In a society where the bottom-line rules, the sun rises and sets with the Dow Jones, and the word “culture” is often preceded by the modifier “pop,” the life of an American composer is a …

In preparation for an exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on surrealism, I am in the midst of re-reading André Breton’s first Surrealist Manifesto. I am always a little tickled by his vigorous academic …

Many writers don’t comprehend why composers desire to set their literary works to music, believing the writing to be complete and satisfying alone. On the flipside, many musicians feel that words simplify the complexity of …

Although I am not a heavy television watcher, there is generally at least one program (usually with some kind of cult following) that sparks my interest for a short period before I move on to …

In November, for the first time in my life, I flew from New York to California. Despite many trips across the Atlantic, I had only been west of Chicago once. So it comes as no …

Einstein on the Beach is not the only production celebrating a silver anniversary this year. I’ll give you three clues to guess the other show that made it’s pilot run in 1976: 1) Frozen silhouettes …

In Roald Dahl’s story “The Sound Machine,” Klausner, the inventor of a machine that made inaudible sounds audible, explains his concept by saying, “I believe that there is a whole world of sound about us …

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As the summer melds into fall with thunderstorms, Labor Day picnics, and Back-to-School sales, people are returning from their various vacation hideouts, situating themselves at their desks, taking a deep, “here-we-go” breath, and hoping that …

The whole problem can be stated quite simply by asking, ‘Is there a meaning to music?’ My answer would be, ‘Yes.’ And ‘Can you state in so many words what the meaning is?’ My …