In Reply to: So Rochberg's music is "an inevitably imperfect copy" therefore "even more disappointing"? posted by Chris from Lafayette on July 7, 2016 at 08:42:37:
No, no, silly. There is a reason Stravinsky said, "Don't borrow -- steal!" (Though apparently that quote originates from someone else? Sigh!) You have to make the work of past artists your own in some way, small or large, to be a successful artist. DHarvey said it best in this thread, I won't try to better him.
Stravinsky didn't just copy Pergolesi when he wrote Pulcinella. And let's face it -- that Italian baroque material Stravinsky used most likely wasn't even written by Pergolesi, who died young, and whose name was used by many others not trying to copy him either but merely hoping to use his famous name to boost the popularity of their own work. And Crumb didn't just copy Debussy. For me, Rochberg isn't on the same level as Crumb, and nowhere near Stravinsky, but he is an artist, not a mere copyist.
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Follow Ups
- RE: So Rochberg's music is "an inevitably imperfect copy" therefore "even more disappointing"? - rbolaw 10:06:22 07/07/16 (1)
- The thing that makes Rochberg so controversial. . . - Chris from Lafayette 11:30:48 07/07/16 (0)