Dave Lampson writes:

>I have absolutely no interest in who-is-the-greatest-composer games, and I
>swore to god I was going to stay out of this, but I'll just have to hope
>she forgives me...

I can't say that I have no interest in knowing who the greatest composer
is, but I have absolutely no idea who it might be.  As Wittgenstein wrote
at the end of the Tractatus, "One ought to keep silent over those things
one knows nothing about."

The reason I decided to join in was to mention the following.  I heard the
first composition Mozart wrote - or rather composed, and his father wrote
down.

Bob Draper:

>>I believe that this is Mozart's misfortune and explains why he was such
>>a bland and boring composer.  You see he had no option but to assimulate
>>(copy) other composer's styles (just like Mendellsohn did), the child's
>>mind is just not developed enough to be creative.

What I heard was wonderfully individual, far more so than Mozart from
age about 13-17.  It changed time signatures without tripping up, and
the harmonies were quite unusual.  Certainly, it was far more individual
than any other composer of the period known to me, possibly excepting the
earlier Scarlatti.  Children can be quite individual artistically, possibly
because they haven't heard enough to copy and because they don't have the
cultural inhibitions of adults.  I'd refer you to collections of children's
poetry, if nothing else Koch's and Gold's.

On the other hand, I don't really understand the need to tear down one
composer in order to exalt another, and at the level both Haydn and Mozart
wrote at, does it really make any sense to indulge the "Can Superman beat
up Captain Marvel" game? Obviously, one might prefer a certain composer
to another or dislike one entirely.  However, as much as I have preached
"follow your musical bliss," I don't quite buy it altogether.  If you're
talking about "greatness" (and I have no idea how to particularize those
qualities), it seems to me you've got to talk about something beyond your
likes and dislikes and the likes and dislikes of people who agree with you.
To me, it wastes time I could spend actually enjoying music or finding
music to enjoy.

Steve Schwartz