I used baseball on the radio as my “background music” when I used to work alone from home, because I couldn’t use music for that. The ambient sounds, chitchat and general pace and tempo are comforting—then something exciting happens, the tone changes and I perk up my ears to pay attention.

I hadn’t changed much, the music hadn’t changed at all, and the later students were not better players than the earlier pros. The only thing that changed was the presumption of who was probably right.

A couple times I had the opportunity to have student musicians perform pieces I had written years earlier, when I was a student, that had been premiered by professionals. It amazed me how many things that had been impossible or wrong the first time were just done without question the second time.

Thanks Stan—as do you. (And you can sing and play too.)

(I’d assume most players would make the right choice if they just saw too many long notes tied together. But they also might think, “this composer’s an idiot who doesn’t understand how string instruments work,” and I don’t want that.)

Thanks—I write slurs in with care, but don’t usually mark up- vs down-bow, preferring to leave that to the performers. “Free bow” sounds good, especially if it’s fairly standard.

I like that, short and simple. Thanks!

I like to remember stuff I missed to feel better about what I’m missing now. For example, there was a period where it seemed like Game of Thrones was all anyone talked about. I never got around to it, and now I don’t have to because it just vanished and no one ever mentions it now. That’s a win.

Right, it’s not passive in the grammatical sense, but a lot of what people object to as “passive” isn’t technically passive voice; this is another of the many ways to obfuscate who did what.

We’re all hanging in there—I hope you are as well.

Yeah I don’t think the juxtaposition is inherently blasphemous, until you start thinking of the Annunciation in terms of “Voulez vous…”

Instead of “Holy Mary, mother of God,” I hear “Creole Lady Marmalade.”

(17 in the time of 13)

How many New Complexity composers does it take to change a lightbulb?

Cream and four sugars in your coffee? Great, suit yourself. But no, I don’t secretly want that too yet drink it black to look tough or something—I honestly love black coffee. And dissonant music…

It’s okay that others dislike things I like. To each their own. But I resent when they assume that no one really likes what I do, that’s it’s some kind of act. Whether it’s music, food, whatever.

I don’t know his overall output that deeply, but I remember finding several of the works he composed toward the end of his (very long) life more approachable than the mid-career pieces that made him famous.