In this segment of The Dennis Prager Show, host Dennis Prager argues that classical music and orchestras in the United States are in rapid decline. He cites a statistic—high‑school orchestras dropping from about 67 % in the 1960s to roughly 17 % today—to illustrate the erosion of musical education. Prager contends that the shortage of Black musicians in orchestras is not caused by systemic racism but by a lack of early exposure and parental support, noting that Asian families are currently sustaining the art form. He criticizes diversity‑driven policies, specifically the push to eliminate blind auditions, which he says were originally instituted to prevent racial bias. Prager references Heather MacDonald’s article, New York Times critic Anthony Tomassini’s stance on blind auditions, and his own experience conducting a Haydn symphony. Throughout, he frames the issue as a broader cultural crisis: the loss of “beauty, excellence, and depth” that classical music represents for future generations.
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Now you would strongly advocate it to me, Living Martyr. The great Heather MacDonald wrote a piece about what's happening to orchestras and music in general, classical music. The people in charge of classical music in this country, heads of orchestras and opera houses, are destroying classical music in this country. There was one statistic which I forgot to print out, but I could see if you could find it. It's very easy to find it in her article. The percentage of high schools that had orchestras in 1960, I think it was. Obviously don't look up the word orchestra because every paragraph has the word, but high school. I think that would do it. It went from over 60% to something like 17%. 67 to 17. Oh, I was good. 67 to 17. What did I say? I think I said something almost exactly that. 67. I don't usually remember these things well, but I'm better at numbers than I am at names. 67% of high schools. What year was that? That's what I want to know. Okay, so that's between 1962 and 1989. I'm sure it's fewer today. 67% to 17%. It's— it really is— it's tears-inducing. You know what beautiful things created by humanity are given to young people today? None. Do you understand that? It would— here is the way life is supposed to work. Every generation is supposed to teach its next generation the best that has been done anywhere in the world. That's it. That is their task. Here is the best literature. Here is the best music. Here is the best art. Here is the best sculpture. That— here is the greatest wisdom. That was what was believed. That's why people studied the ancients, not because they were ancient, but because they have withstood the greatest test of all time. The word timeless was attached to them. Timeless wisdom. If you're, even if your child goes to a $40,000, well, not even, if your child goes to a $40,000 a year high school, has your child studied the greatest artworks, the greatest music works, the greatest literature? Has your child studied that? Do you understand what the reduction of the production of these things to race is about? Aside from being the purest form of racism, it is the end of beauty. It is the end of excellence, the end of depth. It's only a destructive idea. All these orchestras and opera companies saying they're racist because there are so few Blacks in an orchestra, for example. Well, how do orchestras get members? From the conservatories, music conservatories. You know how long you have to study an instrument to be proficient enough to be in an orchestra? The overwhelming majority— I, I, you know, I conduct orchestras, so I, I've interviewed musicians often. When did you start? When I was 6. When did you start? When I was 5. It's theoretically possible to start violin at 15 and be good enough to be in an orchestra. It almost never happens. Are black kids studying violin at 5? And is the reason they're not because of racism? Who's preventing black kids from studying violin? The answer is it's not being given to them by most of their parents. That's it. This is not complex. Asian kids are getting it. A generation and two ago, orchestras were disproportionately composed of Jews. Now they're disproportionately composed of Asians. Why? Jews were not persecuted? But it was a very important thing. It's not, by the way, it shows the decline in Jewish life. The, uh, how many kids in Jewish families are given an instrument to play at 5 or 6 or 7? So Asian kids, yes. You know who's going to save classical music? Just like Western civilization may be saved by Eastern Europe, Christianity may be saved by Africa, and classical music may be saved by Asia. The Chinese, the Koreans, and the Japanese, they produce so many spectacular musicians and so many, uh, so many listeners, which is the most important. The idea that it— that the New York Philharmonic is racist, well, it is racist. It's become racist. That's the irony, because now thinks in terms of race, but that it was the reason that there, there are so few blacks at the New York Philharmonic is not because of racism. Anthony Tomassini of the New York Times has actually advocated— he's the chief music critic— that they stop blind auditions. Blind auditions were started in order not to be racist. To give you an idea how truly sick I can't think of a more accurate word. The left is— they want to undo blind auditions. Blind auditions mean you play behind a curtain. They don't know your race, they don't know your sex, they don't know if they know you, you know, whether you're a friend. All they know is the sounds of your instrument, and the left is against that. Yep, what a piece she wrote. She loves music like I do, or if you will, I love music like she does. She even came out to the concert that I conducted. She came out to LA to watch me conduct the Haydn Symphony. I hope that's released one day. It was videoed, but, uh, there were union rules or something. I would pay. I think people would get a big charge out of it, and it might get people interested in classical music. What beauty is given to children today? Think about it. What, what beauty, what excellence That's our task. It is not our task to come up with new unless it's better. If there's something new that's great, I'm all for it. I think there was great music written in the 20th century. Fine, but it's got to be great, and greatness is not determined by race. 1-800-PRAGER-776. The Dennis Prager Show, live from the Relief Factor pain-free studio.
