Classical Music

To thousands of aspiring young musicians, what Joseph Conyers achieved in the spring was the stuff of elusive dreams. His resume was plucked from a stack of 237. In auditions, his playing stood out among five dozen others. The pool was culled to 13 musicians, then five. Then two. In the end, after four rounds of orchestral and concerto excerpts, Conyers and his double bass - a well-kept 208-year-old auburn Italian nicknamed "Norma" - won a plum spot in the Philadelphia Orchestra; he played for the first time as a member at its Sept.

Enjoy the music while you can. The economic downturn has had no immediate impact on classical-music programming, which is devised and funded at least a year in advance and is, for the moment, perfectly safe. It may even be more accessible these days: Tickets could be easier to come by, especially if many are left over from subscription sales. But the stock-market gyrations that began last fall will be felt come next fall. So here it is: the glory that is 21st-century Philadelphia - for however long it lasts.

I've been in love with classical music all my life. Tucked in my violin case is a photograph of me at age 4, scowling at the camera with my 1/16-size violin firmly in my fist. I remember I couldn't wait to get the picture-taking out of the way so I could go in and play my concert. While I listen to classical music almost every day - Mozart, Sarasate, Beethoven, Piazzolla - most kids my age listen just to rap, rock, and popular music. Until I started school, I didn't have a lot of exposure to music that wasn't classical or jazz, opera or musical theater.

President Reagan has not yet sent Philip Habib to the bunker housing the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS), but some high-level problem-solver may be needed before that group detonates another round of Grammy Awards. In the past, the Grammys for classical-music recordings have escaped broad notice for the fundamental reason that prizes are at best meaningless in art and at worst destructive. Pictures of Soviet composers wearing their medals make musicians laugh - a little sadly.

The Kimmel Center is presenting less expensive, less exotic visiting orchestras. Local ensembles are increasing collaborations, so that the same event does double or triple duty by counting as a concert in the brochures of multiple organizations. And the city's musical face to the larger world, the Philadelphia Orchestra, has been in bankruptcy more than nine months and doesn't hope to exit until sometime after the filing's first anniversary. Times are tough. Young artists from the Curtis Institute of Music are leaving the nest and heading into careers of equal parts risk and promise.

Unlike its counterparts overseas, the American classical music industry has never made enough of a fuss about music of its own. This is due partly to the conservative nature of the art form itself: Patriotism, like protest movements, usually circles round the masses rather than more elitist groups. Then, too, it has taken a long long time to get over our cultural inferiority complex. Lacking a Three B's of American repertoire to enthuse over, major record companies here have gladly stuck to safer European classics - which in recent years has been easy to do, because a number of firms have been sold to conglomerates based abroad.

  Theater Amadeus Combines intrigue, suspense, comedy & passion. Closes 10/27. Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad St.; 215-546-7824. www.wilmatheater.org . $37-$60. Peter Pan Take a journey to Never Never Land. Closes 9/30. Cumberland Players at the Little Theatre, Sherman Ave. & South East Blvd., Vineland; 856-692-5626. www.cumberlandplayers.com . $10. Anything Goes Cole Porter's famous musical. Closes 9/29. Playcrafters Theatre, Store Rd., Skippack; Reservations recommended: 610-584-4005; www.playcrafters.

Outing has come to classical music, and the Schubert is flying off the shelves. So is the Chopin. Tchaikovsky, Saint-Saens, Bernstein and Britten, too. They are among the composers grouped together on Out Classics, an RCA release making a big splash. Trumpets an invitation on the back of the CD: "Revel in over an hour of seductive classics by eight of the world's greatest composers who just happen to be gay. " Hordes are taking RCA up on the offer, even though no one can be sure whether all of these composers really happened to be gay. The disc has made the Billboard Top Classical Albums chart for the last several weeks, jockeying neck-and-neck with Sensual Classics, Too. That CD offers works by straight composers, but also aims squarely at a gay market by featuring on its cover, as does Out Classics, a homoerotic photo.

Usually Lissette, 11, is at the center of the action - whether playing kickball, rollerblading, swinging, or throwing a ball. Music, however, pulls her to a corner of a room to be by herself. She will sit on the floor, hum, and do sign language. Classical music is her favorite, with Beethoven and Mozart leading the way. Church music runs a close second. She'll nod and smile when she hears "Jesus loves me, this I know. " When Lissette went into foster care, from a background of abuse and neglect, she could often be found going through the garbage, looking for food.

It becomes more evident each fall that many of the best classical music concerts in the region take place in Delaware County and nearby communities that are conveniently accessible to county residents. The performances include the Sunday afternoon chamber music concert series under soft chandelier light in the ballroom of Wallingford Community Arts Center, the Lansdowne Symphony Orchestra and specific concerts in the Wayne Concert Series. The 65-member Lansdowne Symphony Orchestra, for example, has provided outstanding classical music in Lansdowne since 1945, when it was common for most suburban residents to travel to Philadelphia to hear orchestras.

Theater 1812 Productions: Boston Marriage David Mamet comedy about 2 women whose romantic entanglements lead to trouble. Closes 5/20. Plays & Players Theatre, 1714 Delancey St.; 215-592-9560. www.1812productions.org . $20-$36. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way ot the Forum A slave in ancient Rome tries to win a beautiful courtesan's hand for his master. Closes 5/19. Ritz Theatre Company, 915 White Horse Pike, Oaklyn; 856-858-5230. $25-$35. A Grand Night for Singing Tribute to the composing team of Rodgers & Hammerstein.

Anniversary mania is so prevalent in classical music that any landmark year ending with a zero or a five will be celebrated and marketed - and, with luck, will help focus the attention of a public faced with a millennium's worth of music to choose from. With immense wit and perhaps tongue in cheek, Lyric Fest, the Philadelphia art song collective, unveiled the program titled "A Very Good Year: Happy Birthday to 1912" last weekend. Why not? Not only was 1912 a hundred years ago - two zeros!