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NEWS FROM BLOGVILLE: THE CLASSICAL ELITIST VERSUS THE CLASSICAL POPULISTS

Kyle Gann, though he doesn't appear judgmental about people acting differently, believes in using his critical soapbox to promote classical music and nothing but -- specifically in his case what he calls "PostClassic," contemporary classical music.  AC Douglas agrees that classical critics should use their space to promote classical and nothing but, except in ACD's case he wants it limited to pre-PostClassic classical, since he loathes the stuff Kyle discusses.  Alex Ross and Helen Radice think classical critics should follow their muse. I admire Kyle and ACD’s singleness of focus, and I share Alex and Helen’s hope that the pop criticism of classical critics may attract new readers and listeners to classical.

While I'm sympathetic to other parts of his argument (though not his dismissal of contemporary classical), this contention of ACD’s is nonsensical: that classical is “music's very apotheosis; the one instantiation of music that alone is capable of subsuming and transfiguring all of music's other instantiations.”  ACD defensively continues: “That's not a classical music fanatic's wild-eyed rant, nor is it the rant of a cultural snob. It's a demonstrable, objective fact. “

I honor ACD’s love for the music he loves. I invite him to try to demonstrate the truth of his so-called demonstrable fact.