> All through my sons' childhoods, I played nothing but classical music
> and jazz, but it had no effect on their musical tastes at all (except
> that my older son developed some interest in the latter). But they
> developed a tolerance for my odd musical tastes early on, and have
> always been polite enough not to complain about my lack of coolness.
> (Or would that be my "warmness"?)
I accidentally discovered this method.
When your kid is about five, watch Bergman's Magic Flute with them while enthusiastically recounting the plot and explaining what people are saying to each other. (It's in Swedish with English subtitles.) In the case of both my children, they fell in love with the movie... Why not? it has dragons and princes and princeses and incredibly beautiful music. They then each wanted to see it by themselves over and over and over again. By the time they were, oh, eight, they had each voluntarily watched the Magic Flute about three hundred times -- about as many times as they watched 101 Dalmatians, Lady and the Tramp, Betty Boop, etc. I had also managed to take them to see Don Giovanni, Marriage of Figaro, etc.
There is nothing about classical music that is in and of itself difficult/forbidding. If you genuinely love it, so will your kids. When they are teenagers they will reject it and they will reject everything you listen too as uncool, almost no matter what it is. The only two things my son and I agreed about during his adolescence were Hendrix and Marley. When your kids are teenagers, your job is to be uncool. Then, they can be cool. That's the right way to play that game.
Best of luck,
Joanna