Klarinet Archive - Posting 000194.txt from 1995/06

From: Jay Heiser <jay@-----.COM>
Subj: Re: Neil Leupold asks difficult questions
Date: Sun, 11 Jun 1995 20:57:33 -0400

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From: Dan Leeson: LEESON@-----.edu
Sent: Sunday, June 11, 1995 08:40
To: Multiple recipients of list KLARINET
Subject: Neil Leupold asks difficult questions

Neil asked why I took the position, "If the composer asks something of me,
that is the way I do it."? I am afraid that my answer is going to cause
more grief than it solves, but here it is in any case.
You're right again! ;-)

Recognizing that this is a red flag, let me state that it is my belief that
playing the clarinet in the traditional fashion of reading a composer's
fixed music whose form, structure, harmony, and rhythm has been established
by that composer is not a creative act. Yes. That is what I said. Performing
music is not creative.
I hope that you're speaking just for yourself here.

No matter how beautifully we do it, no matter how elegant our playing, no
matter how musical and sensitive, the creativity was accomplished elsewhere.
Our role as players is reproductive, and we are paid based on our skill to
reproduce in an elegant manner.
I usually play for free, but I've got a paying gig on Tuesday -- I wonder if
that should affect my interpretation?

In that case, I presume that the creator of the music is directing me - and
I am little more than hired help - to do many things.
This is significant and its where we differ. I believe that the COMPOSER IS
THE HIRED HELP.

It is for this reason that I make every possible attempt to play the music
on the clarinet that has been explicitly requested by the composer. I
am not a creator. I am a reproducer and my musical advice as to which
clarinet SHOULD have been employed is not being asked. The composer may
have, in my opinion, made a mistake. He or she should have done something
else. But when noticing a beautiful woman married to an ugly man, I do
not suggest that she should have done something else. I keep my mouth shut
and try to realize what is my business and what is not.
I feel that it is my business not to perpetuate mistakes. I believe that any
human creation can be improved. To me, the goal is to make a performance as
aesthetically pleasing as possible (exception would be an attempt to recreate a
period performance, which I consider as much a history lesson as an artistic
endeavor).

Only in those arenas where the performer is expected to be a creator
(such as jazz, folk music such klemzer, the classic and baroque eras)
does my view of the performer as other than hired help change.

So, while one can say that this view is crazy, it is the driving force
behind my behavior in using the specific instrument specified by the
composer.
I've thought about this a lot and I am close to agreeing with you that it is
crazy.

A few years ago, I decided that instead of conquering the double-reeds (you can
always cover the part on something else, right?), I'd learn an instrument that
would teach me something different about music (like chords), so I chose
steel-string guitar. When working thru fingerstyle pieces, my teacher often
makes slight rearrangements and it doesn't bother me a bit. It improves the
performance and we both learn something. If the composer can't accept this,
the composer shouldn't have published the music.

With the exception of Elvis impersonators, most of the world of music does not
seem concerned either with completely fulfilling the composers intentions or
accurately replicating the initial performance. In the 20th century, we have
the unique opportunity to hear authentic recordings of music from several
generations. You know what? Lots of pre-war music sounds really quaint and I
don't like it. The melody is good, but the arrangements and the playing style
are dated.

Not only is it impossible to know if you're completely succesful in recreating a
period piece, but its not reasonable to expect a contemporary audience to
respond as the original listeners did. Changing a piece could be necessary in
order to stay as close as possible to the composers intentions! (if you don't
believe me, compare the King James Bible to a contemporary translation or the
original Greek)

Music is just like drama in that the instigator is assisted in the creation
process by a performer. What a wonderful collaboration.