Steve Schwartz <[log in to unmask]> replies to Mark Landson:

>>IMO, it's more the lack of contemp.  music that most classical music
>>lovers can get excited about that has turned people off to looking.
>
>You know, I keep hearing this quite a bit, and almost every time I ask the
>question, "What contemporary music have you heard?" I get silence.

You don't need to tell that:  "*I* have heard contemporary music" because
others have done too, I tell you.  I keep buying contemporary music after
I find it, and during last years CD buying I found not more than a handful
(count the fingers) works in total I liked at all.  I have for long time
tried as much as I am capable to to open my mind for new convetions, but
still very little speaks to me.

I read a contemporary composer defended contemporary music with "When
somebody play Beethoven badly it sounds because all know Beethoven, but
when someone play a contemporary work badly, all blame the work, not the
performers".  Thats really lousy when there are many orchestras today who
can play Beethoven to perfection.  Right that Beethoven increased the
demand on the performers, but he was demanding as he knew what he was
talking about.  There are many contemporary composers who rather invent
arguments about "Instrumentbuilding-technique must also develop, like the
art" and spread them around themselves, then go to the books and really
learn which register the French Horn can play.  I heard a composer being
critizised by one who read his score "Hmm...can that high note really be
played by the French Horn?".  And he replied "Who cares? I bet there are
smaller horns which can play it".

When Glazunov visited England he encountered a rioting orchestra.  The
musicians thought from forehand that a Russian couldn't know anything about
music, and they didn't want to play Glazunovs symphony.  Finally a hornist
stopped plaing completely and barked about that a note wasn't playable.
This should be a conductor maredream, but Glazunov just stepped down from
the pult, walked up to the hornist, grabbed his horn, and played the note
in question.  And the riot was striked down.  Because he was informed.  He
knew what he talked about.

Mark Landson <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>As a composer [...], I have a mantra: It's not the audience's job
>to pay attention.  It's the role of the artist to command attention!

Yes it is just that that music of 20-th century, with reagrd to
avantguarde, has been pornographicized in the same way as pornography
itself.  Pornography, which is interesting to study as a reflector to
'serious' art, has been corrupted in the way that instead of being
expressing lust of two individuals for each other - as was dominating
until somwhere in the 1970ies - it has turned more and more extreme and
raw, with finally the group raping as painting images of true experiances
of exposition instead of sensual artistic vision.  Now this genre seems to
have come aware of its own degeneration and seeks (and find) remedies, but
classical music is much more - excuse me the expression - fucked up in its
own system of perversation, and has been so for at least the double of
time.  Composers, and artists in all genres have seeken more and more
shocking ways of draw the attention to themselves.  If you can't do it
ridiculous enough like musical compositions where no music at all shall
sound, or achitechtorial embeddings of rocks far out in sahara in pink
paper, you can at least do it disguistingly shocking, like smearing
excrements on walls "here, my new artwork!  who wants to buy? just
$10000?".

Now back to the lousy performence of the modern musical work.  I have
said on the list before that I shout "Booh!" when I am dissatisfied with
a concert.  Then those who read about me behaviour denounces me as a
peacedisturber.  But!  what about if more people boohed not just downright
bad performances/works as if granted that it was the performance? Then
musicians - because most musicians don't want to be boohed at - will refuse
to play pieces where it cannot be determined by the audience if the work of
the performance is bad....and then I think things might change.  Of course
there could be a lot of contemporary composers who will never be played
anymore.  But if nobody playes say Jean Barraque anymore, at least I won't
cry, becasue he was a faker, and not even a good one, becasue I think sucha
reaction will outcrystalize what quality in music is to the concertgoer.
True a composer shall ahve mantra, but music is also a communication
between the artist and the listener.  I don't understand why composers who
not agree to that care about having their work performed at all.

Hasn't art been degenerated when it is so easy to fake an artwork?

>IMO, it's more the lack of contemp.  music that most classical music
>lovers can get excited about that has turned people off to looking.

True there must be good artworks out there, but how to find them when
the output is an undefined mass of the most different variations of
"shock-them-all-fat"? Blurring is the natural consequence when artists
stop including one thing that is one of the most fundamental ingrediences
in art:  that is:  defining their relation to the tradition!  And note:
I didn't say "following the tradition", I said "defining relation to".

>The public will not save classical music and/or classical radio by
>seeking out new voices and/or changing their tastes to fit what those new
>composers are saying.  Only the composers, promoters, and others in charge
>of programming can do that by providing a relevant voice for today that
>people can connect with.  And when someone actually arrives on the scene
>that can provide that direction, then classical music will flourish.

I also believe this.  And the argument "Everything can be art" does not
actually change anything (except seemingly that the role of the artist is
downscribed).

>Quality is one thing.  Relevance is another.  To plagarizes a professor of
>marketing: If you were the best vinyl record producer in the world today,
>would it matter? No. It doesn't matter how good you are in an eroding
>industry.

Cross-Over has likely been the most serious (intended for this purpose or
(likely) not) attempt to save classical music.  I can't however say that
I have seen any evidence of that it really draws people to classical music
what is above the actual cross-over hits themselves.

Mats Norrman
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