By this fairly strict definition, even composers we often think about as having created "classical" music, didn't. For example, the works of Chopin, Tchaikovsky and the later works of Beethoven are works of Romantic music, rather than Classical. Likewise, the music of earlier composers like Handel and Vivaldi slot into Baroque.

The "Classical Music" moniker cuts a broad swath through a very large musical region. To the uninitiated, the word "classical" when hung together with "music" evokes visions of powdered wigs and evenings spent in stupefying boredom listening to complicated compositions that have little bearing on music as we've come to understand the word. That "classical music" tag gets hung on a much larger cross-section of music than it can claim a right to, as well. Classically, music that is said to be classical, designates compositions that were either composed in or are derivative of European music of a certain stately style written by composers like Mozart, Clementi and Haydn between the middle of the 18th century until the beginning of the 19th. To further confuse things, the "Classical" part refers to what art historians think of as the classical period in ancient Greece and Rome. Of course, classical music didn't spring from that period. Rather, music was one of the last artistic forms to undergo an 18th century renaissance that referred lovingly to ancient Greek and Roman art forms. The challenge for those musicians, of course, was that they didn't have reference. A painter could look at ancient works and be inspired in his Neo-Classical style. An architect could examine columns and the construction of buildings and emulate for the modern age. Lacking compact disc players or even eight track tapes, 18th century musicians didn't have a lot that was factual to go on. This is why classical music isn't actually neo classical: the composers of the time had no way of knowing what music of the classical period sounded like, so what they created couldn't strictly be called Neo. So classical music it became. By this fairly strict definition, even composers we often think about as having created "classical" music, didn't. For example, the works of Chopin, Tchaikovsky and the later works of Beethoven are works of Romantic music, rather than Classical. Likewise, the music of earlier composers like Handel and Vivaldi slot into Baroque. Although these are all fine points, none of it really matters when it comes to sampling and savoring all of the various music that gets dumped under the Classical headline wherever music is sold. A rose is still a rose, right? Today, the term "Classical" is used as generically as "Rock" when either word is hinged with "Music." Where metal, R&B, blues and even some types of folk can all be lumped under the handy "rock" label with only a semblance of accuracy, it'll still help us find the album we want. Likewise, baroque, romantic, classic classical and some musical forms that are being birthed even now can be lumped under "classical" and we still manage to get where we're going. Nowadays classical talks more to state of mind and development of ears than to a brief and specific period. For example, it's pretty much universally understood that the music we today designate as classical is sophisticated, stately and measured. It is never uncomplicated, though it's complicated in the way that truffles or a good bordeaux wine are complicated and unlike the complication of algebra or physics. Like those other finer things, approach classical music with an enthusiastic palate and the intention to do some experimentation before you light on something that has meaning for you. It's only the rare individual that can sit down to a full evening's symphonic entertainment and fully understand the proceedings, though even a child can enjoy classical music if it's served to them correctly. This is true enough that there are even a fair number of album releases directed specifically at children. In recent releases, look for The Mozart Effect: Music For Children, a three volume box set that brings classically classical music to kids. Most adults will find -- and sometimes to their great surprise -- that when they begin exploring classical music, their knowledge is greater than they at first thought. Countless movie scores, television shows and even cartoon soundtracks have been based either entirely or in part on popular pieces of classical music. So while you may not be able to recognize Barber's "Adagio for Strings" from Platoon by name, the opening bars will bring it all thundering back. Though an early foray into classical music can look daunting, there are a few good starting points. For something that will reintroduce you to familiar pieces while introducing you to some things that are completely different, try Orff's Carmina Burana as conducted by Eugen Jochum and released by Deutsche Grammophon in 1996. You'll recognize some of the music from 2001: A Space Odyssey, Natural Born Killers, Glory and others. A good starting point to become reacquainted with familiar pieces of music in, as it were, their natural settings. Did the mention of 2001: A Space Odyssey twig something? Well, the piece you're probably thinking from isn't from Burana: it's more likely Richard Strauss' incomparable composition Also Sprach Zarathustra, something I've often heard referred to as "The 2001 theme song." Look for the Deutsche Grammophon release of Richard Strauss: Also Sprach Zarathustra conducted by Herbert von Karajan and performed by the Berlin Philharmonic. Sublime. If you like some vocals with your classical, there has never been a better time. Some familiar names as well as a few new faces are bringing classical to a wider audience than ever before. Andrea Bocelli has become almost a household name: especially around Christmas when it seems it's possible to hear him bellowing something seasonal at every shopping mall in the western world. And with good reason: Bocelli's tenor is practically incomparable. He uses it to good affect on Sacred Arias his latest album which -- predictably enough -- is aria-rich. Here we have Bocelli's rendition of classics by the likes of Schubert, Gruber, Rossini and others. It's an import album, but it's worth searching around for. Elfen Charlotte Church made a huge splash with her aptly titled first album, Voice of An Angel and got her name in The Guinness Book of World Records at the same time. Just 12 years old when the album was recorded, Guinness has her down as the youngest classical artist to have an album make the number one spot on the charts. Church's talent is extraordinary and is bound to make classical believers out of a few who wouldn't touch the stuff before. Whatever your fancy, you'll find that becoming a true classical enthusiast may take a bit more work than other musical forms. This is because there's a time frame of learning required before the complicated sounds sort themselves into familiar and recognizable patterns. It's a time investment worth making, though. It's a good feeling to be able to easily determine the strains of a Wagner prelude from that of a Shostakovich symphony. Better still to pause and appreciate the beauty and release that classical music can offer. | June 2000   Linda L. Richards is the editor of Blue Coupe, January Magazine and the author of Mad Money.