{"id":745,"date":"2015-05-05T12:56:41","date_gmt":"2015-05-05T16:56:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/?p=745"},"modified":"2015-05-05T12:56:41","modified_gmt":"2015-05-05T16:56:41","slug":"uncompromising-positions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/2015\/05\/uncompromising-positions.html","title":{"rendered":"Uncompromising positions"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"family8X10\"<\/a>When composers stick to an artistic vision despite outside pressures to conform, we call them uncompromising<\/em>. In this usage, uncompromising<\/em> is a term of respect \u2014 even if we don\u2019t particularly like what the composer is doing, we admire that level of determination and focus.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There is a tradition of praising Americans for their uncompromising values. But there is also a strong tradition of compromise<\/em> in this country. As the historian Shelby Foote noted, this nation\u2019s government was founded on the principle of compromise, the principle of various parties arguing their points of view and hammering out something that everyone could agree on. The founders of this government, while recognizing the limitations of negotiation, felt it was far preferable to dictatorship.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Many thinkers throughout history have placed a high value on compromise. Master Kong noted that when one reflects upon oneself, one realizes the necessity of concern for others. Jesus encouraged his followers to turn the other cheek, and to love their neighbors as they loved themselves. The Buddha taught the concept of Anatman<\/em>, in which all things are interconnected and interdependent, so that no thing \u2014 including ourselves \u2014 has a separate existence.<\/p>\n

By contrast, thinkers who value uncompromising behavior have frequently imposed their wills on others, often engaging in acts of senseless destruction in order to have their way. (Futurist Manifesto: \u201cWar, the hygiene of the world.\u201d\u009d)<\/p>\n

In my world, the uncompromising composer is a Romantic fantasy, and a not particularly attractive one at that.<\/p>\n

Why a fantasy? Compromise is a fact of our daily lives \u2014 We may not want to breathe the polluted air in our urban environments, but we do it anyway, because of the cultural benefits we gain. We may not like the horrendous work conditions that the IMF has fostered throughout the world so that a few corporate executives can feel like kings, but we continue to wear the clothes that are sewn together in distant sweatshops, because we don\u2019t have the wherewithal (practical and ethical) to make our own.<\/p>\n

Those two examples may not be relevant to you, but I guarantee there are other compromises you engage in daily without thinking, or you wouldn\u2019t be able to survive.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why the desire to be uncompromising is a fantasy. Why do I find it unattractive? Because I am an adult \u2013 only infants refuse to adjust themselves to interests and needs outside of themselves. The universe does not revolve around any one of us \u2013 the belief that it should is simply immature.<\/p>\n

So here\u2019s to the composers who engage in intelligent negotiation with their cultures, not for personal gain, but for cultural enhancement. There are a lot of problems in the world composers can\u2019t solve. The one skill we spend our lives honing, though, is the ability to convey ideas through sound. It\u2019s a form of communication \u2014 not the same as language, but communication nonetheless. We can use that skill, if we choose to foster enhanced communication among unlikeminded individuals.<\/p>\n

If our goal is to prove our incompatibility with the rest of our species, then compromise is evil.<\/p>\n

But I believe it is better to look for common ground, even though the search for common ground can be incredibly difficult. If there is even a slight chance that we can find it, it will be worth the trouble. I don\u2019t see any incompatibility in being honest and forthright about our values while giving a fair hearing to others.<\/p>\n

Mind you, I\u2019m not necessarily talking about young composers, who often need to go through a period of ignoring the outside world in order to hear their own voices. But once those voices are found, they should be used to speak to others, not to themselves.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m also not saying that there is no place for composers who stubbornly stick to their guns, even when their guns are pointed in destructive directions. I think it\u2019s important for our culture to have some impervious people, and I\u2019m perfectly capable of being very stubborn when the time is right. I\u2019m just tired of hearing the term uncompromising<\/em> tossed around without any regard for its meaning and implications.<\/p>\n

So for those of you who insist on being uncompromising composers, best of luck to you. Just do us all one small favor.<\/p>\n

Please make sure you know exactly what you are fighting for.<\/p>\n

posted July 2005 revised May 2015<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When composers stick to an artistic vision despite outside pressures to conform, we call them uncompromising. In this usage, uncompromising is a term of respect \u2014 even if we don\u2019t particularly like what the composer is doing, we admire that level of determination and focus.   There is a tradition of praising Americans for their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-745","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-uncategorized","7":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/745","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=745"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/745\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":746,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/745\/revisions\/746"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/curves\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}