> > Quality of life or our work has no meaning any more. If it is not > measurable, hence bottom-lineable, it doesn't matter. It doesn't exist. > Subjectivity is a dirty word. Objectivity is king. Too bad there is no such > thing as true objectivity. Subjectivity is what makes human beings. I love > the comment in JW's post about leaving the musical part to the conductor! So > true and so pathetic. Conductors? They have been bottom-lining for so long > they haven't got any music left in them. Fortunately for them, the > performances are now judged only by the "perfection index," which simply > requires the right notes at acceptable tolerances of dynamics and rhythm. > Just read the reviews. Those have been bottom-lined too. We have lost our > way.
I have to say that this is one of the reasons I walked away from the idea of a professional career after I finished college 25 years ago. (Another reason was of course the huge oversupply of new graduates relative to the number of available jobs.) Fortunately, I had done my first degree in a completely non-musical subject (electronic engineering) before going on to do 2 years of music as postgraduate student, so I was able quite easily to decide that it was going to be much more fun being a professional engineer and an amateur musician rather than trying to do it the other way around. That was absolutely the right decision for me, it meant I could play just the music that I wanted to play, with people who were there primarily because they wanted to be there. The technical standard of of the music I take part in is usually well below professional standard, but that is made up for by the obvious enjoyment of the people participating - there is often an excitement about amateur performances which can be lacking from professional concerts, even of the highest level. I remember going to see Simon Rattle bringing the Berlin Philharmonic on their first trip to London after he took over there. The main work was Bruckner 9, something a horn player in the audience ought to thoroughly enjoy! The sound was beautiful, everything was perfectly in place - and the overall effect was if anything slightly boring. I know Rattle is capable of making the piece exciting, because I had played the same piece under him on on orchestral course with the Rehearsal Orchestra a few months previously, and it is one of my finest musical experiences, it was inspiring seeing how over the course of a day's rehearsal he built the sound of a good amateur group into something that wouldn't disgrace a professional orchestra. Admittedly, the excitement of amateur performances is sometimes a result of the fact that you don't quite know what is going to happen next - because the the players don't quite know either! The best amateur performances can stack up against professional performances, because the players are all there because they want to participate, and they play primarily because they love the music. The best amateurs have levels of technical competence not all that far short of professional levels. When I'm fortunate enough to play in such a group, it is one of the finest musical experiences going. We all talk a fair bit about clams or cracked notes. Yes, of course, you should refine your technique in order to minimise them. But I work on the basis that an occasional clam is forgivable, and so I will go to the edge of my technique and take the risk of a cracked note occasionally in order to get the phrasing and expression I want. In that, attention to detail is everything - you need to listen to and adjust the tuning of every note. You have to make a definite decision about the phrasing and dynamics, e.g. for instance for a pair of hairpins on a long note, you have to decide precisely where in the note the top of the crescendo should occur, how loud it should be, what should be the shape of the crescendo - where should be the fastest part of the volume increase. For staccato, you need to decide how hard to tongue the note and how short to make it. In all of these things (and many others) when playing in an orchestra or other ensemble, you need to listen to the other players and adjust your playing to blend with what everyone else is doing. The conductor can help by saying what he wants, and you can follow the beat, but far more important is listening to the other players. There is a fine line to be walked between making your own decisions about phrasing and matching what else is going on. The decision on when to lead and when to match is itself dependent on the musical circumstances. To get these kinds of decisions right requires two things. Firstly, you need to be aware that these are *your* decisions and you have no choice but to do something about them. Second, you just need to do lots of playing in orchestras and ensembles in order to get experience of playing in groups and seeing what works and what doesn't. Regards Jonathan West _______________________________________________ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
