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Doublereed Archive - Posting 000074.txt from 2007/10

From: Dan Duncan <danjduncan@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [DR-L] Play loud ...and louder! Bruno Labate?
Date: Thu, 04 Oct 2007 13:52:35 -0400

I must have missed something. I couldn't find ANYTHING in the
attached posts about Bruno.

Dan

On Oct 4, 2007, at 1:34 PM, herb fawcett wrote:

> Wonderful story about Bruno Labate and the NY Phil A.
> Herb
>
>
> On 10/4/07 10:10 AM, "Miriam Williams" <mwquacker@-----.net> wrote:
>
>> Why not just use an electronic sound generator of some kind at
>> rehearsals?
>> This could easily be turned up loudly enough so everyone could
>> hear it.
>>
>> Also, don't violinists use electronic tuners as a matter of
>> course. It seems
>> to me to be a sort of outdated practice to rely on the oboe,
>> although to
>> keep the tradition of making sure everyone is tuned properly just
>> prior to
>> the downbeat would be reasonable.
>>
>> I agree, it can be tiring to hold out 3 A's - how long *should* it
>> be held?
>> A gripe I have is that others (especially choristers) who are not
>> silent
>> when the A is called for. Apologies if this has been addressed
>> already. I
>> have not read the previous posts & decided to just jump in here.
>>
>> My $0.02,
>> Miriam
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Philip McKenzie" <philclimb1@-----.com>
>> To: <doublereed@-----.org>
>> Sent: Thursday, October 04, 2007 11:56 AM
>> Subject: Re: [DR-L] Play loud ...and louder!
>>
>>
>> When we start the concert, the concertmaster asks for 3 A's; winds,
>> violas/cello/bass, violins. After intermission, 2 A's: winds,
>> strings. If
>> we tune in the middle of a longer piece, it's one A. Rehearsals and
>> concerts are done the same way.
>>
>> I'm playing those three As for a very long time each time. Too
>> long. And
>> the tuning needs to be fairly loud. It's a self-perpetuating
>> issue. If one
>> person plays loud to hear himself, the next person has to play
>> louder also.
>> And on and on.
>>
>> In the land of amaters in which I happily reside, what would be
>> ideal? 2
>> A's briefly played?
>>
>> And how to ratchet it back? Do I e-mail the conductor and
>> concertmaster to
>> get their takes on whether it's actually a problem and what to do
>> about it?
>> If there is an agreed upon problem, do we say something at the next
>> rehearsal. Should I do the whining? Should the concertmaster
>> suggest?
>> Should the conductor require?
>>
>> Recently it's been mentioned on this list that an A called the
>> Philadelphia
>> Orchestra back after breaks back in the day. Would a backstage A
>> be a
>> reasonable addition to our protocol? Or a strikable A bar so any
>> individual
>> could tune in advance of coming on the stage so the orchestra
>> tuning is a
>> confirmation rather than an adjustment exercise?
>>
>> Phil
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----
>> From: herb fawcett <herbgosia@-----.net>
>> To: "doublereed@-----.org>
>> Sent: Thursday, October 4, 2007 11:26:10 AM
>> Subject: Re: [DR-L] Play loud ...and louder!
>>
>>
>> One very important aspect of tuning is to play only the A. The varied
>> harmonics of other notes interfere with hearing any beat, which
>> after all
>> the ultimate criterion of being "in tune" with the reference pitch.
>> The moving intonation as notes change function in the harmony etc.
>> is best
>> attended to by the attitude among players of "be here NOW" so the
>> needed
>> small adjustments are always in their awareness. Democracy is
>> important even
>> in orchestral pitch. Leave the dictator on the podium where he
>> cannot mess
>> up the pitch too much.
>> Herb
>>
>>
>> On 10/4/07 8:52 AM, "David Lurie" <klingsor@-----.com> wrote:
>>
>>> At 11:02 AM 10/4/2007, you wrote:
>>>> Read about the loudest tuning note in oboe history on my blog:
>>>> http://oneflute1oboe.livejournal.com/
>>>>
>>>> ~Angela
>>>
>>> I read what you wrote there, which I will quote as follows:
>>>
>>>
>>> For the Orange County Symphony, I refuse to give A while people are
>>> practicing/warming up/talking/wandering around/etc. The
>>> concertmaster
>>> stands up, things settle down, and *then* I play.
>>>
>>> At tonight's random gig, however, I was expected to give A while
>>> people were practicing. I waited... and waited... and the
>>> concertmaster grew impatient. With ME. So I proceeded to give the
>>> loudest freaking A that you have ever heard.
>>>
>>> That seems to me to be silly as well as amateurish in the extreme.
>>> This concertmaster obviously does not know how to perform the tuning
>>> job. In a professional orchestra, the concertmaster stands up if
>>> everyone does not quiet down immediately, taps his bow on the stand
>>> until everyone stops playing. then you play the tuning A. Also you
>>> should play the A softly, not loud, so that everyone will have to
>>> exert themselves just a little to hear it, and then not play too
>>> loud.
>>>
>>> Yes, I realize that tuning is pointless. Everyone is just going to
>>> play sharp no matter what. But if we're going to pretend to do it,
>>> then we should pretend to have a go at doing it right, with everyone
>>> pretending to listen to the reference pitch.
>>>
>>> I can perhaps be called a snob, like you, but tuning is not
>>> pointless
>>> if the group is serious. Obviously, the group you play in is NOT
>>> serious about it, so I can understand your attitude. But a serious
>>> group, will take tuning seriously. That the pitch rises is
>>> inevitable, no matter what group it is. But then there is no problem
>>> as long as it is held under control and the orchestra re-tunes often
>>> enough. That is a job for the conductor and/or the concertmaster. If
>>> they goof folks don't; know enough about how to do it, then perhaps
>>> you should start to educate them by initiating discussions
>>> concerning
>>> these matters.
>>>
>>> David
>>> /oboe snob
>>> <http://oneflute1oboe.livejournal.com/187465.html>Link
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>
>>
>>
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>> Doublereed is a service of Woodwind.Org, Inc. http://www.woodwind.org
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>
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
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> Doublereed is a service of Woodwind.Org, Inc. http://www.woodwind.org

Dan Duncan
9012 S Normandy Ln
Dayton, OH 45458
937-350-7133
937-672-3662, cell
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