ROCKERS SHARE CLASSICAL TASTES ON DISC AIMED AT YOUNGER SET.

Byline: Bradley Bamberger Billboard

For years, Keith Richards has indulged a habit not uncommon among rock 'n' rollers: listening to classical music.

In fact, it was the Rolling Stones' publicly proclaimed taste for Mozart and Bach that helped inspire ``Exile on Classical Street,'' an innovative attempt by London Records to get the younger set hip to the sounds of yesterday while raising money for the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) Foundation.

Due Aug. 13, ``Exile on Classical Street'' compiles the favorite classical pieces of a dozen of the world's biggest pop stars. Musicians from Paul McCartney to Bono, from Michael Stipe to Frank Sinatra, selected a diverse array of orchestral, chamber and vocal works that range from the baroque era to modern times.

``Really, `Exile' is the ultimate introduction to classical music for pop people,'' says Steven Singer, London product manager and the driving force behind the album. ``Because it's not just a record company saying, `Buy this.' It's 12 famous, highly respected musicians recommending their favorites.''

The first artist to come on board the ``Exile'' project was Elvis Costello, a rocker well-known for his enthusiastic classical affiliations (having recorded with the Brodsky Quartet and composed pieces for other world-class performers). Among a raft of initial choices, he listed a lament by Elizabethan lutenist John Dowland and a choral work by 20th-century British composer Benjamin Britten. His final nod went to ``Sposa Son Disprezetta,'' a Vivaldi song in a heart-rending rendition by mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli.

For Beach Boy Brian Wilson, there was only one choice, a piece that has been a source of inspiration for him since he was a child: George Gershwin's ``Rhapsody in Blue.''

`` `Rhapsody in Blue' is a must for everyone,'' Wilson says. ``It's a beautiful tune and was way ahead of (its) time - still is in many ways. I listen to it nearly every day.''

Other artists' picks on ``Exile'': from Richards, Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 4, third movement; from McCartney, the Courtly Dances from Britten's opera ``Gloriana,'' in arrangements by guitarist Julian Bream; from Bono, the largo from Dmitri Shostakovich's String Quartet No. 8; from Stipe, Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings; and from Sinatra, Claude Debussy's ``Clair De Lune.''

Also included: from Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, ``Ritual Fire Dance'' by Manuel de Falla; from Marianne Faithfull, Richard Strauss' ``Beim Schlafengehen,'' one of his Four Last Songs; and from Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin, an excerpt from Modest Mussorgsky's ``Pictures at an Exhibition.''

The performances on ``Exile'' come from London's prodigious catalog, including such maestros as Sir Georg Solti, Charles Dutoit, James Levine and David Zinman and such ensembles and soloists as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Borodin String Quartet, Itzhak Perlman and Kiri Te Kanawa. (One non-London selection is Bream's arrangement of Britten's Courtly Dances, which McCartney specifically requested. The track was licensed from BMG Classics.)

London isn't marketing ``Exile'' toward the typical classical consumer but rather more toward the pop buyer, with several features of the campaign having an alternative rock slant. For example, the album will be issued in a limited-edition, double-gatefold vinyl run of 1,500 units, which is unheard of for classical repertoire. And the label is placing ads in such younger-skewing alternative weeklies as the Village Voice and the Boston Phoenix, with the tag line ``Your favorite musicians ... Their favorite classical music.'' Also, the edgy album art resembles a rock record far more than does any release in the classical racks.

``Exile'' will be serviced to major classical radio stations, although it will also go to certain college and pop outlets. Carter Alan, music director for modern rock WBCN Boston, wrote the liner notes for ``Exile,'' and his station plans to talk up the release and give it away via on-air promotions.

A portion of the proceeds from ``Exile on Classical Street'' will go to the NARAS Foundation, which funds such music education programs as Grammy in the Schools and Grammy Careers.

Greg Barbero, vice president of London, says that ``Exile'' is part of an ongoing effort by the label to raise the profile of classical music with young people and become more involved in music education and arts in the schools.

``This isn't just another classical compilation,'' Barbero says. ``We want to dedicate part of our resources to raising money and building awareness for classical music. We have to help ensure that there's an audience for this music 20 or 30 years from now.''

CAPTION(S):

Photo

Photo: Rolling Stone Keith Richards chose the third movemen t of Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 4 for ``Exile on Classical Street.