Klarinet Archive - Posting 000054.txt from 2007/10

From: "Keith Bowen" <bowenk@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] Re: the effect of technology
Date: Sun, 07 Oct 2007 18:01:07 -0400

It was perfectly usual. A very well-documented case is that of Edward Elgar,
one of the first major composers to take recording seriously. The first
classical recordings were hacked mercilessly; for example, Elgar cut most of
the introduction to his violin concerto completely out for the first
recording by Marie Hall in 1916. Other distortions abound, for example a
full orchestra was too large to fit in front of an acoustic horn so was
greatly cut down, and sometimes a tuba was used instead of a double bass to
make it heard. The "Kone Violin" (with an acoustic horn added to the
soundboard) was invented to produce more sound. Singers were at times
mounted on movable platforms, and physically pushed back and forth to be at
the right distance from the horn. Things improved with the introduction of
the microphone and electrical recording in 1925, as seen by the 16 year old
Menuhin's recording of the Elgar concerto in 1926.

Early recordings are fascinating for the history of performance style. In
the beginning of the twentieth century you hear string playing with much
more portamento, much less vibrato and with much greater tempi fluctuations
than now. These have been overturned by fashion, but there is no evidence
that it is anything but fashion.

I have not, however, seen before Dan's interesting suggestion that the
modern fashion for cutting out repeats is a direct descendant of the
cylinder and 78 rpm era. We do know that it happened sometime between the
eighteenth century and the twentieth, but I don't know if anyone has
researched (e.g. tutors, concert reviews) to see if this trend began before
the recording era or in consequence of it.

Keith Bowen

-----Original Message-----
From: klarinet-return-91893-bowenk=compuserve.com@-----.org
[mailto:klarinet-return-91893-bowenk=compuserve.com@-----.org] On Behalf
Of Margaret Thornhill
Sent: 07 October 2007 22:44
To: klarinet@-----.org
Subject: [kl] Re: the effect of technology

Dan,

If you think this is bad,check out the RDG Grenadilla CD of historical
clarinet recordings for the Schubert "Shepherd on the Rock" with Prosper
Mimart and soprano Isabel French. In order to fit on a 78 record, there
are major cuts in the clarinet "introduction"-- which must have seemed
dispensible to the producers.
I'm sure this sort of thing was extremely common.

Margaret Thornhill

http://www.margaretthornhill.com

------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------