 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Rachel
Date: 2005-05-24 06:49
At the moment my playing ranges from decent to good, and sometimes very good. I want it to be absolutely brilliantly fantastic, so I thought I would ask people- what, in your opinion, makes a great performance?- and then go and work on the things mentioned.
Post Edited (2005-05-24 06:54)
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2005-05-24 07:18
I don't think anyone can tell you that, because in my opinion what makes the difference between really good and just amazing beyond imagination is originality.
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Author: EEBaum
Date: 2005-05-24 07:30
If it was so easily quantifiable, I'm sure we'd hear more of it. Aside from "Practice. Then practice some more. Repeat ad infinitum." here's my take:
An excellent performance, to me as a listener, must have these attributes to stand apart from a very good one, and should have many more:
- The performers should make music with their instruments, not be at war with them.
- The performers should be past what's written on the page, and should be communicating something with the audience.
- The music should never, ever stop, even when it stops.
- The performance should express some sort of perspective on the piece, rather than simply playing all the notes in order where they belong.
- The performers should enjoy the piece in some manner. I'm not saying to put on a smug Andre Rieu grin. However, there should be attachment of some sort. Whether the enjoyment is personal between you and the piece, communicative between you and the audience, a rapport and exchange with other members (or hopefully all of the above and more), enjoy it in some matter. Invest in it personally, and commit. Even if the enjoyment is in a mutual dislike for the piece, performers should be thoroughly engaged.
- Certainty. The ensemble should put forward what they wish to put forward, and be certain and proud of how they put it forward.
To achieve these, I find the following helpful, and I attend far too many performances where people don't do these...
- Realize that the audience wants to hear good music. The number one thing the audience doesn't want to see is a performer who is tripped up by insecurities over technical errors. If you mess up, fine. The music goes on. If a technical flub kills the music, all is lost. I as an audience member am far more likely to notice and dislike "They freaked out over that missed note" than "They missed that note."
-Realize that when you are making music, you are making music. You are not pushing notes out of an instrument in order. Yes, that is one of the things involved in making music. However, if your focus is on putting the notes one after the other, the performance will not be musical. Know the piece.
- Downbeats. There's always another one.
- Communication. Notice who is playing what. Acknowledge when someone plays a solo passage well. Notice what the audience responds to. If communication weren't important, you could just as well record each part separately, overdub it, and record it to a CD for the audience to listen to.
-Alex
www.mostlydifferent.com
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Author: claclaws
Date: 2005-05-24 08:25
EEbaum,
What a great observation. May I quote you.
Lucy Lee Jang
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Author: Aussiegirl
Date: 2005-05-24 11:21
For me, the difference between a good and a great performance-
good is when you played up to your ability and the audience was happy etc
but great to me is when you get that magic and you connect with your instrument and the audience...and you relly feel that you have made music. This is especially great when its something that you have been working on hard
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Author: Brenda Siewert
Date: 2005-05-24 13:36
When everything goes perfectly, it's a great performance. Anything short of that is merely good.
And, since everything RARELY goes perfectly, you'll have many more good performances than great ones. But, if great were common it wouldn't be great and we wouldn't be in awe of it, would we?
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2005-05-24 14:39
EEBaum hits all the nails square on the head.
For me, what makes a great performance is getting your personality over the edge of the stage and to the last row of the audience. Pick out someone in the audience and put yourself in their lap, singing love and beauty.
You want to convince that single person of your sincerity and the beauty and truth of the music. Play as if your life depended on it.
Ken Shaw
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2005-05-24 16:23
"When everything goes perfectly, it's a great performance. Anything short of that is merely good."
I couldn't disagree more.
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Author: EEBaum
Date: 2005-05-24 19:45
"When everything goes perfectly, it's a great performance."
Define "everything." I've heard many excellent performances that had minor hitches.
-Alex
www.mostlydifferent.com
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Author: Gandalfe
Date: 2005-05-24 19:56
When the audience is dancing, cheering, and having a good time and the performers are too... Well life certainly is sweet at that moment. I live for those moments. Watch the children. If they are mesmerized or having a good time then something is going right at a very fundamental level.
How do you evaluate objectively a good performance? What are the metrics? I usually can tell by the applause at the end. Is it polite or done with wild abandon. Obviously I don't play much classical music. ;o)
Jim and Suzy
Pacifica Big Band
Seattle, Washington
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2005-05-24 20:17
Gandalfe wrote:
> Obviously I don't play much classical music. ;o)
More obviously, you haven't been to a great classical performance or a great opera.
But don't get caught in the mob scene at a badly performed opera, especially in Italy.
