The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: BobD
Date: 2007-10-08 20:09
Hooray for Detroit.....and the Midwest.
Bob Draznik
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2007-10-08 20:29
Mark -
Slatkin built up St. Louis from an also-ran to one of the best orchestras in the country. Their Carnegie Hall concerts were the highlight of every season, and he certainly deserved the bigger positions he got.
The news has been mixed since then, maybe because more was expected. On the other hand, when it comes down to the critics versus my own reactions, I trust my own ears. I'll be interested in your response to him.
Ken Shaw
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Author: William Hughes ★2017
Date: 2007-10-08 21:01
"Once Slatkin has remolded the DSO sound to his liking, he said, he intends to take the band on tour."
The band? This will be interesting.
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Author: JJAlbrecht
Date: 2007-10-10 13:59
"he intends to take the band on tour."
That was actually a comment made by the person writng the article. I doubt Slatkin, himself, referred to the DSO as "the band."
Jeff
“Everyone discovers their own way of destroying themselves, and some people choose the clarinet.” Kalman Opperman, 1919-2010
"A drummer is a musician's best friend."
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Author: Ed Granger
Date: 2007-10-10 17:41
Maybe he's going to do some really serious "remolding," taking the DSO sound closer to, say, Woody Herman's Second Herd.
Ed
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Author: LarryBocaner ★2017
Date: 2007-10-10 21:04
I had the pleasure of having Slatkin as my "boss" -- music director -- from 1995-2000. He brings a lot to the table: intelligent, hard-working, sense of humor, good "stick", wide-ranging knowledge of all matters musical. His rehearsals were never stressful, as they can be with some conductors, and he was very efficient in his rehearsal techniques -- realizing that some things that needed to be "fixed" were the responsibility of the podium, not necessarily the players.
The downside of his directorship, which contributed to his departure from Washington, had to do with his sometimes quirky choice of soloists and repertoire. Slatkin is good to his friends, be they soloists or composers; this too-often resulted in questionable choices -- the same soloists and composers over and over, often not of the very best! Many also felt a lack of intense emotional commitment to the music he conducted -- choosing more-or-less polished performances over emotionally moving experiences. Just the opposite of his predecessor Rostropovich, who could leave audience (and orchestra) in tears after a Shostakovich symphony!
I saw in one article that he blamed his less-than-perfect tenure in Washington to the fact that there have been 4 different executive directors of the NSO during his 12-year tenure. This is somewhat disingenuous; Slatkin himself pulled the rug out from at least two of them who questioned his policies re soloists and repertoire!
Post Edited (2007-10-10 22:40)
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