It would be interesting to know the context of Benjamin's original
quotation.  To me it looks like he was asked about his view on the
'accessiblity' of his music.  I don't believe that Benjamin is part
of either (as Stirling Newberry wrote):

>...a small crowd of people who likes one kind of music - and they want all
>the money and all of the power and all of the positions of prominence for
>it, and a larger crowd that doesn't like it- who wants it to be erased
>from the planet.  The rest is window dressing.

He is not taking part in a:

>...naked political cat fight...

he is simply expressing a belief in the power of music and the wonders it
can create when given the chance to be great.

One has only to look at a work such as Sudden Time to hear the sheer force
of communication that is latent in Benjamin.  This is no hack work where
notes follow notes for no apparent reason - it is carefully considered,
dramatically taught work, and one in which the harmony contributes strongly
to the motion and emotion of the music.  There is no gloss on it, no:

>...particular kind of pleasing sonic surface...

certainly no more than there is on Debussy, Dutilleux, Boulez or Messaien.

His belief in quality is exemplified in this music.  It is a work in which
Benjamin invested huge effort refining and paring his notes until there is
no spare flesh.

I cannot believe that Benjamin, who suffered himself so much at the hands
of critics and musicians who expected him to produce masterpiece after
masterpiece at a young age, is really into "fighting over who has the big
offices, the big title and who controls what is spoken and written about
art." His belief is in freedom and power of expression.  He wants the very
best to be available to everyone.

Benjamin may well not be the most talented composer of this century or
any other, but I do not see why he should be labelled a hack.  Salieri
was no hack, even though his music contained nothing like the power,
invention, delicacy and humanity of Mozart's.  Perhaps there needs to be
some expansion of what 'hack' implies - according to my dictionary it means
someone who is overworked.

It seems unfair, too, to dismiss Marcus' comments as worthless because
what he's really saying is "Well I'm a member of the club." I don't see
that he is saying that, he's simply giving a point of view based on
personal experience.  And how could he give a point of view based on
anything else? All that is there is an admiration for what Marcus views
as an impressive musician at work.

Robin Newton
[log in to unmask]