At least I got the weak and ridiculous part if not
the right composer.

You were in good company, anyway... :) One doesn't expect that of Beethoven... ;)

I don't know of any composer who turned out only
good stuff. The Op.52 were actually written in
his youth in the 18th century, despite the number
apparently putting them weii into the 1800s.
That's what you get for letting publishers do
shenanigans.

We never went past that first book, but I believe that just learning
that she could make music herself was a personal satisfaction... I don't know how far she progressed with reading words, but just being able to
do it some was an achievement.... :)

A sense of personal accomplishment is pretty
important and something that escapes many musicians
of considerable attainments.

It always was something that I tried to impart to my students... no
matter what level they were at... :)

Which is why I was less than an effective teacher.

Dollar value being the commonest metric of
importance these days, which is a shame.

Indeed.

Which has something to do with music's plight
as well.

Sadly true...

And the dumbing down of repertoire can't
help, with people wanting to be served only
meatballs.

Braised Sicilian Lamb Meatballs
categories: main, Italian
servings: 4

h - Sauce
2 Tb extra virgin olive oil
1 sm white onion, chopped
3 md cloves garlic, sliced
28 oz cn crushed tomatoes
1 ts dried oregano
h - Meatballs
1 lb ground lamb
1/4 c pine nuts
1/4 c raisins
1/4 c freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 c unseasoned bread crumbs
3 lg eggs
2 md cloves garlic, minced
1 ts salt
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil as needed

In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over
medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and
saute until soft, about 5 min. Add the tomatoes
and oregano and simmer for 10 min or until the
flavors blend.

To prepare the meatballs, combine the lamb,
pine nuts, raisins, cheese, bread crumbs, eggs,
garlic, salt, and a generous amount of black
pepper in a large bowl and mix well. Heat 1/4"
of olive oil in a large nonstick pan. Form
meatballs using 1/4 c of the meat mixture for
each and place them in the hot oil. Fry the
meatballs until they are browned on all sides,
about 10 min.

Transfer the meatballs to the simmering sauce.
When they are all in the sauce, turn down the
heat, cover the pan, and simmer for 1 hr.

Michael White, Marea NYC via jamesbeard.org
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