[Ghoulish Delight]

Count me as one who just doesn't get the appeal of opera and ballet. Certainl I appreciate the skill involved, and I can even appreciate some of the beauty of ballet. But vague appreciation is where it ends for me, it's not enough to get me to enjoy it. Why? I don't know that I can really express why. The closest I can get is to say that I don't see in those forms of expression anything that adds anything emotionally significant to a story. Like Alex said in the opera thread, I've read the stories for several operas and they seemed like good enough stories...but seeing them performed did nothing for me. Operetic vocals just don't express anything to me.

As for classical music in general...hit or miss. I appreciate it more than I appreciate dance and opera, that's for sure. I, on occasion, enjoy listening to it as background music. I'll rarely sit down for the express purpose of listening to it, and attending a symphony is a huge yawn for me, unless there's something more to it (a-la the Disneyland music show at the Hollywood Bowl last year).

None of this is due to lack of exposure. My parents, if they listen to music, listen to almost exclusively classical music. I went to many symphony concerts growing up. They bored me then, they bore me now.

I suppose the closest thing to "culture" that I truly enjoy is jazz. But I suppose that's too modern to fit in with the other forms in this conversation.