Should this have been in the Blue?

January 27, 2006 12:47 PM

This AskMe post on Motzart would probably do better in the Blue.
posted by nathan_teske to Etiquette/Policy at 12:47 PM (33 comments total)

It's a great idea for a commemorative post, but with some supporting links, it would be a much better Blue-post than an AskMe.
posted by nathan_teske at 12:47 PM on January 27, 2006

And wow, I cannot spell today.
posted by nathan_teske at 12:50 PM on January 27, 2006

agreed, I pulled it and dropped alms a note.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 1:04 PM on January 27, 2006

Hmmm, this is interesting. I actually don't know much anything about Mozart, so I don't feel qualified (or perhaps inspired) to post something in the blue. What I mostly wanted some recommendations of CDs to buy.

Would my question have passed muster if I had phrased it the following way:

"Inspired by the 250th anniversary of his birth, I want to put together a nice collection of Mozart's music. However, I have no idea where to start. Can anyone recommend favorite recordings of Mozart's music for me to start with?"

That's really what I wanted to ask. So I'm wondering whether it was just my inartful phrasing, or whether it's really not appropriate to ask for music recommendations on AskMeFi.

If it would be appropriate for me to ask that question, do I have to wait a week to post it?
posted by alms at 1:21 PM on January 27, 2006

The short version of my question would be: "Help me build my Mozart CD collection."
posted by alms at 1:27 PM on January 27, 2006

cool, I think we can re-add your post with the new wording, keep the comments and move on from there, that work?
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 1:30 PM on January 27, 2006

Agreeing that Mozart's birthday would make a good FPP is not the same as agreeing that soliciting recommendations for Mozart recordings wasn't a perfectly appropriate use of AskMe. Bad deletion.
posted by cribcage at 1:31 PM on January 27, 2006

it's fixed, the new text is up on AskMe. The old text was more along the lines of "Since it's Mozart's b'day, what are some of your favorite recordings?"
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 1:33 PM on January 27, 2006

Great, thank you!
posted by alms at 1:42 PM on January 27, 2006

Another satisfied customer. I believe this is more along the lines of how Meta should work.
posted by Roger Dodger at 1:45 PM on January 27, 2006

So why not reinstate the Beefheart post with improved wording?
posted by languagehat at 1:48 PM on January 27, 2006

re:Beefheart. I didn't pull that one, and it's not time-sensitive, but I'll drop the poster a note and suggest reposting it. Glad I could help, alms.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 1:51 PM on January 27, 2006

No.
posted by furtive at 1:51 PM on January 27, 2006

I felt that the Beefheart one was very heavily developed in a way that would clash with the new wording, whereas this'n has only a few comments that, as it happened, were responding to the question now asked.

That's just my take, though.
posted by cortex at 2:22 PM on January 27, 2006

Mozart is so civilized and pretty and jaunty and full of cute little surprises and clever variations which are only pretend because you just know everything is going to end up perfectly. Wouldn't it be wonderful if MetaFilter were more like Mozart and everybody just behaved and was happy and polite and followed the rules?

I can't fucking stand Mozart.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 2:54 PM on January 27, 2006

You obviously don't know a fucking thing about Mozart. But enjoy your ignorance! Hatred is so cleansing!
posted by languagehat at 5:28 PM on January 27, 2006

I played a ton of classical piano as a kid. Grieg concerto when I was sixteen. Personal opinions that vary from yours do not necessarily reflect ignorance.
I did not say others should not like Mozart. If this had been a thread on food, and I had said "I can't fucking stand caviar," would you have called me ignorant?
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 7:47 PM on January 27, 2006

Too many notes.
posted by yhbc at 9:19 PM on January 27, 2006

Amadeus references FTW!
posted by shmegegge at 10:36 PM on January 27, 2006

If this had been a thread on food, and I had said "I can't fucking stand caviar," would you have called me ignorant?

