Sir, - In the weekend section of The Irish Times Raymond Deane, reviewing a new book on Mozart, claimed: "I have no doubt that Mozart's status as one of the supreme cultural fetishes of the West has little to do with the undeniable greatness of a tiny proportion of his massive output, and much to do with the banality and predictability of the hundreds of works he composed to keep the pot boiling". And further, "In an age when classical music serves primarily as a means of reassurance for the middle classes..."
Both these assertions are deeply worrying, I have been listening to Mozart with great pleasure for over 40 years and will now have to cull my venerable gramophone records and, Lord help us, my recently acquired CDs.
Which, pray, "tiny proportion" shall I retain? One or two of the late symphonies, a couple of the piano concertos, a snatch or two from the operas, a bit from one of the quintets (any clarinet music is obviously out)? I assume that most of the chamber music is banjaxed.
I hadn't realised all these years that the music I loved and listened to was merely a source of reassurance. Schubert, Haydn, Strauss, Verdi, Puccini, Bizet, Wagner and the rest were no better to me than a baby's dummy. At least now I know, and Mr Deane's cathartic analysis will help me (I know it won't be easy) to stop listening to that nonsense, and perhaps to attend greedily at Mr Deane's next Rave at the Point. - Yours, etc.,
Ballinasloe,
Co Galway.