 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: clarinetwoman
Date: 2016-05-23 22:21
Rob Knopper is really doing something special as for as audition preparation. I have tried these things that he teaches and it works. and would highly recommend to anyone....
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: seabreeze
Date: 2016-05-23 22:44
Insightful. My take-away is that nobody hires Johnny One Note, even if he plays that note almost perfectly. They hire Johnny All Notes, whose rhythm, dynamics,
pitch, phrasing, tone, "character" (does that mean personality?), and style are all very very solid and very very good. So forget perfection in one or a few things, and go for excellence (but not unattainable perfection) in all things musical. And if you're weak in even one element in the rubric list, forget it. Somebody else won't be, and they'll get the job.
Post Edited (2016-05-24 03:34)
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Liquorice
Date: 2016-05-24 02:44
There are some interesting points in the article, but also some major flaws. I've sat through many professional auditions. One thing that stands out is that everybody on the panel hears and thinks about things in different ways. So the final result ("what THEY are looking for") is an aggregate of the various opinions of personalities on the panel.
In my opinion the flaws in this article stem from the author's belief that his impression of what he is hearing represents what everybody else is hearing...
"somebody might have played with really great in rhythm and character, but their intonation would be kinda wonky. someone might have come in and played with the most beautiful vibrato and phrasing and tone, but their control of quick, complex rhythms was a little bit all over the place."
Intonation and rhythm may be quantifiably objective (although in practice, even this is often not the case), but what is "great character" and "most beautiful vibrato and phrasing and tone"? There will likely be as many ideas about this as there are jury members.
His audition rubric is OK, but those are things that everyone capable of winning an audition will be thinking about in any case.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2016-05-24 16:36
I agree with Liquorice's points.
Additionally I find it hard to take any essay seriously where "I" and the beginning letters of proper names are not capitalized.
Although bully for him if his guesses matched up with actual results.
................Paul Aviles
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: JHowell
Date: 2016-05-24 22:06
I agree, Paul. I find the war on capital letters off-putting.
e.e. cummings already did it, that was enough.
This sort of blog is turning into a genre. I got a lot of good out of bulletproofmusician.com. The psychology is helpful for those wiling actually to do the work.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: WhitePlainsDave
Date: 2016-05-25 02:33
Reading Knopper describe his experiences at a string edition, I wonder how much better or worse clarinet players have to be at similar classical audition venues to get the job.
I guess I mean to say, if we could somehow quantify how good a string player has to be, and how much work that takes (sure it's different for everyone) and compare that to the clarinetist, and the work it took said wind player, I wonder how intense each instrument's audition experience is.
A part of me wants to think--perhaps because it's self serving, that the number of clarinet players, divided by available paid slots in the classical space, is such a higher ratio than for string players, that clarinetists (and other woodwind players) have to be....."even better."
This is not to put down the virtuosity of many string players. This sounded like a crazy intense audition--I just can't imagine what its like for wind players.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2016-05-25 17:06
In my experience having listened to several professional auditions as a member of an auditioning committee I can state this. Many members of the committee, we always had nine in the Baltimore Symphony, had different opinions of a player in the preliminaries. Usual about what they thought was "musical". Intonation and rhythm ware pretty much unanimous. Opinions of tone quality often differed as well. For me, if I don't like someones tone that was enough for me to say no. If intonation or rhythm was not accurate I'd say no. If a player overpraised or played dull, I'd say no. If a player did not have very clean technique, I'd say no, that doesn't mean missing a note. Once players moved up into the semi and the finals the players would be more scrutinized for their musicianship, blend and perfection. When you prepare for an audition there is no such thing as one aspect of your playing in more important than another. You strive for perfect rhythm, intonation and technique. Then tone and musicianship, phrasing, becomes a matter of opinions with individual commettie members and ultimately the conductor. I was at one audition that our committee moved three players into the finals. When the conductor then "conducted" the players in some passages the conductor stated to the committee he would not hire one player because they "didn't respond to his gestures".
ESP eddiesclarinet.com
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: JHowell
Date: 2016-05-25 19:09
"
Reading Knopper describe his experiences at a string edition, I wonder how much better or worse clarinet players have to be at similar classical audition venues to get the job."
I would say that is very similar in the sense that every instrument takes humans to the limit in order to perform at the highest level, and that the very best, say, trombonists will have invested just as massively as violinists, although they probably started later. Also similar in that the strike zone for an orchestra like the Met is very small for each instrument. Obviously what each instrument does is very different -- you will hear more notes in one violin excerpt than in the entire list for bass trombone -- but I think the level of commitment required is dictated by the competition rather than by the choice of instrument.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
