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LETTER of the MONTH
Missing talents
I nodded in accord while reading Tom Service’s ‘Finding Joy in the Present’ column (November issue). Concert music is not immune to economic adjudication, and as Service notes, ‘there’s less room for the new in the mausoleum of classical programming’ – Bach sells, Kaija Saariaho does not. People will flock to hear Beethoven and Vivaldi, and even Philip Glass and John Williams, but who, exactly, is Jennifer Higdon? To augment Service’s polemic, I would add that there are many lesser-known composers in the ‘mausoleum’ that music directors and promoters often ignore, such as Moritz Moszkowski, Gerald Finzi, and – since we do not want devotees of Mozart running for the exit during intermission – let’s add Antonio Salieri to the list. Across the pond, we have historically informed period orchestras and choruses such as Boston’s own Handel & Haydn Society who, especially post-pandemic, have added less celebrated composers to their repertoire, some sequestered to virtual anonymity because of their race or gender. As listeners, we need to pay to see the works of these composers as well if we hope for programmers to follow our lead, as Service envisions.
John Tamilio III,
Beverly, MA, US
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Mysterious chorus
I always enjoy your Music To My Ears feature and am intrigued to read of the listening choices of a variety of musicians and staff. Particularly intriguing in your Christmas issue was Michael Berkeley’s praise of the chorus in the recent Covent Garden production of Wagner’s Das Rheingold. What chorus? Was he referring to the very brief shriek of the Nibelungen slaves as they scatter? Otherwise, it’s a long wait to hear the voices of the Gibichung vassals in Götterdämmerung, the Ring’s only true chorus. Nevertheless, who can fail to endorse all he says of how freelance singers and players enrich our culture?
Paul Pascoe, Shrewsbury
Colin calms down
Patrick Hoyte (Letters, Christmas) feels the ‘accolade’ for the most
