GET YOUR TICKETS P.D.Q.

It's December, which means it's time for a host of holiday traditions. I've pretty much rid myself of most of them, but one that stubbornly refuses to leave is the P.D.Q. Bach concert which somehow always sneaks itself into my calendar between Christmas and New Year's. This year it's "P.D.Q. Bach: A 40-year retrogressive--An overview of classical music’s underbelly," on the 27th.

For 40 years "Professor" Peter Schickele has been "discovering" the works of P.D.Q. Bach. Johan Sebastian Bach had 20-odd children, and P.D.Q. was the oddest, according to the "Professor." He most certainly was the worst composer.

Forty years ago Juilliard composition instructor Peter Schickele realized that his job wouldn't give him the time he needed to compose the music he wanted to write. The problem was, it was practically impossible to be a full-time classical composer. It just didn't pay enough. He came up with a solution. He and his friends had been putting on little classical music satire shows to the great delight of the Julliard students. He figured he could put together a full-length concert and tour with it around the college campuses. A six-month tour would bring him enough money so he could do serious composition the rest of the year. Thus the entirely fictional P.D.Q. Bach was born.

And thus I first encountered "Professor" Schickele as a freshman at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1967--when he slid down a rope from the balcony and ran up on to the stage, just as it was being announced that he was missing and the concert would have to be cancelled. I roared with laughter, and I've been roaring at his jokes ever since--at least when I'm not hissing at the bad ones. It's part of the fun.

In fact it's most of the fun. The music is silly, and a two-hour concert of it would soon get quite boring. But Schickele's joke-ridden introductions to each piece make the evening very enjoyable.

So this year it's the "40-year retrogressive," with selections from the various decades of concerts. It's been a long time since Schickele slid down a rope, let alone since he swung on a rope à la Tarzan from the box seats to the stage of Carnegie Hall, (he's 70 years old now), but I'm sure he'll be as late as ever. Just as I'm sure his "Manager of the Stage" will be hissed by the audience, and his shirt-tail will be flapping outside his pants.

If you want a preview, listen to WQXR this Sunday at 11:00am. 96.3FM in the New York area, around the world on the web at www.wqxr.com. But order your tickets fast.