Kar Ming wrote:

>Which brings me to ask: Why do composers such as Sorabji or Alkan even
>bother to compose these unplayable pieces? Unless they're hoping that
>someone, somewhere has three pairs of hands......or has time on their
>hands.

I am not sure if they set out to compose unplayable pieces or not but I am
certain they were out to compose music.  I have written some piano pieces
which are awkward for the hands and maybe unplayable.  I had not given any
consideration to playability and since I do NOT write music at the keyboard
I had no idea how difficult some of the fingerings are.  To be perfectly
honest, I don't care much if these pieces of mine are ever performed
because I know what they sound like.  I didn't write them to be difficult.
I just wrote them.

Perhaps this sounds crude or arrogant but, to me, the performance amounts
to next to nothing of importance.  I know performers look at this statement
and think very little of me but to me the music is everything.  Music from
the page can be conceptualized in the mind and the performance is just a
translation.  In some ways I look at it like storytelling.  If a person can
read a book then they don't need someone to read it to them.  Some people
(myself included) like to hear stories read aloud and surely different
people will give different readings just as in a musical performance.  I
like to listen to performances of music much more so than listening with my
"hearing" eyes but when I write I guess I am guilty of writing without live
performance in mind.

I know I strayed from the topic into my own personal situation but I
think these two gentlemen were writing music as they knew how to do.  Just
because a piece of music is extremely difficult or impossible to play does
not mean it is non-musical.  It may be as much or more musical than the
pieces which are of the standard repertoire.  Now I think I should go back
and revise my awkward works so I can share them with others.  This is the
one real reason I like writing for performance...sharing my music with
others.

--Wes Crone (Been away for awhile)