Chris Bonds wrote: >Perhaps there should be an equation between talent and compensation but >the reality of the world is that there is not. We would see the world >more clearly if we understand that compensation is often as much a product >of image-building as it is talent. Image-building is necessary >in order to sell the CM product these days. Image-building was different in past days, but I think it was still highly advantageous for artists. The public's identification with an artist has always been significant. Of course, we now have highly sophisticated models of image-building with experts professionally dedicated to lifting artists out of obscurity. Concerning current artists, I offer the pianists Evgeni Kissin and Marc-Andre Hamelin. Critical acclaim for Hamelin is probably greater than that for Kissin. Yet, Kissin has the "name" appeal because he has been marketed very well. I suppose it's a given that artists who are conventional in personality, want to be left alone, and refuse the image build-up will find themselves in the environment they desire. Don Satz [log in to unmask]