We have our own standards for talent shows and they're bland, unoriginal and ohhhh so annoying. I can understand that though since anyone with real star power is shipped to the states forever. It was bad enough watching Canadians copy US culture way back when their music was good but now it's just.....ah forget it who even cares.

'Last Choir Standing' looks hilarious though! ('So You Think You Can Dance' is the bomb BTW I fricken' love that show don't tell anybody)

[LeMauce]

Im a shame to read this. All this "shit" like Last Choir Standing is coming from endemol productions... 1 of the biggest tv-production comp. in the world. And yes just like me, it comes from the good old dope smoking holland. Big Brother, Starmaker, losers got talent, Star academy, yes i want to marrie a frickin millionzillionair...all that shit comes from Endemol Productions.
I dfegad"endemol" productions

[Gone 6 days now]

bbc 4 on fridays usually has a very decent selection for music programs, although not so much classical. i dont agree with you on the glastonbury coverage form my memory it has always been terrible, one thing that annoyed me this year was that kings of leon were headlining on the main stage but yet they only show 3 songs then go over to jimmy cliff!!! what made it worse was that the fact that bbc 3 was covering his whole damn set.
jimmy cliff......

oh and presenters shouldn't be seen during glastonbury coverage, talk the biggest load of shite while we sort of hear music in the background, how nice..

[Yago]

The whole of UK television has been dumbed down to unbelievably low standards .
I remember the standards of documentaries , especially scientific , was far higher ....actually interesting !
As for the Glastonbury presenters , I saw this one coming a mile off when John Peel died :(