"Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast."

[Elmer Elevator <bobmer@javanet.com>]

Your Group Punishment for being fairly quiet and inactive is this new
Thread, if anyone's interested.

One Common Denominator I think we can safely assume we all have is our
love of beautiful music, and our joy of sharing it and learning more
about it.

Does this make us Better Human Beings?

I'm fascinated with literature that suggests that a deep love of the
world's greatest music has utterly no predictable effect on the human
soul, and is as likely to produce ghastly human beings as lovely and
enlightened ones.

The most deeply shocking examples, to me, have been

* "A Clockwork Orange," where the brutal sadist Alex has a deep and
sincere appreciation and love for Beethoven.

* "Playing for Time" (screenplay by Arthur Miller), the true story of
the orchestra of women inmates the Nazis organized and loved to listen
to in Auschwitz concentration camp. (The conductor was Mahler's niece.)
The orchestra was also designed to play classical music for inmates
marching to their deaths, to calm and soothe them.

Do you folks have any opinions about the Civilizing and Enlightening
Powers of Great Music?

"Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast." That's Shakespeare,
right?

Bob Merkin

Elmer Elevator's Discount Prep:
http://www.javanet.com/~bobmer/