On 2 July 2011 18:50, Mathias Roesel <[email protected]> wrote: > But I'd have difficulties in taking these > features as personal.
Would you consider Lachrimae as a personal artistic expression of Dowland or as an example of more general craftsmanship? Renaissance polyphony is another matter, to a certain degree, for sure, as there craftsmanship reigned supreme. As in many baroque sonatas/suites. But individual 'character' pieces? It's hard to draw the line, pointless to draw the line, perhaps. Maybe Francesco, Dowland or Weiss didn't feel about their art as we today imagine Beethoven felt about his art, but does that make their art less of a personal expression? Turning the argument around: for Beethoven, craftsmanship was also part of his trade and part of his pride. Perhaps it even played a more important role than the personal expression part. I know that is true for me and most of my colleagues anyway: we are craftsmen, proud of our craftsmanship. The resulting art is just a byproduct. Art for art's sake is a romantic idea generated by non-artists. I think in essence there was no difference between Beethoven and earlier composers like Weiss, Dowland or Francesco. There was a difference in their social role and stature, the value and regard of their works, but perhaps not in their own attitude to what must have been their children: ther compositions. > But taking pieces of lute music as > expressing personal emotions of their composers That could never be the basis of an interpretation. Only as a starting point of how we would feel what we imagine the composer would have felt. Today's interpreter is the translator of these feelings. > settings that the music probably was performed in (like royal festivities > with dances, civic parties etc.) How boring: music without emotions but historical setting only. For sure, the programmes I play are full of historical references, I play early music after all, but to make it into sounding music, the stuff that makes people cry or laugh, I have to bring in emotions ... > rather than on possible personal > expressions of the composers. .. and what better source of emotions, in a historical setting, can I draw on than the emotions that the composer is conveying to me through his composition? 'Flow my tears' - what more do I need for inspiration? > Sorry I misunderstood. So, if it's only myself I have to convince ... -- .. > I even imagine that if I were a prof performer, I'd have in mind a generic > audience as well. That's the beauty of it: convince yourself and you'll convince your audience. And if it doesn't work, find another job. ;-) People who are making music for their audiences only, are entertainers. A good job, and we can learn much from them, but it needs a different kind of personality. The kind that doesn't mind wearing feathers' in their caps. Which I don't mind doing when occasion demands, by the way. David -- ******************************* David van Ooijen [email protected] www.davidvanooijen.nl ******************************* To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
