Nobody listens to CDs anymore.

My son actually said these words to me nine years ago, when we were remodeling our condo and had a contractor build us a huge entertainment cabinet which had storage for an astounding 32 custom-built shelves for compact disc storage, in addition to display shelves for our glassware collection, and smaller cubbies for audio equipment and other storage.

And my husband Carl dutifully filled them to the max, alphabetically by composer, and then by artist, and then by instrument. In addition to the 32 shelves which were completely full, there were even more CDs in some of the other larger shelves. Too much of a good thing!

Last weekend all that changed when, after five visits in three months, I told my termite maintenance company that spot treatment just wasn’t working anymore. “They are having a huge banquet in there!” the exterminator told me. Because the unit was bolted to the wall, there was no easy way to get to the back of the unit where there were massive infestations.

And with that news, I made the momentous decision to unload everything from the cabinet and give away the CDs, saving only about 100 or so in which I or Carl were performing or which had special sentiments (like an autographed copy of the B Minor Mass by Masaaki Suzuki, etc.)

So since last weekend I have been sorting, boxing and labeling the CDs into smaller units. The following photos show only the choral CDs, the bulk of which are the numerous collections of Bach cantatas, including 54 volumes by the Bach Collegium Japan, numerous performances by Nikolaus Harnoncourt/Gustav Leonhardt, Philippe Herreweghe and John Eliot Gardner. In addition to the cantata performances, of course there are multiple performances of the major works, such as the Mass in B Minor, the St. Matthew Passion, and the St. John Passion, plus many concerto and vocal solo Bach performances.

I threw all the organ CDs into a box and was surprised at how many I had, since I usually don’t listen to organ music for pleasure — I listen to organ CDs basically only to learn new repertoire.

So, why is it that CDs have gone the way of 8-track tapes and cassettes? Defunct, obsolete, out of favor? I emailed several choral friends and mostly got “No” for the offer of free CDs. According to Tucker Bowe, “It’s 2021 and streaming makes up about 85 percent of how all music is consumed. Vinyl is in a resurgence, of course, with records outselling CDs for the first time in almost three decades. CDs, on the other hand, have been on the decline. Their sales have dropped by 95 percent since 2000 (the peak days of CDs), according to a new report, and are currently at their lowest level since 1986. To say CDs have lost their cool factor is a little bit of understatement.”

However, he makes the argument that CDs sound better than vinyl and streamed digital files, and that the artwork and booklets are underrated and invaluable. Hey, I still have LPs of Bach cantatas that contain the complete musical scores!

Here are some ideas on what to do with old CDs! “38 Brilliant DIY Ideas How To Recycle Your Old CDs“

See more beautiful projects here.

And last but not least, thanks to all of you on your words of sympathy on the sudden death of my grandson’s abuelo (grandpa), Miguel Ángel Martinez Palma, last week when he didn’t answer his phone. A locksmith was finally called and he was found to have fallen in the patio and died. My son and daughter-in-law are in Mexico right now and have the big responsibility of cleaning out his house, following his funeral last night. We are grateful that he was able to make his first ever visit to the United States last October and stay with his daughter, son-in-law and grandson for a long visit. Amar y simpatía to the family.