Doug Henwood:
> Yeah, it's one step removed from Mantovani. Perfect
> for lending a high-toned atmosphere to a boutique
> or an organic bakery.
I certainly hope you're joking. Having an infant around must make the "Mozart for Babies" craze all the more irritating, but that's no reason to take it out on him. Hell, even though they used Janis Joplin to sell the Mercedes Benz, I wouldn't take it out on her -- and yet I don't think that anyone serious would suggest that Janis Joplin possessed even a fraction of Mozart's talent.
"A boutique or an organic bakery," indeed. This is simply no way to treat the creator of "Le nozze di Figaro," the late piano concertos, and the "Jupiter" -- and much else besides. There are a thousand calumnies that still get unfairly heaped on him, not the least of which is that he was not original and added nothing of his own to musical form. Not only does the music itself refute that if you listen to the latter two-thirds of his works in particular (from about K. 299 on) in comparison to any of his contemporaries, but I agree with Maynard Solomon (who has studied the matter) that it is an egregious insult and simply untrue. As the saying goes, had Mozart lived another ten years, he would have invented Beethoven.
- - - - - - - - - - John Lacny http://www.johnlacny.com
Tell no lies, claim no easy victories