I wrote:

>>Perhaps Wes won't become well know in his life time, but if he truly
>>writes music which is valuable, then he will be remembered for it.

Steve Schwartz replied:

>He *might* be remembered for it.  To say that "quality will out" is
>comforting, but unfortunately not really borne out by history, if we can
>judge by the number of "near-misses." For example, Thomas Traherne, John
>Donne, and George Herbert didn't really become part of the literary
>canon until roughly 250 years after they wrote.

Essentially I agree with this, Steve.  There are always going to be things
we miss, music which deserves more attention, composers whose gift is not
heard for many years after their deaths.  But what I believe is important
is that we hold the positive, encompassing view that - in the end - we will
discover what is good; that we are essentially geared toward growth and
truth.

>We like to think that boards and commissioning agents seek out new work.
>They do, but not very widely, by and large.  Most music gets commissioned
>for reasons of prestige - thoroughly understandable, but hardly
>disinterested or interested only in playing new work, which after all
>involves taking a chance.

But we can't _rely_ on boards, agents, record companies, and so forth to
find everything we want to hear.  As you say:

>A good many of the "classics" discovered in the 20th century - Mahler,
>Nielsen, Varese, Schoenberg, Webern, Copland, and so on - happened upon the
>great fortune of a strong champion able to muscle their works onto programs
>over the objections of business directors, programmers, and so on.

For me, the only person who is responsible for what I hear is me.  If you
hear of a good composer then you can do so many things to help them and to
hear them.  We don't have to wait for a CD to come out to hear their work.
Ask them for scores and tapes, go out for coffee and chat about music, ask
and orchestra to perform their music.  There are so many ways to hear music
and we are the people who make it happen.

You give the instance of Schoenberg et al.:

>The battle for Schoenberg, Ives, and Nancarrow isn't won yet.  When you
>start seeing their names on third-rank concert programs, you can probably
>begin to breathe.

But how wonderful that there are people like you who believe in them.
That is the power of music:  that you passionately want others to hear
what these musicians have to offer.

>luck and hustle have as much to do with being heard as inspiration does.

Absolutely, but we can create our own luck.  We can excite and interest
people in what we do and what we believe.  It is a phenomenal experience
when you tell someone about a great piece you've heard and they go out and
hear it.  Or when you take someone to a concert of a wonderful piece and
they too are bowled over by it.

And for me there are pieces that I *must* perform.  Martyn Harry's score
'Fantasy Unbuttoned', which I saw earlier this year, just got me and I
thought 'I have to do this'.  As a conductor, I am desperate to perform
Mahler, Lutoslawski, Stravinsky, Berio, Knussen, Carter, Turnage, Pete
Dowling, Edward Rushton.  I will perform them because I believe in them.

Robin Newton