Hindsight: Difference between revisions

From The Jolly Contrarian
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Created page with "{{a|devil|}}{{Quote|'''JC''': [''At the end of a characteristically rambling rant''] “... so, I ask you: why is it we did such a bad job of stopping catastrophic risks f..."
 
No edit summary
Line 1: Line 1:
{{a|devil|}}{{Quote|[['''JC''']]: [''At the end of a characteristically rambling rant''] “... so, I ask you: why is it we did such a bad job of stopping catastrophic risks from happening? LTCM, Amaranth, Enron, Global Crossing, Kerviel, Madoff, Bear Stearns, Lehman, LIBOR, Abolodoli, Theranos, London Whale, Mossack Fonseca, IMDB, Wirecard ... <br>
{{a|devil|}}{{Quote|'''[[JC]]''': [''At the end of a characteristically rambling rant''] “... so, I ask you: why have we been so bad at stopping catastrophic risks from happening? Leeson, [[LTCM]], [[Amaranth]], [[Enron]], Global Crossing, Kerviel, [[Madoff]], Bear Stearns, [[Lehman]], [[LIBOR]], [[Theranos]], London Whale, Mossack Fonseca, 1MDB, Wirecard ... <br>
'''Middle manager''': [''interrupting'']: simply put we were not proactively looking for it we were not using data properly to evaluate risk. To add value as an in-house legal function we need to use innovative tools to crunch data, proactively spot emerging risks and escalates to business.”}}
'''Middle manager''': [''interrupting'']: Simply put, we were not [[proactive|proactively]] looking for it. We were not using [[data]] properly to evaluate risk. To add value as an [[Inhouse lawyer|in-house legal]] function we need to use [[Innovation|innovative]] tools to crunch data, proactively spot emerging risks and escalate them to business.”}}
 
On December 22, 1808, a freezing night in 1,500 people attended an ''akademie'' concert at the modernist ''Theater an der Wien'' in suburban Vienna. The programme was four hours long, and in it a young composer from the unfashionable German town of Bonn would be debuting a number of different works. The run-up to the concert did not bode well: about half the musicians in theatre’s house orchestra had “conflicting commitments” with a better-paying gig across town at the ''Burgtheater'', and even the solo soprano dropped out at the last minute, to be replaced by an unknown teenager— [[I have to hop]] is no modern excuse it seems — and the composer — an irascible fellow, it seems —kept changing the scores up to the last minute. So poor were relations with his musicians that they refused his baton, and another conductor was drafted in to lead the orchestra on the day of the concert.
 
The concert itself was a disaster. The orchestra was rubbish — “lacking in all respects”, according to one reviewer — the poor teenage soprano suffered a bad case of stage fright, the concert hall was freezing and the show badly overran. During a choral fantasy, the under-rehearsed orchestra fell apart completely and had to restart the piece altogether.
 
So why is there even any record of this concert — most of SuperCheeses concerts were better than that, and there’s no record of any of ''them''  — and how has it found its way onto a [[Jolly Contrarian]] article about hindsight? You will not be surprised to hear there is a punchline.
 
Of the scathing reviews that followed, one at least — in the ''Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung'' — was prescient enough to say the following: “To judge all these pieces after only one hearing, especially considering [...] that so many were performed in a row, and most are so grand and long, is impossible.”
 
To the punchline then: In this concert, said young foreign composer was Ludwig Van Beethoven, and in that one concert he premiered his Symphonie Nr 6 (Pastoral), his 4th Piano Concerto, the aforementioned ''Choral Fantasia''. If that wasn’t enough — surely the ''Pastoral'' by itself would be enough of an event to make the record for humankind’s highest achievement — after the interval the orchestra performed the premier of the most revolutionary piece of music, bar ''none'': the theme to ''Saturday Night Fever''.

Revision as of 10:21, 2 February 2021

In which the curmudgeonly old sod puts the world to rights.
Index — Click ᐅ to expand:
Tell me more
Sign up for our newsletter — or just get in touch: for ½ a weekly 🍺 you get to consult JC. Ask about it here.

JC: [At the end of a characteristically rambling rant] “... so, I ask you: why have we been so bad at stopping catastrophic risks from happening? Leeson, LTCM, Amaranth, Enron, Global Crossing, Kerviel, Madoff, Bear Stearns, Lehman, LIBOR, Theranos, London Whale, Mossack Fonseca, 1MDB, Wirecard ... ”

Middle manager: [interrupting]: Simply put, we were not proactively looking for it. We were not using data properly to evaluate risk. To add value as an in-house legal function we need to use innovative tools to crunch data, proactively spot emerging risks and escalate them to business.”

On December 22, 1808, a freezing night in 1,500 people attended an akademie concert at the modernist Theater an der Wien in suburban Vienna. The programme was four hours long, and in it a young composer from the unfashionable German town of Bonn would be debuting a number of different works. The run-up to the concert did not bode well: about half the musicians in theatre’s house orchestra had “conflicting commitments” with a better-paying gig across town at the Burgtheater, and even the solo soprano dropped out at the last minute, to be replaced by an unknown teenager— I have to hop is no modern excuse it seems — and the composer — an irascible fellow, it seems —kept changing the scores up to the last minute. So poor were relations with his musicians that they refused his baton, and another conductor was drafted in to lead the orchestra on the day of the concert.

The concert itself was a disaster. The orchestra was rubbish — “lacking in all respects”, according to one reviewer — the poor teenage soprano suffered a bad case of stage fright, the concert hall was freezing and the show badly overran. During a choral fantasy, the under-rehearsed orchestra fell apart completely and had to restart the piece altogether.

So why is there even any record of this concert — most of SuperCheeses concerts were better than that, and there’s no record of any of them — and how has it found its way onto a Jolly Contrarian article about hindsight? You will not be surprised to hear there is a punchline.

Of the scathing reviews that followed, one at least — in the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung — was prescient enough to say the following: “To judge all these pieces after only one hearing, especially considering [...] that so many were performed in a row, and most are so grand and long, is impossible.”

To the punchline then: In this concert, said young foreign composer was Ludwig Van Beethoven, and in that one concert he premiered his Symphonie Nr 6 (Pastoral), his 4th Piano Concerto, the aforementioned Choral Fantasia. If that wasn’t enough — surely the Pastoral by itself would be enough of an event to make the record for humankind’s highest achievement — after the interval the orchestra performed the premier of the most revolutionary piece of music, bar none: the theme to Saturday Night Fever.