Having also played in costume on a few occasions, a lot depends on how you do it. If you simply sit up on stage and play in costume, much like you would in a conventional concert, I think it ends up looking a bit affected and adds little to the performance. Adding a bit of theatre with the costumes, as Mark notes, can help a lot in engaging your audience. Personally, I'd much rather perform in a coffee house than an auditorium anyway (Seattle has an abundance of coffee houses...). Not only am I more comfortable, it's probably a good bit closer to how Renaissance music was played at the time. That said, the two times I've played in a coffee house weren't in costume and went over well, so it's hardly a requirement.
Guy ----- Original Message ----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ; [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, September 28, 2006 10:11 AM Subject: [LUTE] Re: Sting Interview In einer eMail vom 28.09.2006 13:04:11 Westeurop=E4ische Normalzeit schreibt [EMAIL PROTECTED]<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>> > >Maybe they would have the last laugh, but "keeping up appearences" is not > >what I am interested in. > What about your costumes??? > RT > I always thought costumes were for changing appearances and not keeping them up :) As public concerts as we know them today did not exist, I see no reason to conform to any classical conventions that have appeared since then. Many of these conventions work great for later music but most stifle the intimacy and spontaneity of renaissance music. We have found our inspiration in court entertainments, which of course used costumes and a host of visual effects. Using costumes renaissance gesture, costumes and movement (as we all play standing) reduce the often static nature of classical concerts. What you end up with is for the modern audience much what they would expect from a rock concert. It is a different approach to Sting who is interested in what he terms complex music played without visual effects. But I think his approach is maybe more coloured by 19th century music history theory than the practical musical life of 16th century England. He is interested in what he would term a pure musical experience, but I think that when you start clipping away what you think is superficial you can soon end up with an empty shell. A living musical experience is not a sterile hospital visit. It is also clear that many people will discount us immediately because of our use of costumes, but if they hear us I hope they will be convinced they are the icing on the cake and not a way to hide poor quality. Mark I -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html<http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html> --
