Is there any metal on the top 40 right now?

If you actually read your post right here and the one you quoted, you'll notice how you were the one bringing in the whole mainstream bit. Read the OP, answer the question right.

Classical music is eternal. Not only it is the embodiment of a time-tested harmony, but what would evil scientist listen to in the movies, if not to classical violin music ?

Burning Down is around lurking. She needs to come back to her thread and clarify what she means.

I don't fully understand the premise of this thread. Classical music is timeless and perhaps the most relevant genre since most modern musicians have studied classical to some extent or other. Even my husband (who pretty much exclusively listens to mainstream music), is a huge classical enthusiast and is constantly playing Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, and Holtz.

So this is basically the question she wanted answered. I don't think the thread title does that question justice. Most people just look at the thread title and respond based off of that.

The second part of her question covers the category that your husband would fit into.

I don't see how he would fit into that category of niche listeners seeing as how I described his musical habits as pretty mainstream. I think that even the most basic listener today has been exposed (perhaps indirectly and without personal intent) and thereby somewhat affected by classical music seeing as how it's found embedded in modern pop culture everywhere (ie: dramatizing cat-n-mouse scenes in familiar cartoons, in the background of most car commercials, etc). To say it isn't relevant to the modern person would pretty much mean that that person has been living under a rock without internet access for his entire existence.

^Who is "he"? Your husband?

The Internet is the biggest element of DJ and my disagreement. It's changed the way that people consume music and has in turn made niche genres more relevant than they ever would be. 30 years ago, the charts would be a good indicator of that time's music and I'd agree with DJ on that because of how much the radio drove the music culture of the time. I just think it's changed, become more fragmented, and we can look beyond the charts and still maintain a relevant idea of what people listen to these days.

Yes, I was referring to my husband in the example.

To be honest, I don't really know anyone who regularly listens to mainstream radio for anything other than politics, weather/traffic updates, or sports (even my husband will only listen to music if nothing else is on and he doesn't have phone reception or something). But for us to pontificate as though we music enthusiasts are the only ones who appreciate classical is a little pretentious and a lot delusional... even for us. ;)

Classical music bleeds over and we end up hearing pieces because certain pieces are over played and seep into everything we consume but just because that happens. It doesn't mean that people are actively listening to classical music on a regular basis.

No one wants to admit that they listen to mainstream radio but mainstream radio as a lot of influence and people that don't want to listen to mainstream radio end up listening to it whether it is through work or while in their car and it's a short drive or you get into someone else's ride and they have the top 40 station on.

Mainstream radio exists, yes. It's just not the driving force of "today's music" anymore.

For me, today's music means music that comes out today. Some of that is classical music.