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2005-05-24 20:46
When I got my first jazz gig I was feeling quite insecure about my improvising. I went to the band leader and asked him if my solos were OK. He said "You're a musician, aren't you? You can hear if they're OK or not" This is possibly the best musical advice I've ever been given.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2005-05-25 05:39
"When the audience is dancing, cheering, and having a good time and the performers are too"
Here is a story one of my teachers told me, and this teacher actually received an award for his compositions in the USA (he is not american) in the same convention that Penderetsky received an award, so he is well respected around the world.
He had a concert of his piece and the crowd clapped and shouted so hard because they loved it so much. He thought the concert was bad and was really depressed for weeks. The crowd's applause didn't improve his feeling at all.
On another concert he had, there wasn't a lot of people in crowd. The crowd thought it was ok but nothing special and clappe a little. He was so happy almost exstatic after the concert because he thought he achieved something with this music.
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Author: Morrigan
Date: 2005-05-25 13:08
You need bad performances to have good ones - so just accept it and realise that perhaps next time it will be better.
My personal challenge is to always better myself the next time I perform, that way you never actually have a bad performance, really.
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2005-05-25 14:09
"He had a concert of his piece and the crowd clapped and shouted so hard because they loved it so much. He thought the concert was bad and was really depressed for weeks."
Which just goes to show that you really DO have to be a bit weird to be a composer these days...
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Author: William
Date: 2005-05-25 14:45
What makes a performance great?? If my ears are convinced--quite simply, if I am moved to leap up and yell BRAVO, BRAVO. However, what is "great" to me may be only "good" to you. So any difinitive answer to your question concerning asthetic or musical value--"what is great??"--is highly subjective to every individual listener, and impossible to formulate.
A recent local performance by a internationally well known clarinetist of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto was executed with technical perfection--perfectly in tune, good tone and without notational error. The entire audience of aprox 1200 leaped from their seats to applaud as he returned to the stage. However, I remained seated. I though his performance lacked the passion that I had expected and did not deserve a standing ovation. Too me. it seemed as if he was playing Mozart for the 100th time and couldn't wait to get to the resturant after the concert. To everyone else his performance was great--but to me, it was only ordinary. So, I excercised my asthetic individuality--clinging to what I believe is "great"--and remained seated.
Great can be described, but cannot be unequivocally musically defined.
Post Edited (2005-05-25 14:49)
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Author: Clarinetgirl06
Date: 2005-05-25 15:03
William- I agree with what you have just said. My mom gave me some advice which I always find myself coming back to. This has to do with district and state contest, but the jist is the same:
"You can play everything on the page exactly right and you'll get a II, but if you add musicality and passion-that's a I."
I feel like musicality and passion are some of the most important ingredients in a performance. If it's not there, it seems like someone is almost going through the motions or it maybe even feels slightly robotic. Also, as people have stated above-you should be attached to your piece. Although, some people can still give some pretty darn good performances of pieces that they don't really care for.
To each his own.
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Author: clarinetwife
Date: 2005-05-25 15:52
Clarinetgirl06 wrote: Although, some people can still give some pretty darn good performances of pieces that they don't really care for.
I would venture to say that a professional musician (and I am not one) absolutely has to be able to give great performances of pieces they don't really care for.
It it interesting how individual this is. As others have said, not only can an audience feel passionately about a performance when the performer does not, or the other way around, but also different people in the same audience can come away with quite different impressions. Then there are some performances that are just magic.
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Author: EEBaum
Date: 2005-05-25 17:21
"Which just goes to show that you really DO have to be a bit weird to be a composer these days..."
As a composer, I take offense at that. I was under the impression that we were ALWAYS weird, and that it's not just a passing trend.
-Alex
www.mostlydifferent.com
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Author: SueSmith
Date: 2005-05-25 17:44
I have to agree...a great musician can take a piece of junk and make it ... if not a masterpiece, at least mezmorizing.
I recall a masterclass with Tom Martin (BSO) working with a student on Berio Sequenza. I had never heard the piece before...and this student was not making my first experience enjoyable...then Mr. Martin played.
My GOD...the man is a true genius. Of course, he also made a one octave C major scale sound like Mozart had composed it.
At that point I decided to get my MBA.
In my experience there are geniuses...a tiny percentage that are brilliant on their off day. Then for those of us who live on earth...giving 120% effort may one day give birth to perfection...not again to be repeated. Otherwise known as the "one hit wonder" syndrom.
But take heart...the average player can certainly give a note worthy performance...we just have to work much harder at it. Such is the injustice of life.
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