YouTube.com seems to be full of youngsters who relish destroying old
pianos and players and putting the carnage on video.  I find this trend
very disturbing.  (I will admit that most of these old instrument are
in very bad shape to began with.)

This is not an article decrying the destruction of pianos; rather,
I am more concerned with the fact that the younger generation has very
little regard for old school craftsmanship, music or the finer arts.

There was a time in America when no home was complete without a piano,
player or otherwise.  We learned to play, and improve our brains and
skills.  Through the improved music we made with our own hands, we
realized that we could do anything _if_ we worked hard enough.  The
perseverance we carried into adult-hood as a result of our labors went
far beyond the music room.  We carry that attribute for the rest of
our lives.

It seems that the younger generation of today has little or no regard
for the craftsmanship and labor that went into the building of these
instruments. Instead of learning skills, they seem to thrive on instant
gratification (a complete subject of it's own) instead of attempting to
learn anything that requires any thought.

In a world of I-pods, Karaoke, and the easy access of music of all
tenures, there is little if any incentive for the younger person to
want to make the music themselves.  So the old piano is an object that
has no value to them, so why not smash it, and post the video on the
web for all to see?

Any player re-builder has came to point where he or she must improvise
to replace an obsolete part or fix a problem that is not covered on the
books.  Some of the finest examples of thinking out of the box is
recorded in the MMD Archives.  Most young people seem incapable of
thinking out of the box.  If it's not easy, it's simply not worth
doing.  Here is a good example: Simply pull up to a McDonalds and ask
for a hamburger with no ketchup, and watch the entire line shut down
with panic!

This kind of thinking (or actually the lack of original thinking) is
a phenomenon that is bound to reach far beyond music or pianos -- it
could eventually affect our very existence as a country.  What are
parents teaching their kids?

Just musing,
Andy Taylor