Henry Cowell as a young man, from Wikipedia
For all of America’s celebration of its own love of invention and innovation, there has been a dark side to American cultural life: an enormous pressure to conform, the rule of a marketplace that is intolerant of genuine individuality and dissent, and a risk-averse anti-intellectualism derived from mistrust, isolationism, and commercial interest.
— From Leon Botstein’s essay on Henry Cowell for the American Symphony Orchestra
We attended the amazing all-Cowell concert, conducted by Botstein, last Friday.