kickingandscreaming

but that's his gift to you. Imagine him saying "Thank God someone heard me in 2008." When he died in 1750-ish, there were less than one billion people on the planet and we were already fighting over resources and religion, and audiences sat quiet and united when they heard his work. There are now 10 billion plus people here, and art remains the only answer to the question "what is the meaning of life?" You now have the distinct advantage of being alive and not having to reinvent Bach's wheel...so consider being the Johnny Appleseed of his seed. Bach probably had someone he wished he could have been as well (and probably someone with good hair). Give at least one listen to New Order's 'Elegia', or the opening bars of 'Sub-Culture', or the follow up pieces 'Crystal' and 'Regret'. They are at best an orchestral blueprint, but they punch toward the heart which beats 'smart' music any day. This is where the struggle to survive the human condition is being fought during the time you can affect it. 'We' used to cater to mad Popes or Kings or Lords of the Land...same was true for Shakespeare and F. Scott Fitzgerald as well. Contemporary music is now the property of people who text message in to 'American Idle', and it's a blessing that we can can feed the starved. Write something brave and loud and play it on the streetcorner. Your'e not feeling sorrow, you're feeling urgency, so time to go to work. TPBennan.