HOLY. JOHN. MACKEY. New piece!

[jetman1287]

I don't mind the OP posting in this thread.

HOWEVER - We shouldn't shut down Mackey because he hasn't played an instrument (is that even true?). His stuff is decent and remember, it's not what hardcore DCI fans remember as a well-written piece 20 years down the line...it is what casual fans get out of a 12 minute experience on a summer night.

[ranintothedoor]

I'm going to disagree with you there.

If that's the sound the composer wants, then that's what he is going to instruct the players to do.

Yeah, I agree. It's about what the composer wants to portray or express... see John Cage "4'33". :-)

Speaking of that piece, I feel like this is the absolute best performance of 4'33'' I've ever come across.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUJagb7hL0E

(sorry, tangeant done!)

[ranintothedoor]

He is, however, an excellent felon.

awesome. :-)

[ContraRich77]

So in short, i hate when people say well lets see what you've done better.

I'm not surprised. Armchair quarterbacks usually DO hate that.

Edited April 1, 2010 by ContraRich77

[ContraRich77]

That's the laziest rebuttal ever. I haven't heard anything that you've composed, superior or otherwise, so should I write you off when you saw you like the music?

Well, I'm not criticizing anyone's compositional skills, so why would I have to show anyone anything?

Besides, anyone who doesn't agree with me is wrong.

[jjeffeory]

Yeah, I agree. It's about what the composer wants to portray or express... see John Cage "4'33". :-)

Speaking of that piece, I feel like this is the absolute best performance of 4'33'' I've ever come across.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUJagb7hL0E

(sorry, tangeant done!)

That was the worst bit of silence that I have ever heard! I mean, there was a low hum and lots of coughing...

[CrownStarr]

For instance, nobody should ever instruct a musician to play past the point of good tone quality

Rite of Spring?

[Kyle B]

Put it this way, if he was a terrible composer no one would ever play his music, nor would he ever be published.

You may not like him, doesn't mean he is terrible.

[fourouttheforty]

How many times in drum corps have we heard a mellophone section stretching the line of good tone quality so we can hear that sound rip through the line.

It's not always a good thing, especially when it is just 1 player doing it on his own, but I'm sure sometimes it is asked for them to do so.

Some would say it is never a good thing in drum corps.

[BRASSO]

By no means am I a good ballet dancer.

I took a couple classes last spring with my friend because she didn't want to be there without anyone she knew. When i danced, i wasn't able to keep my balance very well when i went up onto my toes, and i had very limited flexibility. My only redeeming quality was that my toes were pointed "fantastically." Since then, this same friend has taken me to see ballets when they come through town and i had an appreciation for their craft. There was one girl (and i say girl because they were about 12 or 13) who stuck out in my mind as i was watching the show. She was a terrible dancer because she couldn't keep her legs straight and her toes were seldom pointed. My friend commented on the same things and helped me understand a little bit more ballet technique.

So in short, i hate when people say well lets see what you've done better. Just because i'm not a hotshot dancer doesn't mean i don't know when someone else isn't either. And just because i'm not a hotshot composer doesn't mean i don't know when someone else isn't either.

Good points, and well said.

It's all in WHO you say is " terrible ". For instance, if you said the performing artist " Brittany Spears is terrible "..... no problem. But if you think some obscure musical composer " is terrible ",this is definately verboten with many posters on DCP and you will quickly be the recipient of attack for such tackless comments. You see, there are" cows" ( Brittany Spears ) and then there are... "Sacred Cows". We have learned a valuable lesson here today. John Mackey apparently falls into the realm of "Sacred Cow" with many DCP'ers, and this person should be treated as such. Stating that in your opinion that he is " terrible ", and it will bring out the wrath down on your head in a New York minute, as we've all just witnessed above on this thread.

Edited April 1, 2010 by BRASSO