Hello all! I was happily directed to this forum from another (though not classical) music forum and I’ve been enjoying reading the posts and soaking up information posted here like crazy. Classical music is not entirely new to me, but I could hardly describe myself as an “expert” by any means. I am also a musician (if you consider percussion a musical instrument!) and have mainly performed in blues, rock and jazz groups over the years (though I did enjoy a little performance time in high school orchestras, marching bands, etc…). While my main listening time has been devoted to blues, jazz and rock & roll, I have become increasingly critical of recent trends in popular music (surprise?). Realizing how much I greatly prefer listening to non-vocal, lyric-oriented music these days I have recently decided to dive head-first into the world of “serious music”. While I’ve enjoyed pieces by Debussy, Ravel, Haydn, Varese, Berlioz and Stravinsky over the years I am now engaged in adding more discs to my collection and putting those into “heavy rotation”. It is a timely and welcome change for me. My personal listening time is quite compromised – I’m a full-time high school history teacher with a family (4 teenagers Lord help me!) – but I am trying to spend a little time everyday listening and re-listening. More like “immersion” actually! In any case I just wanted to say a quick hello – I may be more of a “lurker” than a “participant” in discussions, but I do like to ask questions once in awhile. The influence of this forum on my listening and purchasing habits is already upon me – I should be taking delivery of that big ol’ box of Stravinsky (the 22 disc job) any day now. Cheers! -------- Chris
