ADDING SOPHISTICATION
There's a new film out by the American writer/director/actor Jesse Eisenberg entitled A Real Pain. It tells the story of two cousins taking a tour through Holocaust sites in Poland and coming to grips with family history. For the soundtrack Eisenberg specifically wanted to use the music of Frédéric Chopin, who died long before any of the horrors of WWII. He states that he was listening to the music for quite some time ("on entire loop for hours"), and in many ways the music shaped various scenes that are inside the film. At one point while reviewing the film, producers were getting anxious about not using more modern music to (and this is a pretty typical producer idea) try and attract a younger audience. Eisenberg was adamant, saying he wanted the music to help the film not be "juvenile", and "from a desire to add a sophistication to the film".
In the end, only one piece of music isn't by the famed classical composer (during the end credits), and even there, Eisenberg has stated that if he had his way, he would have stuck with Chopin. Here's a great article about it all:
This brings up a pretty old idea which increasingly holds no weight - that younger people don't have any interest in listening to "old" music, be it classical, jazz, or anything else that wasn't written in the last 20 years. An article released in the UK shows how wrong this concept is. According to a study conducted by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, people under the age of 35 are more likely to listen to classical music than their parents. This news doesn't surprise me, but for those who'd like to know more, here's an article from about two weeks ago discussing the study and its results:
We have a new way of giving here at Stratford Summer Music, and it involves becoming a member of our Ensemble! We like thinking of this as The Sound of Support. We have four different giving levels for our Ensemble, but our goal for our 25th anniversary year is to have 100 people sign up to donate $25 per month. The more you give, the more benefits your Ensemble membership includes. We're excited by this, and hope you will be too. Here's a link with more info!
And finally this week, our donor profile! This week we give thanks to our friend and supporter Robert Lemon. You can read more about him and his love for Stratford Summer Music below.
Have a great weekend!
Mark and the SSM Team
Supporter Highlight
Robert Lemon
Fortissimo Level Donor
Originally from St. Thomas, Robert's first memory of coming to Stratford dates back to 1961, when his Aunt Jean brought him to see a production of Pirates of Penzance at the Stratford Festival. Since then, he has made the trip to Stratford almost every year for more than four decades. His first experience with music in Stratford was hearing one of our favorite groups, Autorickshaw, perform on the Barge. He was entranced by the sounds of the tabla and the voice of singer Suba Sankaran. It made a lasting impression, as he now lives in Stratford with his partner, Franco, and their beautiful Scottie, Birnam.
Robert lived in Vancouver for many years, working as a renowned architect specializing in historic preservation. At the same time he and his late partner, Robert Ledingham, gave deep support to arts organizations such as Vancouver Opera, Music in the Morning, and the Vancouver Recital Society. He is happy to help Stratford Summer Music as it spreads its programming to all four seasons. We are very thankful for his support on a number of fronts, including being the main sponsor for the Barge Series for the last two years, and his presence on our board. We will soon be releasing information about a special donation Robert has made for our 2025 season, helping us build a legacy through music.
Robert wrote a memoire about his life as an architect entitled "An Architect's Address Book", which was published by ORO Editions. We recommend it!!