Review: ‘The Wannabe Classical Music Aficionado’ Is a Handy Introduction for New Classical Audiences

By Miranda Wilson | From the July/August 2026 issue of Strings

This guidebook is both a passionate manifesto and an instruction manual for first-time concertgoers. Violinist Allan Schiller, now retired from a long career in the New York Philharmonic, created this book for anyone who wants to learn to love classical music but doesn’t know where to start. The Wannabe Classical Music Aficionado is sure to appeal to a wide variety of potential readers: a total novice who wants to learn more, a recent retiree who finally has time to attend concerts, or even a conservatory-bound high schooler who needs to review the fundamentals in preparation for college classes. For the rest of us, it’s a handy reference guide.

One of the features that differentiates this book from other “classical can-opener” guides is its sensitivity to the anxieties of first-time concertgoers. Classical concert culture can seem intimidating to the uninitiated, who fear that they will make unforgivable blunders in etiquette. Schiller anticipates and calms their fears, demystifying the rituals and traditions of the concert hall and offering gentle advice on what to wear (no dress code!) and when to clap (do what everyone else does!).

Schiller, who played for many years under Leonard Bernstein, appears to have caught some of the legendary conductor’s infectious enthusiasm for explaining music. Readers of this book will likely find themselves inspired by Schiller’s love of his subject to rush out and buy a ticket to the symphony immediately.

In boundlessly energetic style, Schiller takes the newbie concertgoer on a tour through canonic orchestral and chamber composers and repertoire from the Baroque to the present day, teaching about the instrument families, what to listen for in music, and even how to listen (“It’s okay to zone out!”). Perhaps anticipating audience objections to new music, he writes engagingly about several living composers and encourages the reader to keep an open mind: “Today’s avant-garde music may be tomorrow’s classics.” It’s surprising to see only one woman composer (Jennifer Higdon) mentioned here given that today’s core repertoire includes so many, but this omission may be due to the constraints of a word limit.