I am about to leave to go play the second concert in this weekend’s Columbus Symphony fare, with Christopher Seaman conducting. Maestro Seaman rehearsed the orchestra in a remarkably efficient and thorough manner during the week, using his English wit and humor to great effect in communicating his rich musical ideas. The Bruckner 4th Symphony, normally an unwieldy piece, was well assembled thanks to Seaman’s efforts.
This concert features pianist Yeol Eum Son, Cliburn Silver Medal Winner, on Mozart’s 23rd piano concerto. The concerto has clarinets in it, something he only did in his later piano concertos. It’s also in the key of A, which is the same key as Mozart’s famous clarinet concerto, K 622. And it begins with the same two notes as that clarinet concerto. Cool, huh?
The second movement of the piano concerto has a lovely clarinet solo line which begins on a high C. I have begun to use air attacks for soft solos like this, finding that it allows for a seamless beginning of the note, as if it comes from nothing. The trick is to voice the note carefully with the air and embouchure so it speaks in tune and without a grunt. (click photo for larger one)
Mozart Piano Concerto 23, 2nd movt.
In the Bruckner, a similar situation presented itself:
Bruckner 4th Symphony, 1st movt.
In the Scherzo movement of the Bruckner the music demands a light, mercurial articulation. In this instance, the notes jump over the altissimo break. The only way to play this passage well is to do everything right: firm embouchure, solid air support, proper voicing, relaxed throat, and light tongue motion. And the hardest part is to get the lick out 4 times in a row, and then do it all over again on the repeat of the scherzo!
A letter to the editor of the Columbus Dispatch, Ohio. I tried to search the Dispatch archive for the tourism article mentioned in this letter, but the Dispatch website has trouble finding its archive. I got the text of the tourism article referred to in this letter. It’s posted below.
Orchestra rates low as city investment
Monday, March 15, 2010 2:51 AM
Columbus’ provincial attitude toward the arts became apparent once again in a comparison of the March 3 Dispatch article “Columbus’ appeal to tourists growing,” which detailed sizable investments into the city’s tourism profile, with the March 5 Dispatch article “Musicians accept another cut in pay,” making clear that salaries for Columbus Symphony Orchestra musicians, who played so brilliantly two weekends ago, will have been cut by nearly 40 percent in two years, after this latest round of concessions.
Amid the orchestra’s precipitous decline, where is any discussion of the kind of public-private partnership that is making these tourism projects possible? It is almost as if the symphony is being scripted out of existence.
Clearly, whatever “brand image” Columbus Partnership has been seeking for the city does not include the arts.
NANCY RAABE
Bexley
Columbus’ appeal to tourists growing
City has new image, center’s CEO says
Wednesday, March 3, 2010 2:51 AM
BY MARLA MATZER ROSE
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
If you are interested in reading the comments in response to the article below, go to Comments.
With a convention hotel and new attractions on the way, Columbus will be able to raise its profile as a destination, creating positive momentum both locally and nationally, said Paul Astleford, Experience Columbus CEO, at the group’s annual meeting yesterday.
Developments on the horizon include the 532-room convention hotel, a project set to break ground near the convention center this year; the planned casino; a new polar bear exhibit set to open soon at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium; and the Columbus Commons and Scioto Mile park projects that are on the way.
Best of all, Astleford said, even with these new amenities, Columbus will remain a “value destination,” which is highly desirable in “the new world economy” where spending has been reduced. He spoke to a crowd of 850 in the overhauled Battelle Grand ballroom at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
“Many corporations, associations and leisure tourists are looking for more for their money … steering away from more-extravagant, high-priced destinations to explore a different measure of worth and return on their investment,” he said.
“And the more they explore, the more they like what they see of not only our authentic Midwestern values, but also the incredible value propositions we offer as a meeting and visitor destination.”
Astleford praised the work of other local groups, including the Columbus Partnership and the Columbus 2012 bicentennial planning committee, which have been working on developing a new brand image for the city.
“After talking about it for 50 years, we are well down a path of an unprecedented new image-development process,” he said.
Experience Columbus depends on bed-tax revenue and financial support from the county and city for most of its budget, and Astleford stressed the value of public-private partnerships. The new convention hotel is being publicly financed, and the new Downtown parks are being created through public-private partnerships.
Also the result of a public-private partnership is Huntington Park, the Downtown baseball park that opened to accolades last year. The Franklin County commissioners and several dozen other partners that helped make the venue a reality took the stage early in the program to accept one of the three Expy awards that Experience Columbus hands out each year to projects that make a significant contribution to tourism.
The other two awards went to: the Egypt in Columbus exhibition, which had complementary exhibits at the Columbus Museum of Art and COSI and participation from the Columbus Metropolitan Library system; and the Pelotonia bike ride to benefit cancer research at the Ohio State University medical center, a project that NetJets sponsored.
