{"id":25174,"date":"2015-03-26T15:09:00","date_gmt":"2015-03-26T19:09:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.musicalamerica.com\/mablogs\/?p=25174"},"modified":"2015-03-26T15:09:00","modified_gmt":"2015-03-26T19:09:00","slug":"auto-correct-the-great-leveler","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.musicalamerica.com\/mablogs\/?p=25174","title":{"rendered":"Auto-Correct: The Great Leveler"},"content":{"rendered":"

By James Conlon<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Question:<\/p>\n

What do Arnold Schoenberg, Edouard Manet, Francois Rene Chateaubriand and Titus Andronicus have in common?<\/p>\n

Answer:<\/p>\n

My spell-check doesn\u2019t recognize their names.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

About eighteen months ago, bending under a barrage of criticism and pressure to start tweeting, I began. \u00a0Entering the world of social media was not my thing. Remarks like “Get with it, Dad!” were the last straw.<\/p>\n

I called my friend and colleague Esa-Pekka Salonen, who was already a tweeter, to ask how it worked. His presence on Twitter lent the whole thing some respectability. He was very helpful and, feeling slightly more comfortable and marginally less embarrassed, I proceeded.<\/p>\n

A short time ago I saw one of his tweets, which are highly imaginative and invariably humorous. He recounted that he had entered the word “Sudafed” in some text he was writing, and his spell-check corrected it to “Dudamel” (because, I suppose, the auto-correct on Esa-Pekka\u2019s device had \u201clearned\u201d the word Dudamel and was helpfully \u201cassuming\u201d his true intent\u2026).<\/p>\n

I am constantly astonished at what my spell-check doesn’t recognize. It was certainly not created with classical music or musicians in mind. I started to collect examples, like artifacts. \u00a0After reading Esa-Pekka’s tweet, I decided to share some of my findings. I offer:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

AN ABC OF AUTO-CORRECTION \u00a0(only the tip of an iceberg):<\/p>\n

The composer is on the left (you knew that) and the suggested alternative on the right.<\/p>\n

ADES \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0HADES<\/p>\n

BERLIOZ \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 BELIZE<\/p>\n

BRITTEN \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 BRITTANY (AS IN FRANCE)<\/p>\n

BRUCKNER \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 TRUCKER<\/p>\n

COPLAND \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 SCOTLAND<\/p>\n

DVORAK \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 DORKS<\/p>\n

FAURE\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 FARCE<\/p>\n

GERSHWIN \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 GEARSHIFT<\/p>\n

HINDEMITH \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0HINDERMOST\/INDEMNITY<\/p>\n

IBERT \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 LIBERTY<\/p>\n

JANACEK \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 JAMAICA<\/p>\n

KORNGOLD\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 CORNFIELD<\/p>\n

LUTOSLAWSKI \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0GLUTTONS\/LOUTS<\/p>\n

MILHAUD \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0MILKMAID<\/p>\n

ORFF \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0DOFF\/RUFF<\/p>\n

PROKOFIEV \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 PORKPIE\/PUFF<\/p>\n

RACHMANINOFF \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 RANCHMAN\/DRACHMA<\/p>\n

SALONEN \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0SALOON<\/p>\n

SCHOENBERG \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 SCHEMER\/SCORNER\/SCHOONER<\/p>\n

TAKAMITSU \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0STALAGMITES\/THALAMUS<\/p>\n

ULLMANN \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 MULLIGAN\/SULLIVAN<\/p>\n

VARESE \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0OVARIES<\/p>\n

WEILL \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 DWELL\/SWELL<\/p>\n

XANAKIS \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0ANTACIDS\/HANKIES<\/p>\n

YSAYE \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0SAUTE\/SPAYED<\/p>\n

ZWILICH \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 ZILCH\/ZIPLOC<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I guess classic music hasn’t quite made it yet. \u00a0But neither have Matisse\u00a0,\u00a0Manet, Van Gogh, Pissaro, Toulouse-Lautrec.<\/p>\n

I need a Sudafed!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

JAMES CONLON \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 COLON\/COLONY\/COLOGNE<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n