'I just love how it makes me feel': How Milwaukee's youngest musicians are keeping classical music alive

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) --These days, artists like Kendrick Lamar, Billie Eilish, and Sabrina Carpenter top the music charts.

So, it may surprise you to hear that young people in Milwaukee are still listening to the classics - and we're not talking about Johnny Cash or the Beatles.

Instead, think Beethoven and Bach.

"It's just a different language. I think music is a universal language, I mean, it speaks to everyone," said 18-year-old Adela Ramirez.

Wisconsin Public Radio deemed Thursday, Dec. 5, "Classical Music Day" in Milwaukee, celebrating the genre's return to the airwaves.

"For the first time in about 17 years I think, classical music is back on the air on 90.7 here in Milwaukee," said Sarah Ashworth, director of Wisconsin Public Radio.

From Milwaukee’s Bradley Symphony Center, the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra showcased how some of the youngest musicians are still harnessing power of classical music.

"I listen to it a lot, especially when I'm studying. It helps me focus," said 17-year-old Lauren Gooden.

She plays the double bass in the orchestra.

"I saw this one and it was the biggest one, so I was like, why not," she laughed.

Lauren says performing classical music has helped her grow.

"You have to be very disciplined, very organized, very on top of it," she explained. "I've become more organized and disciplined in other areas of my life rather than just in music."

Adela Ramirez plays the cello.

"People tell me that it has the range of a voice, like a human voice, so I think that's why it resonates with so many people," Ramirez said.

She calls the music her outlet and plans to play for the rest of her life.

"I'm pretty much a classical music nerd, I love to talk about it with my friends," she explained. "I'm going to pursue a career in cello performance."

Young people in robust programs - breathing new life into one of the oldest styles.

"It gives me such hope and inspiration for the future," Ashworth said.

"I just love how it makes me feel, how it brings a smile to other people's faces as well," Gooden said.