But we've all seen enough jazz musicians who have long hair on their own heads, so I guess even that word won't do. Because it was made up by jazz musicians themselves to nail down all the kinds of music that aren't properly theirs. Maybe the best word invented so far is, of all things, 'long-hair'. And if we try to use the word symphony music - well, that leaves out all the music written for piano solo, violin solo and string quartet and certainly all that's supposed to be classical. That's no good either, because just as many other people think that jazz is also an art - which indeed it is. Well, what about 'art' music? Now there's a word a lot of people use to try to describe the difference between Beethoven and Dave Brubeck, let's say. Some people use the word high-brow, which means that only very smart, well-educated people can dig it, but we know that's wrong because we all know a lot of people who aren't exactly Einsteins who'll dig Beethoven the most. Then people use the word 'serious' music when they mean Handel or Beethoven, but there again, there's some jazz that's very serious, and heavens - what's more serious than an African war dance when the kettle is boiling. There's good Handel, and good Spike Jones and we'll just have to forget that word. Well, you know what they mean, but after all, isn't there such a thing as good jazz, or a good popular song? You can't use the word good to describe the difference. You've all heard people say 'I just love good music' - meaning that they love Handel instead of Spike Jones. All the other words that are used are just as wrong, like 'good' music for instance. People use this word to describe music that isn't jazz or popular songs or folk music, just because there isn't any other word that seems to describe it better. You see, everybody thinks he knows what classical music is: just any music that isn't jazz, like a Stan Kenton arrangement or a popular song, like 'I Can't Give You Anything but Love Baby,' or folk music, like an African war dance, or 'Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.' But that isn't what classical music means at all.

So what's the problem - why are we asking this question? Well, there's a good reason, as we're going to find out today. Now the question before the house today is: 'What is Classical Music?' Now anybody knows that that piece of Handel we just played is classical music, for instance. Original CBS Television Network Broadcast Date: 24 January 1959

Classical compositions