Klarinet Archive - Posting 000575.txt from 2003/10

From: Dan Sutherland <dan.sutherland@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] Who speaks?
Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2003 01:34:36 -0400

At 01:34 PM 10/21/2003, you wrote:
> > On Wed, 15 Oct 2003 12:39:11 -0400, joseph.wakeling@-----.net said:
> > > Here's something worth bearing in mind: you are *always* expressing
> > > yourself, or at least some part of yourself, when you play. How can
> > > it be otherwise?
>
>Tony Pay siad:
> > I couldn't put it better.
> > Another way of expressing it is: what's required of you is in the realm
> > of 'being' rather than in the realm of 'doing'.
> > (I'll leave you to judge where "How to sell slow movements" lies in all
> > of this:-)
>
>The article - cut short, and T.P`s short remark , "I couldn't put it
>better";
>and previous posts re this seems to be so logically summarised, yet I can`t
>help but think of a 'more obvious?' teaching.
>*Learn about the composer, and how he/she may have wanted the music to be
>played*.

What if the composer just got lucky and created something sublime by mistake?
What if the composer was of detestable character and learning about him
severely alters your ability to perform his work well?
Composers compose. Performers perform. Composers do not necessarily know
the best way to perform their work.

> What we have seen in this discussion is of course a break down of
>how to go about this. We may all have different ideas, but no matter how
>much or how little of our own personality or technical skill we input into
>our playing, the composer`s intentions will to some degree become submerged
>by our own choices, which IMO is not too good. When we play, we always put
>ourselves on the line - to be judged - and we will always 'reap the benefit'
>of someone`s comment, be it favourable or otherwise. So I would summarise in
>this way (as above) composer first and foremost, and performer`s judgement
>to be always based on this.

Regardless of what a composer intends it is his music we are stuck
with. There is enough not so great music which composers intended to be
played by great artists in filled concert halls. That was the scope of
their intention. I do not feel traitorous for not fulfilling their wishes.

> There is therefore, to me, not much room for
>personal preferences, unless one is a 'showman'.

What the heck is that supposed to mean?

In fact that assertion caught my eye because the thing that drives me buggy
is the performer that does not get out of the way of the music. Little
idiosyncrasies like adding a dash of vibrato here, some rubato there,
swells every measure in the quest to help out the performance distract and
mess it up. Too fussy and busy.

>Thank you for your time.]

Dan

"That was so boring everyone should have left the hall so the tumble weeds
and crickets could come in."
Eric Sutherland age 9, after hearing his dad and 3 other clarinettists
perform Anderson's "Clarinet Candy" in concert.

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