Klarinet Archive - Posting 000779.txt from 1997/10

From: alchev@-----.com (Al Chiavarini)
Subj: Good musicians!
Date: Sat, 18 Oct 1997 16:27:47 -0400

>All good musicians are not good clarinetists, but all good
> >clarinetists
> >are good musicians.

I took exception to the latter part of the quote. The fellow I referred
to is a fine technician. He plays every note and knows his instrument.
He, however, does not feel that he should feel the direction of the
conductor or the tempos the composer desired and left instructions for in
the score.

In my book a good musician feels what the music is saying. The emotions
of music
must be considered in playing. A player that does not have great
technical expertise can have great feelings for a piece of music that is
not technically hard and play it that way. To me music is a language of
its own. If you can't feel what the composer meant when he wrote a piece
of music, then he either failed to convey his feelings or the artist
cannot convey that feeling to his audience or chooses not to.

True, ones interpretations means a lot, but to ignore feelings and use
music to show off one expertise at the expense of others does not make a
"good musician"

I guess what I am trying to say is some players seem to think that to be
"good" means
show how fast you can play it --- you are better than everyone else. I'm
sure you have seen this. This is not a good musician---perhaps a music
mechanic, BUT he plays the clarinet "good".

If you cannot listen to the players around you and blend in with others
then you are missing what music is all about.

I am sort of sorry that after playing music since 1938 that it has taken
me much too long to deeply feel what music is all about.

How many times have you heard a cadenza played as fast as can be-- when
using different tempos and feelings can make it a beautiful interlude.

How many times have you heard La Boheme or a Rachmaninoff symphony and
not had tears in your eyes.

I have a recording of Toscanini at a rehearsal of the NBC Orchestra and
he goes over and over a passage not getting what he wants. He curses
loudly in Italian (being Italian I understood every word) calling every
one names and stomps off the stage throwing stands as he goes. That to
me shows feelings and I am sure that at that moment he didn't think there
was a musician on the stage.

While I am at it, another gripe of mine is the word "PROFESSIONAL."
This means that person gets paid for his work and nothing more.
I know a great many "Professionals" that do not play as well as a lot of
"AMATEURS" that I know.

How many times have you heard it " Man that guy is a Pro. he must
be good"

There it is guys ---tear it apart

Al Chiavarini
alchev=juno