Klarinet Archive - Posting 000337.txt from 1999/07

From: "David B. Niethamer" <dnietham@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: [kl] APPLAUSE
Date: Mon, 12 Jul 1999 22:09:36 -0400

on 7/10/99 6:44 PM, Tony Pay wrote:

>I remember being by chance in NY in the early 80's, and attending a
>concert given by the NY Philharmonic conducted on that occasion by
>Bernard Haitink, in a programme that included the Pathetique.
>
>Many of the audience stood up and applauded after the third movement...
>
>....and then left, regardless of, and indeed interrupting, the
>continuing music.
>
I once attended an NYPO concert that included a Zemlinsky symphony -
long, and Mahler-like without any of the Mahler symphonies' redeeming
social values (!). After about 20 minutes (with 20 more to go) people
started to leave. They left a few at a time for the next 20 minutes.
Unfortunately, during the just completed renovation of Avery Fisher Hall,
the aisles had been left uncarpeted, for acoustical reasons, one
presumes. The extra, non-union percussion was most distracting.

>My respect for New Yorkers has been growing since then.
>
>The orchestra too has improved -- has had to improve -- significantly.
>But their response to Haitink on this occasion bordered on the
>indifferent, which might superficially be thought to justify the
>audience reaction; but on consideration, not.
>
>In my humble opinion, the NYPO was really at their best around that time
>when conducted by Danny Kaye, who had the genius to persuade them to
>rediscover their common humanity for a few hours. (Bernstein did this
>too, perhaps. I'm only judging here by the recordings.)
>
>Individually, I'm sure there were many wonderful people in the
>orchestra, and in one case I know that to be true: one of my great
>friends was the first flute, Julie Baker.

When I moved to New York in the early 70's to go to grad school, a friend
of mine who had studied trumpet with William Vacchiano in the NYPO's
glory days (before Philharmonic/Avery Fisher Hall!) told me that the rap
on the orchestra was that "they should record more and play less".
Evidently with the mic on, in those years, they were pretty nearly a
flawless orchestra. I heard them in the Boulez days, and they could be
awful. Bernstein was a love/hate relationship. I heard him do some
wonderful concerts, but how they ever followed him, I'll never know.

These days, they seem to play with more unity of musical outlook for Kurt
Masur. Even the woodwinds, who could never be accused of blending
together as a section, are playing more like a section, and less like
egomaniacs. Even in the 70's, with Baker, Gomberg, Manny Zegler, and
Drucker, the cat fights were legendary.

What a band!

David

David Niethamer
Principal Clarinet, Richmond Symphony
dnietham@-----.edu
http://members.aol.com/dbnclar1/

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