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Originally Posted by _TrumpeT_  I've read that you assisted Robert Nagel for this recording. This sounds very interesting! Can you please elaborate on the experience? Was assisting for Brandenburg Concerto no.2 a normal procedure back in the days? |
I don't think assisting has ever been discussed on the web.
Most of our posters are too young to remember the day when making a splice was difficult, if not impossible.
On the Marlboro recording I did very little, I played some of the repeated patterns to give Bob's chops a little time off. One take per movement. Clam a note.......back to the top.
Nagel was amazing. He played flawlessly, and he did it on a Mahillion piccolo trumpet WITH the mouthpiece that came with the horn. The mouthpiece was a sharp edged flat, shallow piece. Pablo Casals' Bach performances have nothing to do the current "authentic" performances. I love the Casals romantic style.
For many years Sam Krauss didn't have an assistant in Philadelphia, but William Vacchiano did. John Ware had to be on his toes at all times. The Philly repertoire was not as heavy as the NY philharmonic, I think that how Sam got away with no assistant help.
When I played in Baltimore I got to play some fun pieces. The Prokofief concertos have some nifty parts. I got to play on all the concertos and most of the off-stage stuff. On some of the run-out concerts it was an adventure playing off stage. I have frightened unsuspecting latecomers many times
Playing assistant in orchestras is a fun job, and a very responsible one.
Wilmer