Trust Kyle Gann to perceive a link between two seemingly unrelated groups of self-described "Very Serious People" -- insufferable Beltway wankers like Time's Joe Klein (AKA "Joke Line" -- oh, I'm sorry, was that insufficiently serious?) and insufferable serialist fundamentalists:
The thing I love about it is, of course, that "serious" has also long been the word that High Modernist composers use to distinguish themselves from composers who try to appeal to the audience, who think about accessibility, who are influenced by pop music, who don't build up dramatic climaxes, who appreciate Erik Satie and Virgil Thomson, who don't try to impress each other with the sophistication of their techniques. "Serious" is a condescending but tolerant-seeming word that connotes, well, yes, these postminimalists are composers too, and amateurs may find in them a certain entertainment value, but we must not forget, of course, who the really serious composers are.
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