Hi all, I concur wholeheartedly with Chuck. The idea that one becomes a better musician by *not* listening to recordings by the great masters is delusional, at best.
Cheers, - DJA ----- WEB: http://www.secretsocietymusic.org On 28 Sep 2012, at 5:16 PM, Chuck Israels <[email protected]> wrote: > > On Sep 28, 2012, at 10:16 AM, [email protected] wrote: >> it was playing the rhythms perfectly. > > One thing you can count on: Finale does the math. > >> >> I agree completely as a fellow professional pianist (and musician in >> general) that I'm appalled that anyone would rely on MIDI to learn >> something; >> we're really and truly lost if that's the case. I forbade my students when >> I >> was a university professor from listening to recordings while they were >> learning pieces lest they just come in and parrot these versions back to me, >> and I remember similar sentiments expressed to me by my own teachers, >> including the late Marilyn Neeley. I told her once I had been listening to >> a >> certain recording of the Grieg Concerto, and she quickly snapped at me that >> she didn't need a "Philippe Entremont clone" coming into the lesson. If >> only more people thought this way and listened to multiple recordings AFTER >> learning a piece and not during the formative process...oh well, that's >> wishful thinking in a YouTube world, isn't it? > > This conclusion assumes that notation is music, and that it includes enough > to guide an informed performance. This is no more (or less) true than the > idea that the script of a play contains the play. The only danger in using > existing models (recordings) to inform the learning process is if the student > only uses one recording, or if the student is an extraordinarily gifted > mimic. The idea of learning music without using examples of other people's > performances is as small minded and intellectually flawed as mindless mimicry > would be. Where, indeed, do we imagine interpretive ideas come from? > Musical personalities arise as an accrual of our listening experiences. How > can anyone suggest not listening as a protection from external influence when > those influences are the very building blocks of our own personalities? > There must be a balance here, and a history of listening precedes the > formation of any coherent performance. > > Chuck > > Chuck Israels > 8831 SE 12th Ave. > Portland, OR 97202-7097 > > land line: (503) 954-2107 > cell phone: (360) 201-3434 > > <www.chuckisraels.com> > <www.chuckisraelsjazz.com> > > _______________________________________________ > Finale mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [email protected] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
