Sometimes you forget how touching a concert can be…

Let’s get away from the high-fallutin’ art talk of recent posts for a moment, and switch to a recent GTCYS performance. Our Concert Orchestra gave its holiday concert last week at Union Gospel Mission near downtown St. Paul. UGM is a homeless shelter and we have a tradition of playing for their residents, including a holiday sing-along, every December.

At the dress rehearsal the students, most of whom were in the facility for the first time, looked nervously around the chapel where they’d perform. It’s a Spartan space, clean but gloomy. There were residents coming into the audience seating area, clearly down on their luck—a far cry from most of our kids’ regular social circles. Then the music started, and something happened.

The crowd was uninhibited and enthusiastic, in a way our kids aren’t used to. They demonstrated that anyone can appreciate classical music—and they demonstrated most energetically. The kids’ initial apprehension was replaced by enjoyment as a give-and-take energy developed between performers and listeners (something we’d like to see more of at classical concerts!). By the time the sing-along began, the line between haves and have-nots had gotten pretty blurry. The residents were thrilled to experience live orchestral music—and the kids realized they were getting a gift from their audience. It’s great to play for a dressed-up crowd in a beautiful concert hall. But it’s also meaningful to play for a dressed-down group of people who let you know that your music touches them, and that music shouldn’t be taken for granted.