tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716509980377809016.post3198540503554969043..comments2024-03-11T10:20:01.582-07:00Comments on The Rehearsal Studio: Erik Jekabson Presents an Engaging Program of Art Song "by other Means"Stephen Smoliarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14689767135234237242noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716509980377809016.post-22694438156237779652016-07-18T16:36:49.077-07:002016-07-18T16:36:49.077-07:00I think the initial exception I took to the headli...I think the initial exception I took to the headline of this piece distracted me from how perceptive and thoughtful this review was. As you certainly know, work by innovative creative musicians such as Mr. Jekabson and Mr. Brown receive next-to-none critical engagement, which their work richly rewards. <br />And did you mean "Back when I SPENT more time on this site..."?<br />Nah, I'm just yanking yer chain! I enjoy your writing, and envy your prodigious output.john schotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16313960961501577603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716509980377809016.post-11283201065885288932016-07-17T14:08:14.944-07:002016-07-17T14:08:14.944-07:00John, as we both seem to have discovered by now, o...John, as we both seem to have discovered by now, one really ought not to dispense with third-party editors! (Note that one of my labels in the list to the right of this text is "editing.") Back when I spend more time on this site writing about quality of writing, the decline of quality editing was a favorite topic. Since it is clear that my initial effort at cleverness managed to sow confusion, I decided to dispense entirely with the original headline, "Erik Jekabson's Vista Nonet Elevates Jazz to Art Song" (reproduced to provide more recent readers with the necessary context)! The alternative draws upon how the body of the text chose to frame the topic. I liked your suggestion and the use of the adjective "moribund;" but there are at least a few of those "young Turks" who do not deserve to be discouraged. I would not want them to think that I am trying to persuade them to seek out other genres!Stephen Smoliarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14689767135234237242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716509980377809016.post-3656300062940491412016-07-17T10:06:07.817-07:002016-07-17T10:06:07.817-07:00Also my initial comment, despite proof-reading, ca...Also my initial comment, despite proof-reading, came out wrong: I had typed "I have a lot of interest and respect for you [Stephen] and tons for Erik..." JSjohn schotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16313960961501577603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716509980377809016.post-85757949023523255652016-07-17T09:57:00.073-07:002016-07-17T09:57:00.073-07:00Also my initial comment, despite proof-reading, ca...Also my initial comment, despite proof-reading, came out wrong: I had typed "I have a lot of interest and respect for you [Stephen] and tons for Erik..." JSjohn schotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16313960961501577603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716509980377809016.post-2560493514993331282016-07-17T09:55:15.039-07:002016-07-17T09:55:15.039-07:00Now I'm confused, and admittedly, this is utte...Now I'm confused, and admittedly, this is utter nit-picking, but I took the meaning of the headline as Jazz has been elevated to Art Song accomplishment. Now it seems like you're saying the reverse. What was elevated? Which genre is lower than the other?<br />Did you mean "Jekabson elevates the moribund art song genre"?<br />john schotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16313960961501577603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716509980377809016.post-37875806036978117282016-07-17T06:19:38.687-07:002016-07-17T06:19:38.687-07:00With all due respect for a serious working musicia...With all due respect for a serious working musician, I feel a need to ask Schott if he has actually <i>been</i> to any art song recitals lately! While there are some noteworthy exceptions, a good deal of what has been recently added to the repertoire borders on the embarrassing (if not actually crossing it). Whether we are talking about some of the more "established" modernists or the "young Turks" trying to succeed them, art song audiences are being flooded with pretentious efforts, whose most salient quality is a tin ear for literature. We thus get syllable-by-syllable renderings of powerful texts by truly worthy poets, which seem to indicate that the composer never took the trouble to read those texts with any sense of comprehension, let alone tried to read them aloud to get a feel for a poem's "voice." These days the better stuff seems to be based on flat prose (such as oral histories and, in one case, an interview from a Bill Moyers broadcast). Jekabson's stuff rises above a pretty bleak landscape. Admittedly, he did not have to rise very high; but the elevation is still worthy of attention!Stephen Smoliarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14689767135234237242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716509980377809016.post-12844318673132003782016-07-16T19:53:25.619-07:002016-07-16T19:53:25.619-07:00I have a lot of interest and respect for young ton...I have a lot of interest and respect for young tons for Erik, but excuse me? "Elevates Jazz To Art Song"?john schotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16313960961501577603noreply@blogger.com