Grand Sonatist

"It doesn't matter if you don't agree with her musical sensibilities, or if you hate her guts. Or if she hates my guts. The Grand Sonatist is the only opinion that matters when it comes to an album finding success, and in this economy who can afford to find another opinion anyway."

— Glowrandel, of the Solemika Seven, on the verge of a panic attack

For the most part, the country Chemnos follows a science fiction aesthetic instead of a fantasy one. However, they do keep the traditional guild structure. As such, there is a musicians guild, and the chief of this guild is known as the Grand Sonatist.
This is a title that should strike fear in the hearts of all musicians across the land, whether classical or modern, whether traditional or experimental, whether playing a piano or an electric guitar or the frozbam-ukla. And those in whom it does not strike fear, are probably not going to make it very far in their musical career.
Whether for good or ill, the Grand Sonatist is considered to be the ultimate musician by many, and aspiring to this position inspires a fanaticism in some that rivals that of those who would take over the world by means of lunar occlusion

Whence Comes a Name

There were about four Sonatists before they added the "Grand", and about seven more after that before some poor sycophantic cellist decided that only one person in the whole world should be the arbiter of good musical taste. Fortunately for all of us, this has actually worked and the people who have ascended to this title have largely been people with a decent ear for music.