I must say, I was impressed by F.  Murray Abraham's brilliant and
affecting performance as Salieri in the movie, but I only recently heard
an example of Salieri's music, on the radio.  It was a set of variations
on La Folia, the lovely old tune used to fine effect by many composers from
Corelli through Rachmaninoff.  You would think nobody could go wrong with
that theme, but Salieri's treatment was so pedestrian, so cloddish, that it
sounded like a satire on by-the-numbers composition in the classical style.
Incredily bad.  It reminded me that there are indeed reasons why some music
fails the test of time.

Jon Gallant    ([log in to unmask])