Connecting the Schubert's Symphony No. 8 in B Minor to the Efficient Economy

(update at 18:18)

A corporate manager had tickets to the symphony--Schubert's Symphony No. 8 in B minor--but he couldn't make it so he gave them to his efficiency expert. The expert attended the concert and the next morning gave the following report:

For a considerable period, the oboe players had nothing to play. Their number should be reduced, and their work spread over the whole orchestra, thus avoiding peaks of inactivity.

All 24 violins were playing identical notes. This seems unnecessary duplication, and the staff in this section should be drastically cut. If a large volume of sound is needed, this could be obtained by the use of an amplifier.

Much effort was involved in playing the 16th notes. This seems an excessive refinement, and it is recommended that all notes should be rounded off to the nearest eighth note. If this were done, it would be possible to use paraprofessionals instead of experienced musicians.

No useful purpose is served by repeating with horns the passage that has already been played by the strings. If all such passages were eliminated, the concert could be reduced from two hours to 20 minutes.

The symphony is in two movements. If Schubert did not achieve his musical goals by the end of the first movement, then he should have stopped there.  The second movement is unnecessary and should be cut.

In the light of the above, one can only conclude that if Schubert had paid attention to such matters, his symphony would probably have been finished by now.


Comments From The Compass Desk
Once the innovation hype of anything is over, the emphasis of efficiency begins,

In the efficient economy, much of the bottom-tier jobs are slowly being eliminated by automation and self-help service especially in the dining industry. It is only a matter of time that the fast food section of that industry will be automated.

[ More to come. ]