By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
FEB. 21, 2025 | What was your introduction to classical music? Could it be the same as mine?
It’s nothing high-brow. And in fact, I did not even know I was being introduced to classical music.
You see, it was the William Tell Overture, by the Italian composer, Gioachino Rossini.
Yep, I first heard Rossini’s music when listening to the radio drama, The Lone Ranger!
Of course, I had never heard of Rossini. And yes, it was merely because those producing The Lone Ranger needed some uplifting music that I early on, without realizing it, started my love of classical works of all kinds.
There was a secondary introduction to classical music that came later. When growing up in Macon, the Bibb County Schools had a roving music teacher, Ms. Henrietta Collins, who traveled with a record player to the elementary schools in Macon. It was with great expectations when she came to my Gresham Elementary School. She would tell us about a record, then play it for us. That was what became known as “music appreciation.”
Ms. Collins told stories about the composers and compositions. One we particularly remember is Joseph Haydn’s “Surprise Symphony.” Ever the storyteller, Ms. Collins briefed us on the symphony but did not tell us what the surprise was going to be. It worked, as the class was completely taken in and, and very much awakened, when the record of Haydn unleashed that sudden loud chord.
(Wikipedia says that the Surprise Symphony got its name because during a quiet section of the piece, there is a sudden and very loud chord that comes as a shock to listeners. A story suggests that Hayden added the loud chord on a whim, since while conducting, he heard a patron snoring and wanted to wake him up.” He wrote this symphony in 1791.)
My interest in classical music got a boost when I moved to Gwinnett in 1974. One day when traveling down I-85, I was switching between radio stations and found a classical music station. That was back in the day when WABE radio was mostly high-brow music. Between newscasts, they played the classics. So when driving, we began hearing the classical composers, and started to appreciate it even more. But alas, eventually WABE switched its format to talk-radio, and classical music fans, though complaining mightily to WABE, lost out.
While radio stations in Metro Atlanta don’t offer any classics around the clock, at least there is Sirius XM Radio that airs satellite radio featuring all sorts of musical genres. We keep ours tuned to Symphony 75 for the classics.
All these thoughts came from hearing on Sirius XM this morning the William Tell Overture, with me back riding with the Long Ranger and Tonto to right some wrong. It’s amazing the way the Rossini music automatically pictures in my mind this masked man riding a horse as fast as he can across western lands. Yes, music can transform you.
Over the years, Beethoven has become my favorite composer. While he produced all sorts of music, his nine symphonies are my favorite. Our favorite is the Ninth, though we also particularly like the Fifth, but then each of the other seven are delightful. We get a thrill each time we hear any of them.
Thank you, Gioachino Rossini, for your stirring William Tell Overture as background music on radio and later on television for The Lone Ranger that brought me to the classics.
- Have a comment? Click here to send an email.
Follow Us