Having got the admission of my obtuseness as to Bona Nox out of the way, I
also want to thank Mimi Ezust for drawing attention to the very interesting
Rosen article.  I'm still not quite convinced that tone colouring is all in
the voicing - in my experience, the strength or speed with which you attack
a note influences not just the volume, but also the timbre, by making the
overtones more or less audible.  But Prof.  Rosen is right in the sense
that timbre and volume are not independent and how you combine various
sounds plays a key role.  Hofmann was a master of this - of combining
timbres of varying degrees of sharpness to create the illusion of radically
altered tone colour at the same dynamic level.

I'm starting to become somewhat of a Rosen admirer generally.  I already
remarked on his lecture here in Wellington, and I've begun to read his
'Classical Style', which may well become a key influence in my musical
development.  I can recommend it to anyone who has unresolved issues with
Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven.  The writing is lucid, the ideas illuminating,
the book is crammed full with fascinating examples from works many of us
already know.  You really do start to hear familiar music afresh after
reading something like this.

Felix Delbruck
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