I am a fan of classical music. I enjoy orchestra concerts. I listen to opera on my iPod. I know the names and recognize the styles of a lot of composers. My favorite music, however, is chamber music. I love the energy of smaller ensembles playing in smaller venues. I am especially enamored with young performers playing music that has been performed for centuries. Each generation of new musicians adds their own artistry and talent to what has gone before and the result is an experience that is at once brand new and somehow universal. Our moments seem to have more meaning when we understand how they connect us to something beyond ourselves.

Among my favorite podcasts is “From the Top.” The show is hosted by pianist Christopher O’Riley, who is a gifted solo artist, an incredibly facile accompanist, and an expert at interviewing children and youth. Each week’s show features brilliant young musicians from 8 to 18. The show celebrates the power of music by giving young artists a forum and a national audience, demonstrating how music impacts the lives of both musicians and audiences, and connecting young artists with support networks so that they can continue to grow in their craft.

I’ve always loved music, and I can play a little, but lack the talent and discipline to become an artist. My role has been to support and promote artists through education, fund raising and organization.

My fellow board members at the Black Hills Chamber Music Society probably know nothing of my brief rock band phase. When I was in high school, I briefly imagined what the life of a stage musician might be. I played the guitar and I learned some of the chord progressions of music that was popular at the time. I kept trying to organize groups of other students into various bands. Mostly I invested a lot of energy in hauling around my brother’s drum sets. It is likely that he was always a better musician than I. He was also more interested in the social side of the rock band lifestyle.

I went on to college, where I played in the band and from there to seminary and into my career in the church. I have participated in several brass quartets and quintets over the years and still play my trumpet from time to time. I play the guitar and piano mostly for my own personal entertainment these days. The closest that I ever got to the stage of a rock band was that music that I did with youth groups over the years. I own two guitars, one of which I have had since high school. I joke that these days when I attend youth rallies or camps I am almost always the oldest one present. And my guitar is the second oldest.

But I do want to at least note, in passing the concert that was held at the 02 Arena in London last night. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, Ronnie Wood and Bill Wyman played 23 songs, occasionally joined by guest artists including Mick Taylor and Mary J Bilge. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have been part of the Rolling Stones since the beginning. Charlie Watts came on board in the band’s second or third year after Tony Chapman left the group and a new drummer was essential to their sound. Ronnie Wood is a relative latecomer. He’s probably only got 35 or so years with the band. And Bill Wyman retired after three decades with the group.

There is another concert in London scheduled for Thursday, followed by one in Brooklyn, New York and two in Newark, New Jersey. It is the 50th Anniversary Tour of the Rolling Stones. If that doesn’t make you feel just a little bit old, you probably weren’t around when the band was formed or you thought that the Stones were “old school” when you were a teenager.

I can’t quite get my mind wrapped around a group of sixty- and seventy-somethings cranking out the rock and roll. The audiences, however love it. Music critic Neil McCormick said the music sounded as good as it did when he first started listening to the band in the early 1980’s. With all due respect to Mr. McCormick, the band had been cranking out albums for a couple of decades when he finally discovered the Stones.

Back in the 1960’s the band was playing in small venues. It was a group of British youth trying to pay homage to American Blues artists. They took their inspiration from Muddy Waters. But they were also influenced by Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. Mostly they have formed their own style of music that combines some amazing musicianship with an incredible dose of stage presence. I know that I shouldn’t be comparing the Rolling Stones to a chamber music ensemble, but both are incredibly more powerful when experienced live as opposed to listening to recordings. In terms of recordings, it is possible that the band has already made their best. In terms of live performances, I suspect that Jumping Jack Flash, the final song of last night’s concerts was the best the Rolling Stones have performed. I wasn’t there to hear it, but the performance had 50 years of experience to back it up. 50 years of tours and clubs and overindulgences and disagreements between band members. 50 years of fame and speculation and great moments and mistakes. When people start talking about a half a century, the music starts to cross over into the arena of the classical.

I’ve never been a big fan of the Rolling Stones. I am not planning a trip to New York or New Jersey to see the band, though I do admire the dedication of the fan that made a trip from Australia to be at last night’s concert in London. I do need to say, however, that there is more to great music than just the things I prefer. There is more to classical music than the things I like.

The Rolling Stones are here to stay. Rock on!

Copyright © 2012 by Ted Huffman. I wrote this. If you want to copy it, please ask for permission. There is a contact me button at the bottom of this page. If you want to share my blog a friend, please direct your friend to my web site.