Jim Tobin opines:

>And in response to a gnawing feeling of disappointment in the
>face of the fact that Ross ignores many of the composers I most
>care about-- ones who express feelings, for instance--I have begun
>to read a book by Walter Simmons that Steve Schwartz reviewed here
>when it came out three years ago, Voices in the Wilderness: Six
>American Neo-Romantic Composers:
>http://www.classical.net/music/books/reviews/0810848848a.html In
>his introduction Simmons describes the usual approach to the history
>of American 20th century music, and guess what? That is much the
>sort of approach that Ross does in fact take.

I also picked up this book, I have to stop reading book reviews in
the NY Times, it is expensive) and would agree, I am a bit put off
at the slight of composers like Martinu.  Otherwise it is a thought
provoking book.  I now appreciate Strauss much more and he is just
one composer I could say this of.

As part of reading the book I did some research.  Mahler's 4th
Symphony may well have been the first of the 20th.  In my opinion
(which has never been humble enough) it is his 6th "Tragic" that
is truly the first of that century.  Ross' book provoked the train
of thought that led to that realization.

Now I have to read _Voices in the Wilderness_.  I think he owes me
a copy;-)

Stumpf
The Intellectual Hobo

             ***********************************************
The CLASSICAL mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R)
list management software together with L-Soft's HDMail High Deliverability
Mailer for reliable, lightning fast mail delivery.  For more information,
go to:  http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html