Did classical music influence Motown music?

While classical music certainly did not have a direct influence on Motown music, its influence can be detected on early music, which in turn left influences with many genres, including Motown. For example, some chord progressions commonly used in jazz, soul, R&B, and Motown have parallels in Baroque music like Handel. Additionally, certain melodic, vocal, or harmony ideas can be noticed across the whole wide spectrum of American music, classical included.

Despite there not being clear elements within Motown music inspired directly by classical Western music, it is quite plausible classical music exerted certain indirect influences because music styles evolve based on their predecessor (s).