Stephen Pollard hits the nail on the head  showing how the "first and last performance" culture has ruined serious orchestral music writing. It is certainly true that in order to get commissions one must write in a non prescribed but somehow subliminally approved style. And yet choice of style rather than any technical considerations, is the biggest issue confronting current day composers. How do we find a style where the  music sounds fresh and  new but can still do all the things which the great 19th century and earlier composers could do? Most modern styles manifestly cannot move people in  this way. It would be wonderful once again to hear new music music where you have no option but to have it playing in your head all the next day. This cannot happen where we have the situation of approved composers having to write  music similar to the music which the commissioning cliques were told in their  university  studies was good. I doubt if everyone concerned really believes this. It is a bit like all politicians having to believe in religion for electoral purposes.

However composers seem to be able to make a living from doing a bit of teaching and writing music for the commission fees and the performance fee of a  "first and last performance", though I cannot understand why they are not totally dispirited by the  subsequent lack of interest in their 'babies'.

There is also the issue of chamber music. In the time of Beethoven, Mozart and Schubert much music was written to commission by aristocrats for them to play in their houses for fun, not for performance at public concerts. This concept, particularly the concept of fun, seems to have disappeared from contemporary chamber music, most of which is written only for expert ensembles. How very different, for instance, is the brass band world, where playing is all important.

We have all heard the English pastoralist composers dismissed as the English Cow Pat style. Though there is a little truth in this for some of the minor composers, much of their work is still good and Vaughan Williams certainly passes the test of writing music  which plays in your head all the next day. The music has become loved by people  who  would not know it is by Vaughan Williams. They would say it is that happy tune which used to be on the TV, or that music which reminds me of the sea.

Martin Grayson (composer).







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