Don Satz replies to me:

>>I'm not surprised, particularly, that most difficult new music makes
>>so little sense on first hearing.  But why should it make sense at
>>first hearing? Why shouldn't a composer expect the audience to work?
>
>This issue of "expectations" always interests me.  I would think that
>it's a bad idea for composers to have any particular expectations of the
>audience, consumer, etc.  The composer has no control over the response to
>his/her music, so I see nothing to be gained by assigning expectations.

Like it or not, *every* artist has expectations, it seems to me, because
every artist creates with some ideal in mind.  The artist who expresses no
interest at all in communicating I tend to distrust.  Of course, Don is
quite right to point out that the composer has little control over audience
reaction, although I'm sure both of us could come up with a "statistically
probable" winner, given an audience of a certain type.  After all, as
Stirling Newberry points out, different audiences have different uses for
music.  A heavy-metal audience might not particularly care for Beethoven's
Fourth (any of them).

>I know that Steve feels that the audience should exercise its mind and
>would want to do so; that's noble thinking.  But, I tend to think that most
>people want music for entertainment purposes - working on a composition is
>one of the last things they would engage in.  I don't think this situation
>will change.

I'm not all that noble.  I'm far more concerned that people are missing
out on something potentially enjoyable than on something that will only
exercise their mental muscles - although that's okay, too, I suppose.  For
example, I kept listening to Brahms, even when he bored me, simply because
I hoped that his enormous catalogue would become accessible to me.  In
other words, more to enjoy.  As far as I can tell, coming at long last to
enjoy Brahms's music hasn't made me any smarter, but it has made me
marginally happier.

>What do composers on the list think concerning "expectations."?  If you
>do have expectations, do they tend to be met?

As far as my own music (such as it is) is concerned, it all depends on
what you mean by "expectations." If you mean how well can I predict, I'd
say that I confidently predict indifference.  If you mean what I demand
from a normal listener, all I want is a shot and a fair shake - ie, don't
leave before you hear it, don't expect you're going to hate it before you
hear it, and don't expect the Brahms fifth.  Judging by what I see of
normal concertgoers facing the prospect of unfamiliar music in general,
however, I would say that many won't extend themselves even so far.  As I
say, it's a shame not because they're refusing to work, but because they're
not giving themselves permission to enjoy it.  What I demand from an ideal
listener, however, is articulate, unconditional love.

Is that so wrong? (Jon Lovitz as Harvey Fierstein)

Steve Schwartz