One thing about inner circles is that they can't exist unless those outside the circle recognize and confer 'inner' status to them. This is an alien topic for me; the only inner circle I think about is the one that I inhabit. There's a famous book where the hero's professional existence is almost expunged by a particular vulture-type person. When this person asks our hero what he thinks of him, the hero replies, "I don't think of you." That's the way to operate. I would like to add that although Robert Peters, the originator of this thread, states that there are no inner circles of classical music, the fact that he started the thread reveals that the thought of one is on his mind and doesn't sit well with him. Perhaps there's even one or more inner circles on this List. Again, if you don't recognize them, they don't really exist for you. Don Satz