New Brunswick Youth Orchestra responds to stereotypical car commercial
A New Brunswick Youth Orchestra video created in response to a car commercial perpetuating a ‘tired old stereotype’ about young musicians, has now racked up thousands of views online.
The commercial for 'Infiniti' shows an orchestra of young people playing instruments poorly, so poorly that the woman in the ad, inside of a vehicle in the centre of it, rolls up the window and closes the sun roof to tune them out.
"I saw the humour in it, you know, I understand Nissan and Infiniti, it was tongue-in-cheek," says NYBO CEO, Ken McLeod. "But nevertheless it still kind of struck a negative chord with me.”
In the video, McLeod says that 'they should have called us' as he opens the door to the Imperial Theatre and the sound of the same song - played masterfully - gets louder.
"It was a fun approach," says conductor Tony Delgado. "And also, because we don’t have anything against Nissan or Infiniti, it’s not about that – it’s more about us telling our story."
That story and its message has resonated with many others – the video has been posted on the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra’s YouTube channel and has already racked up over 50,000 views.
As well, MacLeod says they’ve been contacted by people from all over.
"We’ve heard from youth music programs, we’ve heard from professional orchestras and musicians, we’ve had responses from the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra in the Mediterranean, and also a Mexican professional orchestra," says MacLeod.
"It is just all over the map."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Air travel is expensive. WestJet wants the government to do more to change that
WestJet is asking the federal government to put measures in place to lower ticket costs for travellers, but questions remain on who would foot the bill.
Dangerous brew: Ocean heat and La Nina combo likely mean more Atlantic hurricanes this summer
Get ready for what nearly all the experts think will be one of the busiest Atlantic hurricane seasons on record, thanks to unprecedented ocean heat and a brewing La Nina.
'Looking over our shoulders': A killing looms large in a little B.C. town
Something shifted in the pretty little village of Lumby, B.C., after Tatjana Stefanski vanished.
Officer who arrested Scottie Scheffler is being disciplined for not having bodycam activated
The Kentucky police officer who arrested top-ranked golfer Scottie Scheffler outside the PGA Championship is receiving “corrective action” for failing to have his body-worn camera activated.
Hundreds have applied for this 'adventurer' job in Banff National Park
Coined as Banff's 'ultimate summer job,' the Moraine Lake Bus Company says hundreds of people from across the world have applied for its adventurer position.
Potential tornado 'surreal' for residents who witnessed damaging storm in southern Ontario
Witnessing a potential tornado was 'surreal' for residents who caught a glimpse of the damaging storm in southern Ontario on Wednesday night.
Jennifer Lopez's response to question about Ben Affleck is a reminder of their decades of love in the spotlight
Plenty of people are wondering if Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck are having problems in their marriage, but one person had the nerve to ask in a public forum.
Was this the bug that stung you? Wasp sightings revive murder-hornet concerns; no detections confirmed
As temperatures rise out of a mild El Nino winter, Canada's buggy season is already upon us again, and this year, the bugs are looking especially big.
New bill would let Canadians pass citizenship rights down to children born abroad
A new government bill tabled in the House of Commons on Thursday would allow Canadians to pass citizenship rights down to their children born outside the country — a move that would add an unknown number of new citizens.