18 thoughts on “Status At The High School”

  2. I don’t know whether you should be honored or insulted, Barry. But when I plugged in Zappa dot com to find out their reading level, it came back as elementary school level (so don’t feel so bad). What did FZ say about school…it was good for making employees.

  3. It’s very simple.

    OK, the truth is : I have 5 children, now all grown up, they’ve all left our house.

    Education is a rather comprehensive adventure. It’s simply the most difficult & demanding task for humans. That’s why – so to speak “way back in the old days”- men said: just leave it to a more sophisticated species: women.

    Musical education is a core element in Educaton.
    That actually explains the success of the Swedish societal & economic model. Swedes are no great musicians. However they – compulsary – learn their young children to read notes, to play.
    Thus: FZ music is exactly the opposite of, let’s say :pornography. It’s instructive for High School pupils.

  4. Part of the actual truth is:
    – None of my children is a FZ fanatic, not even FZ +/- lover. They’re rather cool FZ lovers. No problem to me.
    – More important : they’ve all learned something from it.

    FZ as an enabler. Yes to some extent.

  5. Eh, I’ve been an active reader since the summer before my Sophomore year. All hpoe is lost.

  6. bernard Says:
    November 12th, 2007 at 6:58 pm

    Part of the actual truth is:
    – None of my children is a FZ fanatic, not even FZ +/- lover.

    I raised my son on the music of Frank Zappa (certain albums and songs when age appropriate), and now he is just as much of a FZ fanatic as I am. Compared to his peers, his musical tastes are far more eclectic because of it. Anyone that relies on the state to educate their children, get exactly what they deserve. From his earliest age, I taught my son to question the status quo and to stand up for his beliefs regardless of the opposition (remind anyone of a musician we all know and love?).

  7. Very good, Urb., you delivered, I didn’t.

    Just one of the 5 children ( now :age between 21 and 28) is truly interested im music.
    The others- on your line of thinking- used it as ameans to discover other worlds. The youngest one just keeps studying ( OK to me), there’s one ( the only boy) who’s rather successful in film ( he got a prize), another one is preparing a Ph D in social psychology at the Brussels Univ., etc..
    The good FZ news is: when they visit me and hear amongst others FZ music, they fully respect the meaning of it.

  8. Just make me shut up in case I would happen to become embarassing.
    Two recent examples of music spreading its wings over here in Belgium.
    – The Kuyken ( West VL) family. They’re into baroque music since more than 30 years. Their children: just have a look. One of the ” older” Kuyken brothers, a performing musician, just finished a Ph D on how to play J S Bach exactly. He knows much more about it than all academic scholars.
    – There’s a rather young, very serious & talented journalist, Bram Souffreau, http://www.kapingamarangi.be/ . His father is a .. musician.
    –

  9. “Junior High”. Damn! I’m gonna post reviews with really long words like supercalifragilisticexpialidoceous and überleftfieldgaragepostjazzgrindcore.

  12. Barry’s Imaginary Publisher Says:
    November 13th, 2007 at 3:44 pm

    What did FZ say about school…it was good for making employees.

    Well I would say that largely depends on (the quality of) the educational system…

    To clarify my statement a bit, Barry, the educational system that FZ thought made good employees was the American system. Coming from Canada, I can’t say the Canadian system is much better, especially when it comes to musical education. In this regard, European countries are leaps and bounds ahead of school systems in North America — which have consistently cut funding for music programs in lieu of sports.

  13. I’m an ex-teacher from the USA, and, unfortunately, FZ was right. After 20 years of trying to make a difference I finally gave up because to be different went against the status quo and was not appreciated by those in power.

  14. Just come to Europe..

    You’ll be very surprised.

    – Best mathematical education : in Bulgaria. Yes, for sure. The best results as far as knowledge of maths is concened for 13y ears old. Great.
    – Comparisons: http://www.pisa.oecd.org/pages/0,2987,en_32252351_32235731_1_1_1_1_1,00.html.

    You’ll notice how truly good the education system over here in Belgium is.

    Just have a look. It happens to be the opposite of “strictly commercial”. The wise way.

  15. Rob Says:
    November 13th, 2007 at 9:21 pm

    I’m an ex-teacher from the USA, and, unfortunately, FZ was right. After 20 years of trying to make a difference I finally gave up because to be different went against the status quo and was not appreciated by those in power.

    Those in power don’t really want an educated electorate (at least in the USA and Canada). They’d much rather you stay at home and watch American Idol than think about what’s going on around you, or, God forbid, vote. That’s the very same status quo FZ fought against isn’t it?

  16. The only teacher I can think of that made a direct impact on my life was my Latin teacher. He was without a doubt the brightest man in the school, yet he was stuck to teaching the (depending how you look at it) least important subject in school. As long as I can still use his ‘off topic factoids’ in the real world, I’ll be set.

  17. Should high school students be allowed exposure to this weblog?

    If not younger students! This is an excellent blog about FZ, and there was no more wholesome – in the proper sense of that term – cultural artifact produced in the US in the second half of the 20th century than the work of FZ.

  18. I fully agree, johnnybutter. In creating the KUR weblog, Barry has created an excellent tool for discovering everything that is Zappa. A beginning point for any interested high school student.

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