Of course not. But if you had said "Caviar is completely tasteless," I would have. I would have no objection had you simply said "I can't fucking stand Mozart" (though I would have felt sorry for you); saying "Mozart is so civilized and pretty and jaunty and full of cute little surprises and clever variations which are only pretend because you just know everything is going to end up perfectly" proves you know nothing about Mozart. Try listening to the K488 concerto or Cosi Fan Tutte sometime. And a word to the wise: the "Mozart is just pretty tinkling" slander went out of fashion about fifty years ago. You might try to find newer, fresher bullshit.
posted by languagehat at 5:06 AM on January 28, 2006

*mourns fallen Beefheart thread*

Reposting next week just wouldn't be the same, I dislike pre-meditating. And it would seem somehow uncouth, having been once chastised. But maybe I will anyway.

Unless anyone else wants to have a go?
posted by MetaMonkey at 5:37 AM on January 28, 2006

Umm, all posts should be premeditated. Comments, you can get away with. But posts should have some thought put into them.
posted by Roger Dodger at 8:15 AM on January 28, 2006

Beefheart plays Mozart would be worth a listen.
posted by found missing at 8:20 AM on January 28, 2006

Roger, I meant pre-meditating in the sense of planning a question a week in advance. I was referring to my preference for spontaneity; posting as the desire arises, which does not preclude thinking about the post.
posted by MetaMonkey at 8:30 AM on January 28, 2006

Copy that, MetaMonkey. I've only posted once to the front page, but it took me about a week to decide which links I wanted to include, and which to leave out. But you are right about AskMe questions. An entirely different animal, I guess. Both of mine, from conception to post, took less than a half hour.
posted by Roger Dodger at 8:50 AM on January 28, 2006

...although judging by my last two FPPs and my last question, a little more meditation and a little less spontaneity may well be in order.
posted by MetaMonkey at 8:56 AM on January 28, 2006

i like motzart but also i like beethovan
posted by naxosaxur at 9:55 AM on January 28, 2006

I like languagehat's Bandwagon Fallacy in B minor.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 10:14 AM on January 28, 2006

Bandwagon Fallacy

God, you're so right! I just pretend to like Mozart because everybody else does! In reality, he's nothing but tinkling triviality. And the same goes for that bastard Shakespeare, another nonentity puffed up by the inexplicable groupthink of history. Thank you for showing me the light! Now tell me what ultracool composers and other artists you like, so I can be on the cutting edge!
posted by languagehat at 10:52 AM on January 28, 2006

Ah, the Non Sequitur for Idiophones. I love it.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 11:25 AM on January 28, 2006

Well, you've taught me a new word:

idiophone, a percussion instrument that consists simply of elastic material (as metal, wood, etc.) capable of producing sound (as opp. to a MEMBRANOPHONE in which stretched skin is used as the agent of sound).
[1913 C. SACHS Real-Lexikon der Musikinstrumente 195/1 Wir schlagen deshalb vor, dieser Klasse die Bezeichnung ‘Idiophone’, also ‘ihrer Natur nach klingende’ Instrumente zu geben.]

So I'll forgive your sad lack of musical taste. After all, you're the only one who suffers from it.
posted by languagehat at 1:18 PM on January 28, 2006

not to interrupt a nice brawl, but the other night I caught a long interview with Uto Ughi re: Mozart and he casually gave away some wonderful gems. I was especially touched by Ughi's "Mozart is so unique because of his facilità del sublime", that I can only badly translate as 'effortlessness in the sublime'", even if I'm sure linguaggiocappello can find a much better one. it was just touching to see a fantastic artist like Ughi -- usually a pretty aloof man -- get all emotional talking about Mozart. in another interview, Riccardo Muti said some very interesting things re: misconceptions about Mozart, and why the Amadeus movie may have done more harm than good with the general public in that sense.
posted by matteo at 2:40 PM on January 28, 2006

the Amadeus movie may have done more harm than good with the general public

No kidding. I hate that movie.

I might say "effortless sublime," but yours is fine.
posted by languagehat at 3:31 PM on January 28, 2006