An American born B.C. - which in the present context means "before Copland" - had a hard time of it if he wanted to become a composer. The job, rather like that of an actress in the 18th century, was not considered quite proper for a gentleman. By virtue alike of his talent and international recognition, of his character, and of his dedication to the support and encouragement of his colleagues, Aaron Copland changed all that in the public mind, and already by the time Elie Siegmeister, Norman Dello Joio, and Jacob Avshalomov came on the scene, composing was beginning to be seen as a perfectly feasible and respectable, if not necessarily lucrative, profession. Thus it was that even a musician who came to be as widely admired as Converse, after graduating in 1893 from Harvard College with high honors in music, tried for some months to be a businessman, in accordance with his father's wishes, before an irresistible inner need compelled him to turn to music; and Tuthill pursued a similar course for much longer, despite having a father, William B. Tuthill, who was the architect of Carnegie Hall, and a mother, Henrietta Corwin Tuthill, who was a professional organist. It is a real treat to have the fine American conductor, JoAnn Falletta conducting the equally fine American clarinetist Robert Alemany and the Czech National Symphony in these wonderful performances.

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