This is a most hilarious thread. I don't even know where to start...
But why? Why Sorabji?! I don't see composers like Schoenberg, Xenakis, Boulez, Ferneyhough, etc. getting such dislike or even hatred directed at them. And they, unlike Sorabji, were avant garde composers. Most of their works, unlike Sorabji, were atonal. So why is it that Sorabji is the one that gets all the hatred? It doesn't make sense!
It makes perfect sense. If people would fervently promote works by Schoenberg, Xenakis, Boulez, or Ferneyhough, like the Sorabji-ites are promoting the OC, there would be just as much heat.
If this discussion would be about what really matters in such cases, namely whether one likes something or not, then it would be a good discussion, albeit a bit bland.
It's not a useful discussion, because the Sorabji-ites try to force the OC down the throat of everyone around, claiming it's the greatest piece of music and accusing everyone who doesn't agree as being ignorant.
It's not a useful discussion, because the anti-Sorabji-ites try to spit the OC back out again, claiming it's the greatest piece of *** and accusing everyone who doesn't agree as being ignorant.
And, in my experience, the majority of the people who claim to "hate" Sorabji are either idiots like Perfect_Pitch, inexperienced children, or merely ignorant, not having heard his music yet criticizing it anyway.
This is what I mean. That's not a way to win over people. Mind you, the anti-Sorabji-ites are not a bit better, either.
When you do purchase a recording of Sorabji's music, I hope you find it enjoyable. Yes I agree, the OC is not the bet place to start with Sorabji, although this is the place where most people do start listening to Sorabji. As a consequence of poor, no, disgusting performance and unfamiliarity with his style, it is often where they contemporaneously end.
I highly doubt it would make a difference if one listens to Madge, Ogden, or Powell. Who would notice whether Madge played a C# instead of a C, whether he played the wrong chord, or even improvised entire sections. The character of the piece is recognizable in any case and does allow to determine if one wants to look into it further or not.
It is not helpful to say, "well, you are telling me you don't like the OC. Wait until you hear a real recording. In the meantime, believe me, it's the greatest piece ever written."
I don't participate (anymore) in talking about the piece itself (I simply don't like it that much that I would again devote several hours of my undivided attention), I am only trying to point out some flaws in how this discussion is being conducted. Now, continue to bicker.