spacey
For one to have the knowledge and ability to sit with pen in hand and write out scores, as heard in their head and give to musicians to execute the part (as written) as many great composers have done is without doubt beyond most musicians and/or composers abilities. Works that express every little nuance and strong emotion that music may have to offer all written down on paper to be executed by highly trained musicians.
 
There are people that reach levels that leave all others knowing that the brain and abilities of some people will never be fully understood and leave many believing that the ability was a gift from a God....an exceptable understanding to some that can't find another reasoning or explanation.
 
I'm not qualified to compare their abilities. I can make ignorant comparisons and at best hope they were funny. In truth I sometimes have trouble comparing apples to apples...there seem to be many different kinds of apples and I'm not certain that I've tasted them all.

Excellent post Michael.
 
Brings to mind Larry Alexander (over at Songs) who creates some astonishing music, all created in piano roll using just mouse clicks. It's not music I would necessarily choose to listen to, but the skill and vision required to hear that in his head and create it is undeniable.

bitflipper

dubdisciple
Speaking of People...why does the 50 most beautiful people list change every year?  Shouldn't it mostly stay the same unless someone dies or gets uglier or someone somehow makes a massive jump in beauty?

On a similar note, why don't the NYT, WSJ and USA Today best-seller lists agree with one another?

you would think that would be an easy one to get consensus on! I'm guessing it's something silly like one not counting certain typesbof sales.

Personally, I just don't even see him being in the discussion.  If we ignore the vast majority of wonderful composers of Classical music, there's still teams like Rodgers and Hammerstein that blow him away.

I read this thread as I woke up, enjoying my coffee and laughing ..... I like all kinds of songs and music and even that changes throughout the day, and has for my whole life. All the "greats" of music, have done something that interests or tickles me. I thank them all. Their work has given me years of delight. How cool is that?!?!
   I seem consistently fascinated by Debussy and Ravel, but not all their pieces. I don't think I could even, or would even hazard a guess at who my favorite composer is.... so I think I'll go with the Abe Lincoln door #3, "they are all great, some of the time"
 
Eric Carmen's All By Myself is based on Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto #2 in C minor.  He did it again with Never Gonna Fall In Love Again, and he had to pay 12% of his royalties on those two songs, to the family/estate, for "borrowing". I don't think you could get any of that from Pachabel.....maybe without coffee....
Michael

I wouldn't mess with Pachabel, he has a canon!

and his new CD,  "The Explosive Sounds of Rocky Pachabel" .......the follow up to "Highway to BEL"! and of course his first ...... "Key of D, Done Dirt Cheap" .....although I was hearing that in E as I typed it. LOL
You'll all have to forgive me. I have been working my butt off in the yard and garden for the past few days....ouch.
Michael

I believe he is the greatest rock composer AND rock singer of all time. That's what I believe

I find it amazing that no one has mentioned Nigel Tufnel! His musical trilogy in D-Minor, enough said.

But didn't Derek Smalls write "Jazz Odyssey"??

yorolpal
But didn't Derek Smalls write "Jazz Odyssey"??

Yeah, but Jazz ain't classical, init.

Nigel is not a fan of jazz. "Jazz," he said in 1992," is just a series of mistakes without the 'oops.'