Natural languages (unlike, say, Esperanto) are not artificial
creations, and are not required to be internally consistent. in fact,
none of them is.
In English, the question of where to use "the" before proper names and
when not to fluctuates over time and from one place to another. Bodies
of water, for instance: everybody says "the Atlantic Ocean" but just
plain "Lake Superior." But is it "the Chesapeake Bay" or plain
"Chesapeake Bay?" The answer depends upon who(m) you ask. There is
really no rationale for it, and no case where confusion would result
were "the" omitted (at least, I can't think of one). Nonetheless, if
you leave it off where it might be expected, it'll sound wrong;
likewise if you put it in where no one else does.
Now, as to the names of pop groups headed by the leader's name. For the
past 50 years or so, these generally take the form "X and the Y." There
is no case in which that form would be incorrect. However, you can,
optionally, leave out the "the" if the group name is one, singular noun
or verb, together with any modifiers associated with that word. This is
especially appropriate if the group has or had an independent existence
separate from the current leader (as: Neil Young and Crazy Horse).
Now as to your group: You've got two nouns there, "A-NO-NE" and "Trio,"
and that forces a "the." There is no logic to this, no overwhelming
syntactical reason why this must be the case; it's just, as my father
used to say, that "them's the conditions that prevail," and if you
don't put in "the" your name'll sound like translationese.
I should emphasize that all of the above applies only to the original
naming of a group. Once the name is applied, users of that name are not
allowed to change it to fit their own taste. It is always and forever
"Pink Floyd," not "The Pink Floyd" or even "the Pink Floyd."
As to (P) and (C): the latter is the copyright (for the liner notes).
(P) indicates that the recording itself is protected, as a registered
*p*erformance.
On Aug 27, 2006, at 6:01 PM, A-NO-NE Music wrote:
Apology for this OT. This list seems to be the best place I can get
the
best answer for this.
My trio's CD is in process. The group name is "Hiro Honshuku and A-NO-
NE Trio". The publisher came back and asking to put "THE" in front of
A-
NO-NE Trio. I understand it sounds more natural to native English
speaker, but I always thought it doesn't make sense. You say The
Boston
University because Boston and University are not specific enough, but
you don't say The Harvard University because Harvard is specific. Same
with The New England Conservatory. When they abbreviate, NEC, they
don't say The HEC because NEC is specific enough (sorta - once I got a
call for a gig. The person said he was referred me through NEC, and I
thought NEC as in Nihon Electric Company instead!). So, why do I need
"The" for A-NO-NE Trio? I am not really in a position to argue with
the
publisher, but I just wanted to understand this.
Another question. What is the publisher sign, (P) next to (C) in front
of the name of the publisher name on commercial CDs mean? Thanks in
advance.
--
- Hiro
Hiroaki Honshuku, A-NO-NE Music, Boston, MA
<http://a-no-ne.com> <http://anonemusic.com>
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Andrew Stiller
Kallisti Music Press
http://home.netcom.com/~kallisti/
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