I have been playing the piece since I was about 15, and it never ceases to amaze me. It is not just that it is chromatic, it also shifts keys violently and seemlessly. Sometimes, when people don't know Mozart very well, they will say that he is "pretty," but not as "profound" or "modern" as Bach and Beethoven. The K475 all by itself refutes the point.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Monday, June 6, 2011
What makes an orchestra great
I was thinking about this while listening to Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic do Brahms 4th yesterday afternoon. It was overall a thrilling performance--the first two movements were as good as anything I have heard, and third was great, and my only problem with the 4th was that I thought Dudamel's tempo was a little slow and he overplayed the contrasts a wee bit (of course, that is just a question of taste).
The playing, however, was awesome. So why makes an orchestra great? The following thoughts occur to me:
(1) They are completely in tune.
(2) They are precise and yet they also swing. The LA Phil did the Mozart Haffner Symphony earlier this year, and the strings sounded as if they were one instrument. Yesterday, when they played the great second subject of the first movement of the Brahms, they made it sound like a big, German Tango. The pulse never wavered, but there was great flexibility.
(3) They are powerful and yet transparent: they can get loud without being ugly, and every individual voice remains clear.
(4) They can play a great variety of styles. The Brahms 4 was very German yesterday, but when they did the famous Hungarian Dance 5 as an encore, it was pure Warner Brothers.
(5) Fine soloists. I have been a fan of Michelle Zukovsky, the LA Phil's principal clarenet, since I came across an album called Philharmonic Solo when I was in college (which was the late 1970s). I remember hearing her clarinet solo in the Beethoven 6 with Giulini when the LA Phil came to Boston many years ago, and she was terrific in the Brahms yesterday. David Buck, the new principal flutist, made the haunting flute solo in the 4th movement (bars 97-104), well haunting. First oboe Ariana Ghez produces consistently breathtaking sounds as well.
(6) The ability to be heterogeneous and homogeneous. Sometimes, when one instrument takes over a melodic line from another, one likes to hear them meld: for the clarinet to sound just a little like the oboe; for the strings to sound a little like the winds. Karajan's Berlin Philharmonic was miraculous at this, but Karajan liked that patricular characteristic a bit too much, so the orchestra sometimes sounded a little bit like how my mother-in-law's Cadillac would ride--it was just too cushy. Part of the LA Phil's flexibility is that is is capable of producing Karajanesque smoothness, but can also make instruments stand out for what they are.
(7) That they seem to care. Unlike any other major league orchestra I have seen, the member of the LA Phil never look bored to me. But maybe that is just me.
The playing, however, was awesome. So why makes an orchestra great? The following thoughts occur to me:
(1) They are completely in tune.
(2) They are precise and yet they also swing. The LA Phil did the Mozart Haffner Symphony earlier this year, and the strings sounded as if they were one instrument. Yesterday, when they played the great second subject of the first movement of the Brahms, they made it sound like a big, German Tango. The pulse never wavered, but there was great flexibility.
(3) They are powerful and yet transparent: they can get loud without being ugly, and every individual voice remains clear.
(4) They can play a great variety of styles. The Brahms 4 was very German yesterday, but when they did the famous Hungarian Dance 5 as an encore, it was pure Warner Brothers.
(5) Fine soloists. I have been a fan of Michelle Zukovsky, the LA Phil's principal clarenet, since I came across an album called Philharmonic Solo when I was in college (which was the late 1970s). I remember hearing her clarinet solo in the Beethoven 6 with Giulini when the LA Phil came to Boston many years ago, and she was terrific in the Brahms yesterday. David Buck, the new principal flutist, made the haunting flute solo in the 4th movement (bars 97-104), well haunting. First oboe Ariana Ghez produces consistently breathtaking sounds as well.
(6) The ability to be heterogeneous and homogeneous. Sometimes, when one instrument takes over a melodic line from another, one likes to hear them meld: for the clarinet to sound just a little like the oboe; for the strings to sound a little like the winds. Karajan's Berlin Philharmonic was miraculous at this, but Karajan liked that patricular characteristic a bit too much, so the orchestra sometimes sounded a little bit like how my mother-in-law's Cadillac would ride--it was just too cushy. Part of the LA Phil's flexibility is that is is capable of producing Karajanesque smoothness, but can also make instruments stand out for what they are.
(7) That they seem to care. Unlike any other major league orchestra I have seen, the member of the LA Phil never look bored to me. But maybe that is just me.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Orchestra Seating.
