Why we listen to what we do

[Alan Howe]

Quite. Back to UC-compatible music, please...

[semloh]

Tastes do change with the passing years, and with greater awareness of what music has to offer. Without being at all 'ageist', perhaps the late-romantic appeals to us later in life, as we become more reflective.

With that in mind, 'Why I listen to what I do' - as far as classical music is concerned - has been significantly influenced by this forum. My thanks to Alan and Mark, and all the contributors. 

[Alan Howe]

I echo that! Without Mark T's advocacy of Raff, my appreciation of that wonderful composer would be minimal at best. In the same way, I owe my affection for Draeseke to the late and much-missed Alan Krueck and my discovery of Rufinatscha to the fine folk in Innsbruck who set about unearthing their own lost musical treasures a decade or so ago.

[Mark Thomas]

Whereas I have Alan's enthusiasm for Draeseke to thank for persuading me to persevere until I at last appreciated the genius of that most individual of composers.

[chill319]

Unsung composer Howard Hanson spent much of his last years listening to music obsessively, intensely aware of the ineluctable unwinding of the metronome we all play by. He would have been astonished, I think, by the breadth of repertoire available in recordings today. For myself, there simply aren't enough hours in my remaining years to appreciate it all. I shan't live forever, and I likely will go to my grave having missed several of the best pieces ever composed. So in a world of trade-offs, I want to become a better listener -- a more intensely focused listener. That's a high priority for me. There's likely much still unheard in music already auditioned. That includes, to be sure, a score or more of composers I would know little or nothing about were it not for this forum, a continuing delight.