The last classical critic in Canada
mainWord reaches me from Toronto that John Terauds, the only fulltime classical music critic in English-speaking Canada, has been switched to the business desk of the Star. The paper has also shut down his music-world blog, SoundMind.
A sign of impoverished times, perhaps, but also a significant step in the closing of Canada’s cultural mind.
Here’s John with his school piano teacher Vesta Mosher in his last musical post.
The title might be misleading as I believe Claude Gingras of Montreal’s La Presse – where he’s been writing for over 50 years – now becomes the last fulltime classical critic in Canada. And to say that Terauds’ reassignment is a sign that Canada’s cultural mind is “closing” might be giving a bit too much importance to traditional media.I think we’ve all started to look elsewhere than in newspapers for both “culture” and “mind”.
I’m bothered by Mr. Terauds departure, but not sure that it marks a tremendous change in the cultural mindset in Canada. Now, just as during his tenure, I can count on one hand the number of Canadian cities possessing a critic willing to write an unflattering word about a classical music performance. Music criticism in this country at the moment is more akin to cheerleading, but it seems to have been that way for a while.
In Montreal, we have Claude Gingras (La Presse) and especially Christophe Huss (Le Devoir), who cover full-time classical music, and can be very vitriolic when they encounter poor performance…
Wasn’t The Star also the name of the paper in which Bernard Shaw published his music criticism column under Corno di Bassetto ?
yes, but in another country
Curiuos, tragic indeed, irony across birth & dawn of printed music criticism: Shaw was given a music column to give politics; Terauds is being given a business one to give up music.
Does this mean that before the advent of the full-time classical music (or other art-form) critic, any given country’s cultural mind was overly closed?
And does the disappearance of one more critic from a full-time newspaper role mean that there is less valid criticism available to “widen the minds of the body public”, or does it indicate that there is actually more – it’s just that with it coming from a wider variety of media sources there’s no longer a big enough call for a full-timer on newspaper staff?
Also: does the end of printed (=broadcasted) classical music criticism really mean the “end of the cultural mind in Canada”, of just its natural and predictable move, as anywhere else, to more favorable (networked=horizontal=interective) media ?
Frankly, I find new forms of discussion and interaction to be far less in depth and informative. Traditional criticism has an important place – bloggers, tweets, FB, etc. can’t replace it, or at least, haven’t found a way to do so yet.
Norman,
Do you really know enough about “Canada’s cultural mind” to say, ex cathedra, that it is closing? Perhaps you should try living here before making such drive-by pronouncements.
Robert Everett-Green
Music Critic
The Globe and Mail
Canada’s National Newspaper
Robert,
It was a suggestion, not a statement. And, yes, sometimes perspective can be gained from afar.
best
Norman
I’m reminded of Sarah Palin, squinting at Russia from her back yard. I look forward to your equally far-seeing reports on the Azeri cultural mind and the Madagasy cultural mind.
Why take my word for it? Read one of your better composers: http://www.colgrassadventures.com/Michael_Colgrass%3A_Adventures_of_an_American_Composer/Home/Entries/2011/8/28_Cutting_Music_Coverage_from_our_Papers.html
i felt sad to hear about John being switched to business and the closing of his blog.However,there is some good classical music news to report -the violin and guitar ensemble Duo46 http://www.duo46.com Matt and Beth Gould has moved from Phoenix USA to Sudbury Canada to join the music faculty of Cambrian College.