Stirling Newberry adds to an exchange between John Dalmas and me:

>>>Gould is one of those American interwar and postwar musicians - along
>>>with Piston, Diamond, Schuman, Sessions, Mennin, Fine, Talma, Hanson,
>>>Foss, Blitzstein, Lees, Bergsma, Shapero, and Thomson - too good to lose.
>>
>>I find this an example of extravagance by association.
>
>I would trade that entire list for keeping Ellington, Armstrong, Goodman,
>Gershwin, Coltrane, Davis and Mingus.  And I don't think I am alone in
>believing that American accomplishments in jazz out shadow American
>"classical" accomplishments during the period by a wide margin.

Chacun a son, as they say, gout.  While I have no particular love for late
Coltrane, Davis, or Mingus, and Goodman seems to me solid, but not special,
I do think jazz contributions remarkable, but fundamentally different from
American classical music.  I also believe that none of the composers I
mentioned have anything to be ashamed of or are somehow "second-best,"
mostly because I don't really see the communal point in publishing what
remains a private ranking.

Steve Schwartz