Cultivating kids’ classical tastes

When I was 4, my mother started taking my brother and me to hear the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at Grant Park in Chicago, where we lived.

My brother and I spent almost the entire time running around the park, playing around Buckingham Fountain and probably annoying many of the concertgoers.

If I heard any music at all, I don’t remember it.

What I do remember was that this music was important to my mother, even though the music didn’t have any words, a concept I could not understand.

When we moved to California in 1963, she started taking me to the Hollywood Bowl to hear the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

In 1970, I became an usher, then a ticket-taker at the bowl and would delight in sitting in the cheap seats during my breaks to listen to the orchestra.

As parents, we never know what is going to stick and what is not. But I know that my mother is pleased to know that I appreciate classical music.

Classical music is not easy for kids to digest: It’s long and very boring.

It’s right here that I would be ready to suggest that kids get a dose of it anyway because of one tangible benefit. But I’m afraid the jury is still out on whether classical music contributes to a temporary rise in one’s IQ. I’ve read studies supporting and refuting that assertion.

Even if the music does not raise one’s IQ, it seems to help one’s concentration. Although the evidence is anecdotal, I believe that classical music has helped my writing production. Not necessarily the quality of my writing, as I am sure many of you will agree, but the quantity, for I can get distracted if I am not careful.

Newport-Mesans are fortunate to have in their community the Pacific Symphony Orchestra, which performs at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. Not only is this a fine orchestra, but it hosts many kid-friendly concerts throughout each season.

There are at least two family concerts left to catch. One is called At the Movies and features music from many family movies including “Harry Potter” and “Star Wars.” To the purist, this may not be classical music, but the setting and the orchestra provide an easy entree into the music for kids.

The other program is called, Talk to the Animals, and features excerpts from Rimsky-Korsakov’s “The Flight of the Bumblebee,” Beethoven’s “Pastoral” Symphony and Tchaikovsky’s “Puss’n Boots and the White Cat.”

With both shows, the pieces are purposely kept short to keep the interest of children in attendance.

At the Movies is at 10 a.m. on April 29 and Talk to the Animals is at 10 a.m. on June 10.

You can check the schedule or get more information at www.pacificsymphony.org.

While you’re at the site, you can see the many community outreach programs the symphony conducts.

This orchestra is a tremendous asset to our community and deserves our support.

I was reminded of the value ? the power ? of classical music as I bought tickets to hear another orchestra in the community.

This other one is the Orange Coast College Symphony. At 8 p.m. this Saturday, they will perform the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 as well as Beethoven’s 2nd Symphony.

The concert takes place on campus at the Robert B. Moore Theatre. One of the best parts of this concert is the price of admission. Before Saturday, tickets are just $8, and because this is a relatively small theater, there are no bad seats.

Honestly, this is not a kid-friendly performance. But the OCC Symphony also deserves our support, so if you’d like to hear some good music performed locally and up close, call (714) 432-5880 to order tickets.

And you may want to try having your kids do their homework with some classical music playing low in the background. The worst that could happen is that they say, “Mom [or Dad], I hate this music!”

If they do, you can blame it on me.