Klarinet Archive - Posting 000213.txt from 1995/10

From: Stan Geidel <sgeidel@-----.NET>
Subj: More on Holliger
Date: Mon, 9 Oct 1995 20:09:00 -0400

I'd like to add my two cents on Heinz Holliger. In my opinion, Holliger is
THE premier wind player today, and may indeed be one our finest
instrumentalists on ANY instrument.

I believe our young (and young-at-heart!) clarinetists today make a grave
error when listening primarily to other clarinetists. The advice to listen
to singers is certainly good advice, but I am one who thinks aspiring
clarinetists should listen primarily to wind players...not necessarily other
clarinetists. In many ways, listening to other clarinetists contains many
distractions. One might think, "I wonder what fingering is being used in
that passage?" Or, worse yet, "I wonder if he/she is using that <current
fad> mouthpiece I keep hearing about?"
Yet, ours is the art of wind playing; thus the recommendation to listen to
the great oboists, flutists, clarinetists, bassoonists.

Holliger is without parallel in my view. Is that *really* an oboe he
plays?! I always encourage students to ask themselves to try to describe,
in words, what Holliger is doing. Yes, we can say, Holliger is
amazing...Holliger plays so incredibly beautifully...and on and on. But,
the closer one can get to a description--using words to try, somehow, to
capture musicality--the easier it becomes to internalize and emulate. I
know--words fall short...of course they fall short. But, "Holliger is
great" does nothing to help a student understand what constitutes the
difference between mastery and good playing. And, rote imitation does
nothing to provide an understanding of context. Maybe one could learn to do
something that Holliger does. But, making a spectacular musical inflection
where is does not belong is not the same as making music. Instrumental
gestures have meaning only if the musical meaning is genuine and appropriate.

Which brings me to my point...I believe analytical listening to wind playing
is a tool that is often ignored by young players today. If one can make an
attempt to describe Holliger's nuances, and explain why they work so well,
one begins to understand how to arrive at their own approach to musical
dialogue.

Comments?

Stan Geidel

-------------------------------------
Dr. Stanley Geidel

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