Author: mrn
Date: 2008-10-06 18:27
I haven't been on here for a few days, but I'm really glad to see someone bring up this topic. I almost started my own thread about this the other day. The other day I happened to sit down with the printed music to this piece without my instrument and without any of my recordings of the piece playing.
When looking at the sheet music, it occurred to me that Copland was pretty detailed in terms of his notation of this cadenza. For example, where he wanted a "short fermata," he says so. So, like the OP, I got to thinking that this non-printed fermata that everybody seems to play is perhaps questionable in terms of what Copland was after. This led me to think that perhaps a re-look at this cadenza in terms of what is printed (as opposed to what's been recorded) might be worthwhile.
As I sat there, I decided to try to imagine what this part of the Copland concerto would sound like if you played everything exactly as written, accents, rhythms and all--to get some idea (independent of Benny Goodman's interpretation) of what Copland was after. And then it hit me--this little section of the concerto has nothing to do with jazz (at least not in the Benny Goodman sense)--as I see it, the inspiration for this section comes almost exclusively from Brazilian music (and perhaps some of Copland's own Latin-flavored pieces like El Salon Mexico or Danzon Cubano--there's a little spot that reminds me of El Salon Mexico in particular).
Now it's well known that there's Brazilian material in the concerto because Copland said so, and it's also well known that Copland wrote most of the concerto in Rio de Janeiro. So it's not like I've discovered anything new. However, after having a look at the music again after many years, I'm beginning to come to the opinion that when most people play this part of the piece, they try really hard to make it sound like Benny Goodman, but in doing so they miss the Latin character of the music.
My feeling is that this piece (especially this section) ought to be played "straight"--not so much because Benny Goodman played it that way, but because that's the way Latin music (even "Latin jazz") is played. To be honest, I never really cared for the cadenza part of this concerto before. But now that I've started looking at it from a more Latin-inspired perspective, I really like it. To me, it makes more musical sense that way.
In short, I think it would be a valid interpretation and worthwhile to try to make the cadenza sound less Benny Goodman-inspired (and less cadenza-like, with so many stops and starts) and more "Carmen Miranda-inspired," lets say, with a more steady rhythm, definite accents in the right places, and so forth. More specifically, I see the cadenza as being in essence a Brazilian choro albeit with Copland-esque flavor (in much the same way that El Salon Mexico is a set of Coplandized Mexican folk tunes). I find that this more Brazilian approach makes the cadenza fit better conceptually with the thematic material of the final 1/3 of the piece. (I also note that this could possibly cause some Spohr-like breathing difficulties in spots, but it does look like Copland at least tried--notice that he throws in an occasional 16th rest after a shortened downbeat [which I see as possibly being his way of giving the player a spot for a quick breath--the commas I interpret as quick and abrupt pauses, not as breaths, per se].) I have some more specific ideas about how to do this, but that would be too much to write in one post.
Listen to the "bridge" of "Tico tico no fuba" to see what I mean. The rhythm is virtually identical to the Copland cadenza:
Here's Carmen Miranda's version (which is a bit on the fast side)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFwNXoEzRgY
Here's a clarinet version with a choro group (clarinets are traditional choro instruments, by the way), Listen to the bridge and see if you don't hear a similarity to the Copland cadenza in rhythm and melodic material:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78XrrxYW5Zk
Villa Lobos' Choro No. 1 has a similar feel (but is more laid back):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAg8VHuXNKU
Anyway, that's my take on this section, for what it's worth. It's not like I can back this up with a whole lot of research or anything. And I certainly wouldn't try to adopt the clarinet tone and the ornamental stuff of the clarinet player in the above clip. But I do think there is something to be gained from viewing this piece from a more Latin point of view, because the essence of that music is there.
Post Edited (2008-10-06 19:41)
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