In the following sentence shouldn't a comma or some other conjunction come after 'cohesive beauty' :
The orchestra played for their guest with the lucidity and cohesive beauty it always brings to this composer's music.
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No. It's fine. Why do you think it needs changing?– Old BrixtonianNov 10, 2021 at 12:57
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@OldBrixtonian Agreed, as a native British English speaker it looks and sounds fine just the way it is. If you were using more than 2 attributes then the rules of lists apply and the first ones would be comma separated. "...played with the lucidity, beauty, skill and flair...".– Peter JenningsNov 10, 2021 at 13:11
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@OldBrixtonian, can you explain the meaning of sentence. I think I am getting it wrong.– ShaagNov 10, 2021 at 15:11
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It would be possible to insert which after beauty. Would that make the meaning clearer?– Kate BuntingNov 10, 2021 at 15:30
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@Shivakk: I'll try! I don't know who the guest was. Perhaps the conductor? It says the orchestra always plays this composer's music with lucidity and cohesive beauty (with clarity and in a way that makes its form - or the unity of its form - beautiful) And they did that for their guest.– Old BrixtonianNov 11, 2021 at 9:34
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1 Answer
Even though this sentence is transparently understandable to a native speaker, it might actually be quite confusing for a non-native speaker.
Let's examine it in parts.
- The orchestra played for their guest.
OK.
- The orchestra played for their guest, with lucidity and cohesive beauty.
OK.
- The orchestra played for their guest with the lucidity and cohesive beauty which it always brings to this composer's music.
Only upon reflection can we see that this is a bizarre roundabout way of speaking. It implies there are a variety of types of "lucidity and cohesive beauty".
Imagine a store shelf, with many types of products, many choices. And in one section, you find 10 varieties of "lucidity and cohesive beauty". Which will you pick? Maybe the same one as last time, since it's your favorite one.
And so in this case the orchestra played with the same "lucidity and cohesive beauty" as they usually do.
Should there be a comma?
No.