For many years, my favorite Beethoven 9 set was the Karajan set from the early 1960s. While it has some moments of Karajan slickness, and I don't like the 6th at all, the playing in general is so magnificent that I have gotten a great deal of pleasure from it over the years.
That set has been displaced by Haitink's recent LSO 9. I like Haitink's interpretations better, and the playing is, to me, as good as the BPO's in the 60s. But as I was listening to the set, a question occurred to me.
One thing that is quite noticible is the placement of the violins: the first violins are on the left, and the second on the right. Violas are left center and cellos are right center. Apparently, this was also the seating arrangement Toscanini used more than 60 years ago. In between, orchestras were usually seated from high strings to low as one moved from left to right. As it happens, I like the spatial arrangement used by Haitink now, and it leads me to be curious about what leads to changes in tradations about seating arrangements.
That set has been displaced by Haitink's recent LSO 9. I like Haitink's interpretations better, and the playing is, to me, as good as the BPO's in the 60s. But as I was listening to the set, a question occurred to me.
One thing that is quite noticible is the placement of the violins: the first violins are on the left, and the second on the right. Violas are left center and cellos are right center. Apparently, this was also the seating arrangement Toscanini used more than 60 years ago. In between, orchestras were usually seated from high strings to low as one moved from left to right. As it happens, I like the spatial arrangement used by Haitink now, and it leads me to be curious about what leads to changes in tradations about seating arrangements.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
I saw Roger Waters do The Wall Last Night.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Ten Songs about America's Ten Largest Cities
(1) Sidewalks of New York
(2) I Love LA
(3) Mrs. O'Leary's Cow
(4) Space Oddity
(5) By the time I get to Phoenix
(6) Streets of Philadelphia
(7) The Ballad of Davy Crockett
(8) San Diego Serenade
(9) The Devil lives in Dallas
(10) Do you know the way to San Jose?
(2) I Love LA
(3) Mrs. O'Leary's Cow
(4) Space Oddity
(5) By the time I get to Phoenix
(6) Streets of Philadelphia
(7) The Ballad of Davy Crockett
(8) San Diego Serenade
(9) The Devil lives in Dallas
(10) Do you know the way to San Jose?
Monday, November 22, 2010
Great Program from Midori Last Night.
She put together a wonderful group of pieces: Mozart, Bartok, Bach, Crumb and Szymanowski. It was all very good, but the Bach was really special: her ability to keep multiple lines going makes it sound like multiple fiddlers are playing.
Then again, sometimes I think Bach should never be programmed against other composers (even young Mozart), because he was just so much better than anyone else.
Then again, sometimes I think Bach should never be programmed against other composers (even young Mozart), because he was just so much better than anyone else.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Orchestra Rankings are Silly
As part of our general obsession with rankings, one from time-to-time sees rankings of orchestras. Gramophone produced one a few years back, and it produced considerable discussion and consternation. When I talk with fellow lovers of symphonic music, they often will wonder aloud about whether the "Big 5" is still the Big 5.
When I visit cities away from home, if the local orchestra is playing, I try to take in a concert. What is striking to me is how really, really good so many orchestras are: within the last year I have heard tremendous concerts here in LA and in Amsterdam, but also in Atlanta and Minneapolis (The Minnesotans played the best Nachtmusik I from Mahler's 7th that I have ever heard).
Even smaller cities have good orchestras, if not quite at the level as larger cities. This is not surprising: there is a lot of great musical talent out there (a friend from a city of about 200,000 reports that his orchestra's principal horn player was runner-up for the job in Chicago). John DeMain did a marvelous job building a fine orchestra in Madison. The Pasadena Symphony is good.
So instead of worrying which orchestras are better than others, perhaps we should just enjoy the ones we have. But by all means, rag on conductors: the bad ones can make even great orchestras sound dull.
When I visit cities away from home, if the local orchestra is playing, I try to take in a concert. What is striking to me is how really, really good so many orchestras are: within the last year I have heard tremendous concerts here in LA and in Amsterdam, but also in Atlanta and Minneapolis (The Minnesotans played the best Nachtmusik I from Mahler's 7th that I have ever heard).
Even smaller cities have good orchestras, if not quite at the level as larger cities. This is not surprising: there is a lot of great musical talent out there (a friend from a city of about 200,000 reports that his orchestra's principal horn player was runner-up for the job in Chicago). John DeMain did a marvelous job building a fine orchestra in Madison. The Pasadena Symphony is good.
So instead of worrying which orchestras are better than others, perhaps we should just enjoy the ones we have. But by all means, rag on conductors: the bad ones can make even great orchestras sound dull.
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