Quote:
Originally Posted by ilikethetrumpet  my digression has digressed. |
Ilike,
The above broke me up. Thank you. It happens alot in this forum (!)
Re Stravinsky, two points come instantly to mind: 1) Stravinsky's interpretations of his own music were greatly influenced by Robert Kraft in his later years. 2) Notation--and, in particular, tempo markings--can't take into account the conditions of a particular performance (acoustic, clairity of the band, etc.)
I remember playing offstage trumpet years ago in a performance of Berlioz' Requiem (Atlanta Symphony/Robert Kraft) at Carnegie Hall and thinking what an absolute piece of dreck this piece was. I played it with another group (first trumpet this time) two weeks later at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine (the world's largest Gothic Cathedral for those of you keeping score) and my opinion completely changed. This grand work, concieved for performance in Notre Dame, made total sense in a wet acoustic. Tempi were slower as well in consideration of the delay.
Gabrieli Canzoni sound silly on a concert stage and marvelous in a large, San Marcolike, space. Fortunately metronome markings weren't even a glimmer in Giovanni's eye.
Ah, the life we lead!
Best,
Sherlock