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Peter Gillette is studying trumpet — and of course all manner of other things seriously musical — over in Iowa City. Like so many of us he also keeps a blog, and I just couldn’t help passing along a link to his wonderful little post, “A Brief, Entirely Clear Thought Upon Reading Milton Babbitt“. An excerpt:

This evening, was read by me, which is to say having been read as one reads if read one must call it (that is, that which must be read or has been itself read) several articles by—or, rather, at the limits, if a name apply it we must, Milton Babbitt; eminent theorist insofar as theory itself ascribes eminence, ascribed insofar as ascription can itself be ascertained through paragraphs of two or more sentences at once, it can be said, resembling this one it can be said at its own very limit, both within and beyond that which is under and about (as far as we may be certain enough to say)…

In London’s Standpoint magazine, tenor Ian Bostridge has a short essay on some of the experiential and philosophical aspects of musical time, at least as he feels it. I think he overreaches a bit in what he credits late Romaticism with attempting, and I’ve always been leery of the whole “music is a language” thing. But it’s a worthwhile read, and a fast one at that; and there are a number of relatively good comments already, just below the article. Take a peek.