Social media is obliterating your attention span; The Discovery Orchestra is fighting back

SOCIAL MEDIA IS OBLITERATING YOUR ATTENTION SPAN; THE DISCOVERY ORCHESTRA IS FIGHTING BACK

The Discovery Orchestra mission to teach listening skills — and focus — ramps up
as its sixth television special is set to premiere on NJ PBS May 16 at 10 p.m.

The Discovery Orchestra (TDO), the Emmy®-nominated New Jersey ensemble that has introduced millions around the world to the pleasures of listening to classical music, is working to counteract the scattered thoughts some say are caused by social media through classical music and listening skills that — wait, did a Tweet notification just come in?

It’s all a part of TDO Founder and Artistic Director George Marriner Maull and The Orchestra’s mission: to help people be present, really listen to and emotionally connect with classical music. To that end, TDO’s sixth national television special, Discover Saint-Saëns’ “Organ” Symphony — a teaching concert and exploration of the powerful Finale of French composer Camille Saint-Saëns’ tour de force Symphony No. 3 — premieres on NJ PBS on Tuesday, May 16, at 10 p.m.

The one-hour program is also currently available to stream on The WNET Group’s AllArts.org. The show is being distributed nationally by American Public Television (check local listings).

Viewers can gain a better understanding of the “Organ” Symphony Finale as the 91-piece symphony orchestra — featuring organist Mark Miller — performs the piece, led by Maestro Maull, who breaks the fourth wall as he provides insight into the composition to help the audience learn how to “listen better.” With Maull’s guidance, audience members learn how to listen for things such as subtle changes in the melody, patterns that recur, which instrument is playing and more as they explore the piece and improve the way they listen to the music. The interactive special was digitally recorded in September at The Pingry School in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. Copies of the listening guide for the concert can be found at https://bit.ly/41eGsdN.

“When Saint-Saëns’ composed the “Organ” Symphony in 1886, he certainly wasn’t concerned with a cell phone going off during the performance, and he also wasn’t worried about a social media notification distracting a concertgoer for even a second. As a result, the audience was fully present to receive the tremendous impact of this soaring masterpiece that continues to move and inspire millions more than a century later,” said Maull. “Listening to classical music can help corral one's attention to better take in the magic of the moment.”

The Discovery Orchestra — which features a diverse roster of highly accomplished musicians who also perform with several of New York’s top orchestras — is known for its live, interactive Discovery Concerts, and its Emmy® Award-nominated and Telly Award-winning television specials. Its nationally broadcast shows have included Bach to the Future, Discover Beethoven’s 5^th, Discover Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Fall in Love with Music and Discover The Firebird, some of which have also aired internationally.

Virginia Johnston and Rick Kaller are the executive producers, and Dave Emmerling and Walter Schoenknecht are the director-producers for the special.

The show was made possible with the generous support of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as Elliot and MaryJeanette Dee, Bob and Cynthia Hamburger, Michael Johnston, The F.M. Kirby Foundation, The Kosloski Family Foundation, Robert Scott of Main Street Wealth Management, The Bill and Patricia O’Connor Charitable Fund, David and Ellen Williams, Lee and Jennifer Pierson, The V.A. Johnston Charitable Fund, Daniel and Gail Kopp, and Rachel Weinberger and Ed McGann.

Details about The Discovery Orchestra are available at www.discoveryorchestra.org. For program information, check www.aptonline.org or local listings. Connect with the Orchestra on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.

About The Discovery Orchestra:

The Discovery Orchestra® (the Orchestra), a 501(c)(3) music education organization based in Summit, New Jersey, teaches the attentive listening skills that help people of all backgrounds better experience and emotionally connect with classical music. Founded in 1987 by Artistic Director George Marriner Maull, the Orchestra uses a welcoming, lighthearted approach to classical music listening education for the general public. It engages audiences through its live interactive Discovery Concerts, community outreach events, television productions and online digital content and its twice-monthly public radio show, Inside Music, broadcast on WWFM 89.1 The Classical Network and heard worldwide at wwfm.org. Its Emmy-nominated programs Bach to the Future, Discover Beethoven’s 5^th and Discover Vivaldi’s Four Seasons; Telly Award-winning Discover The Firebird; and Telly Award-winning series Fall in Love with Music are all available on Amazon Prime Video. Fall in Love with Music and Discover Vivaldi’s Four Seasons can also be viewed on PBS Passport free of charge to PBS station members.

About APT:

American Public Television (APT) is the leading syndicator of high-quality, top-rated programming to the nation’s public television stations. Founded in 1961, APT distributes 250 new program titles per year and more than one-third of the top 100 highest-rated public television titles in the U.S. APT’s diverse catalog includes prominent documentaries, performance, dramas, how-to programs, classic movies, children’s series and news and current affairs programs. Doc Martin, Midsomer Murders, America’s Test Kitchen, AfroPoP, Rick Steves’ Europe, Pacific Heartbeat, Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Television, Legacy List with Matt Paxton, Lidia’s Kitchen, Kevin Belton’s New Orleans Kitchen, Simply Ming, The Best of the Joy of Painting with Bob Ross, Live From the Artists Den, James Patterson’s Kid Stew and NHK Newsline are a sampling of APT’s programs, considered some of the most popular on public television. APT also licenses programs internationally through its APT Worldwide service and distributes Create^®TV — featuring the best of public television's lifestyle programming — and WORLD™, public television’s premier news, science and documentary channel. To find out more about APT’s programs and services, visit APTonline.org.

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For interview and media inquiries, contact:
Cheryl Duncan, Cheryl Duncan & Company Inc., cheryl@cdcprnews.com