Klarinet Archive - Posting 000272.txt from 2000/09

From: alevin@-----. Levin)
Subj: Re: [kl] Schoenberg
Date: Fri, 8 Sep 2000 11:10:34 -0400

Walter:

I studied with Boulanger in 1968. It was a powerful experience; but not
necessarily a good one. Contrary to the popular image, she did not teach
composition, she tought theory and analysis by teaching you to listen. She
had very definite ideas about many contemporary composers. She would not
teach Schoenberg's music - she used to find lame excuses to cancel student
concerts which included certain composers (e.g. Ives). She included
Messiaen and Boulez in the curriculum; but never got around to discussing
them. She was a royalist and spent a lot of time trying to convince her
non-Christian students that they were missing the boat. She also committed
to memory more music - sacred, secular, ancient, modern, tonal, polytonal,
atonal and serial - than most of us will ever hear.

There's a very good (and unpopular) study of her by Dr. N. Rosenstiel.
Many of Boulanger's students bought it - then divided into those who
understood it - and those who wouldn't.

Allen

At 09:31 AM 9/8/00 EDT, you wrote:
>In a message dated 9/7/00 4:25:08 PM Central Daylight Time,
>alevin@-----.net writes:
>
><<
> Walter:
>
> Don't blow a gasket. I have just as much respect for Schoenberg as you,
> or Dan, or Tony or Dr. Austin. The point is that like marriage jokes or
> Gore jokes (which used to be Quayle jokes and probably started as Millard
> Filmore jokes) these stories circulate and acquire the unfortunate patina
> of ancient truths. (Sadly, it wouldn't surprise me that a batch of
> antebellum Berlin musicians would have difficulty with "Pierrot" -
> especially if they were expecting the worst to begin with.)
> >>
>
>Too late! Gasket blown, and already replaced! Lol!
>
>Sorry...."Pierrot Lunaire" is one of my favorite pieces from this whole era.
>I had a music history prof at University of Michigan who really brought this
>piece to life for us. I forget the profs name, haven't really thought of him
>in years, but he did a great job of working us through the early 20th
century
>literature. He was one of the last students of Nadia Boulanger, so he had
>reams of great anecdotes.........
>
>Sadly, I have never had the opportunity of performing Pierrot.........maybe
>someday!
>
>Walter
>
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