Klarinet Archive - Posting 000304.txt from 1997/12

From: Roger Garrett <rgarrett@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: Today's Titus on the Met Broadcast
Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 20:26:50 -0500

On Sat, 6 Dec 1997, Dan Leeson: LEESON@-----.edu wrote:
> Can Morales play well? He's breathtaking. Does he play intelligently?
> He is a joy to hear. Is he aware of the relationship between performance
> practice and proper execution of music from this era? I think not.
>
> And it makes no difference if no one in the world including Morales knows
> what he did. It is our duty to find out about these things and to do
> them, not for ourselves, but for the music. That is what constitutes
> the highest level of professionalism.

Or.....we may simply play a piece in any way we like simply because we
like it that way. If it is not being portrayed as original in every way,
it is not a crime, nor is it unprofessional. What is professional anyway?
If the Boston Pops plays the Beatles does it mean they are unprofessional?
If some movie producer produces a movie based on a book, is that person
unprofessional? It really boils down to how it was presented and why.
There is nothing wrong with the version Morales played.......it is still a
beautiful work, and it is still representative of Mozart's music, albeit
not the original intention.

Roger Garrett
IWU