The Super Bowl this past Sunday was a big deal in New York, with our hometown Giants' big win. But the Super Bowl is now about so much more than just football: it's an excuse to get together with friends and eat lots of food, and it's a time for us to connect to pop culture. The halftime show and advertisements are often discussed more than the game itself! After all, it is the biggest media and advertising opportunity of the year, with companies spending huge sums of money and many hours to come up with the most inventive, creative advertisements. All in all, it's a celebration of American culture. This year, of course, was no different.
Music, of course, played a huge role in the Super Bowl. There was Kelly Clarkson performing the National Anthem. (You can watch that here.) There was Madonna's half-time show. (That is viewable here.) But, there were also the advertisements. As Brian Wise wrote about in WQXR's blog post on Sunday night, "Classical Music in 2012 Super Bowl Ads", classical music was highlighted in many of the advertisements during this bowl game. Many readers have commented that they think this is great for classical music, as it breaks the stereotype that classical music is less approachable.
Perhaps my favorite use of music, though, was an advertisement by NBC, in which members of a variety of shows (including 30 Rock, The Office, Law & Order: SVU, The Today Show, and Saturday Night Live) performed "Brotherhood of Man" from the classic musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. The advertisement is well-done and is downright hilarious. Watch it here.