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Date: | Thu, 9 Sep 1999 11:07:54 -0700 |
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Permit me to enter this thread with a suggestion. I don't know whether
Mahler should be viewed as "overrated" or not, but I would designate him
(perhaps in a dead heat with Wagner) as "most overstated". By this, I
refer the simple ratio of what is achieved to what is employed. Consider
the following comparison of two works, and the means they employ.
Mahler's Symphony #2: about 80 minutes, requring a large symphony
orchestra, organ, chorus, soloists, bells, whistles, and if Mahler were
composing today he would no doubt call in Stephen Spielberg for special
effects.
Bach's chaconne from the partita #2 in D minor: 14 minutes, one violin.
Jon Gallant
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