grindy

Because it works well as relaxing background music.
Sure it's kind of a waste to listen to it that way, but most people aren't all that interested in the finer details of a composition, no matter what genre.
No reason to get upset about that.

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A smell of petroleum prevails throughout.

chopinisawesome

A lot of times that is true. When I listen to classical, I have a couple of options. I can listen to it actively and work to feel the emotion the composer was trying to communicate, or I can let it fade to the back of my head as I work on other things. Good point.

But... I think you're sort of missing the point. I'm not frustrated with the fact that people don't really want to spend the time and effort to learn all about classical music, I'm frustrated with the fact that the supporters of classical are calling it relaxing sleep music, which is just another way of calling it boring and will likely dissuade people from learning more about it and cause them to trivialize it and lump all classical music in with that category.

For that matter, there are some pop fans I know who can name the entire list of albums an artist has produced, sing half their songs from beginning to end word for word, name the artist's siblings, favorite color, favorite food, etc. People absolutely care enough. When they start talking about how they like so-and-so and how they're the best band in the world, and I say I don't know who they are, they act like I'm an idiot for not knowing how supposedly great their music is. If I started telling them about Chopin and how I think he was the greatest composer to walk the planet, they said, "Who's that?" and I acted the same way they do when I don't know the band they're talking about, I would immediately be singled out as an elitist snob. I don't want to sound like I'm trying to belittle what you're saying, I just think you're missing some things.

grindy

I don't think anyone who is seriously into classical music sees it as just that.
As to why casual listeners describe it that way, I've already answered that. Because it works well that way.


I was talking about composition and how some people are more interested in it than others. What does all that have to do with it?

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A smell of petroleum prevails throughout.

chopinisawesome

I know virtually nothing about the composition of classical music. I like it because it's music, and if people can learn about their favorite bands, they can learn just as much about different composers. I'm sorry if what I said sounded grouchy and irrelevant. That's all I meant.

grindy

Huh... and here I was thinking we were talking just about music and not about learning about composers and/or artists' siblings' favourite colour.

Why don't you make the effort to learn more about the private life of some pop starlet? Maybe it would make you appreciate her fabulous edginess more.

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A smell of petroleum prevails throughout.

chopinisawesome

Sorry... I guess I did get a little off topic. I'll work on making my comments more relevant and less... well... I sort of did sound like a jerk in my previous comments. I'll work on making my comments better in general.

Like I said before, I like the music because it's music. I know very little about the composition or the composers. To be honest, I probably know more about pop bands than I do classical composers. I just wish some more people my age would listen to it more, without using it to fall asleep or study better.

Wow, we're getting way off topic from my first post.