Help! There is a member of the woodwind section [clarinet] in our orchestra who suffers from a very severe case of 'woodwind-itis', to the point where his spasmodic movements are throwing off the entire wind section.
During a rehearsal for an upcoming performance of Mendelssohn's Midsummer Night's Dream, he actually took his left hand from his instrument and began conducting from his seat, as he was swaying back and forth. This occurred during the Nocturne, and unfortunately, I sit right behind the clarinet section. I'd rather not have two conductors to look at; one is quite enough! In the Overture, at the moment of the donkey calls, he partially rises in his seat, in time with the 'braying donkey'... which was admittedly sort of funny at the first rehearsal, but, frankly has become annoying as hell. Other members of the orchestra have commented about this, but no one seems to be able to offer a workable solution to curtail these contortions. He's a good player and all, but, alas, it's getting ridiculous. I can only imagine what this must look like from the audience's perspective-- this twitching, bobbing up-and-down, buffoon-like clarinetist. All he needs is the red nose and the Bozo the Clown hair... Short of firing the guy, I'd appreciate any hints on how this affliction might be remedied. Cheers, martin bender "All great things are decided not by machines or gadgets, but by willpower; whoever has it will finally prevail." Winston Churchill _______________________________________________ post: [email protected] unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
