I do not know him, but from your quote your teacher sounds like an intellectual snob. Remember, in their day Mozart's Magic Flute and the Marriage of Figaro were "Show Tunes". Duke Ellington said "If it sounds good, it is good". Also, Shostakovich is finally getting the recogntion he deserves, but like all of them, not until 30 years after his death. Not very long ago he was a "Soviet Puppet Hack Composer". Back to classical "show tunes". Most "classical" music was composed not to be a high art; it was composed to make money or collect a pay check. Just like opera was really just the Theater of the day, I will predict that 100 years from now, movie composer John Williams will be considered a great composer. All of his music is very symphonic, and very listenable without the video. FINALLY A BOOK I HAVE IS "EVENINGS WITH THE ORCHESTRA"; a Norton companion for concertgoers; by D. Kern Holoman
The Back Street Boys of Classical??
I have recently started piano lessons and theory with a wonderful teacher who is remarkably intelligent and has decades of experience playing and composing. When asking me about my taste in music, I think I mentioned Stravinsky, amoung others, from a basket of jazz, pop and classical music that I have enjoyed. I guess I need to be humbled as a student as I was a little embarrassed when he used the expression "salon composer", which I took to mean popular with the bourgeois but not taken seriously by musicians. An additional faux pas of mine was thinking that Vince Guaraldi should be found in the "jazz" section of Tower Records. Could someone educate my a bit more about classical (In the Tower Records, not historical sense of the word) composers? Who would be considered the N Synch of their time? And which composers have really endured as as worthy and challenging for people who really understand music? I realize this is somewhat subjective but hopefully will inspire lively debate.