In my top 5 of the most influential 20th-century scholarly composers from “unconventional” backgrounds and genres, there’s certainly Ennio Morricone, Frank Zappa and Moodog (aka Louis Hardin, or vice-versa). While the first two have achieved a degree of recognition from the contemporary establishment, Moondog has yet to be formalized as such. And yet, this creator who was also blind, who wrote vertical scores on cardboard sheets in Braille, and who was incredibly prolific (over 400 works), adored by a whole underground musical fauna, still remains scorned by the academic world. A huge mistake. Listen to this joyful Songs and Symphoniques – The Music of Moondog by the Ghost Train Orchestra assisted by the very “legit” Kronos Quartet and you’ll be won over. Unless you’re irredeemably purist and uptight, you’ll discover and accept the fact that Moondog is such an unclassifiable composer, so vibrant with luminous good humour, so simple and naive in his discreet and appealing sophistication, so fiercely authentic.