Funny. When I came to Columbus 20 years ago, I left a job which had a 25 week season. Now I’m back to that. Full circle. Too bad my age can’t rewind to such a nice youthful number!
Symphony musicians accept another cut in pay
Friday, March 5, 2010 3:40 AM
By Jeffrey Sheban
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
To help keep the financially strapped Columbus Symphony afloat, musicians have agreed to wage concessions worth $1.1 million this year and next.
As part of a restructuring announced yesterday, the symphony also said it wants to combine administrative functions with those of the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts, potentially eliminating as many as 18 symphony staff positions and saving an additional $500,000 annually.
The moves are intended to reduce expenses in the 2010-11 season to $7.5 million – down from $9 million this season – and help chip away at an estimated $500,000 deficit in the current fiscal year, which ends Aug. 31.
“It’s bitter medicine that is necessary for the Columbus Symphony to turn the corner and revitalize itself,” said Roland Valliere, president and chief executive officer.
Musicians voted last weekend to revise their contract, which runs through the 2010-11 season. Forty-six full-time members agreed to give up two weeks of paid vacation time this year, for a savings of $120,000, while accepting a 23 percent pay cut in the fiscal year starting Sept. 1, saving the orchestra $1 million.
“They showed us all their financials, and the orchestra was out of cash,” said Douglas J. Fisher, president of the musicians union and a bassoonist with the orchestra. He called the concessions “painful but necessary.”
The latest giveback reduces the annual salary of most musicians to about $35,000, down from the current $45,000 and the previous year’s $55,000. Principal players can earn up to 20 percent more.
“Obviously, everyone is very upset at the prospect of these cuts,” Fisher said. “But it’s just what we have to do to survive this economic downturn.”
For the 2010-11 season, the revised contract with musicians will eliminate three weeks of paid vacation, five weeks of contracted-service concerts with BalletMet Columbus and Opera Columbus (which don’t turn a profit for the symphony), and five weeks of special-engagement concerts throughout the year.
Valliere said musicians will be allowed to negotiate directly with the ballet and opera for work accompanying performances, including The Nutcracker.
The revised contract preserves all pops and Classical Series concerts this season and next, and the outdoor Picnic With the Pops concerts in the summer.
“From the public’s point of view, they’ll be able to enjoy the symphony as much next year as this year,” Valliere said.
Meanwhile, talks have been under way for several weeks to let CAPA handle finance, marketing, development and concert production for the orchestra. Administrators and board members from both organizations would like to reach an agreement quickly, Valliere said.
“At this important time, we are exploring ways for CAPA to leverage its resources and offer assistance to the symphony,” Bill Conner, CAPA’s president, said in a statement. “We all want to help (the orchestra) achieve a stable and sustainable future.”
In Columbus, CAPA owns and operates the Ohio, Palace and Southern theaters, and manages the Riffe Center and Lincoln theaters. Conner was unavailable for further comment yesterday.
In recent years, CAPA has taken on administrative duties for the Franklin Park Conservatory, Contemporary American Theatre Company, Phoenix Theatre for Children and Opera Columbus.
Armed with the orchestra’s latest cost-cutting plans, Valliere and board chairman Martin Inglis will be calling on corporate donors to help close the current-season budget gap, which last month reached as high as $1.5million.
Thanks mainly to individual donors, the orchestra has raised more than half of the funds needed to meet a $100,000 challenge grant put up by an anonymous supporter.
If and when the bleeding stops, Valliere will get busy implementing his vision for the orchestra’s future, which includes a new music director and new revenue from podcasts, music downloads and video performances on demand.
“You can’t succeed if you don’t survive,” he said. “The notion is to build forward from here, so we can get to the point of success.”
On the program of the Columbus Symphony concerts this weekend is Mahler 1st Symphony in D, a magnificent work proving Mahler emerged with the merits of a full blown master in his mid to late-twenties. (b1860-d1911)
The other works are Mozart Symphony number 32 in G, and the Violin Concerto, Opus 14 by American Composer Samuel Barber. Like Mahler, Barber wrote this iconic concerto in his late 20s (b1910-d1981).
The story behind the Barber concerto, as some of you may already know, is this: The first two movements were presented to the soloist, Iso Briselli, who declared them too easy for his virtuosic technique, after which Barber wrote the famously difficult third movement, which the soloist declared unplayable and not as musical as the fist two movements. Barber had it premiered by someone else, to the embarrassment of the young Briselli.
Barber Violin concerto, clarinet part
I can attest to the difficulty of that third movement.
The photo at right shows the fiendish excerpt from that movement, where the two clarinets play an incredibly tricky and frightening passage at a very fast tempo, half note at 96 according to the part. (as usual, you can enlarge the photo by clicking on it)
Luckily, since both parts have the same notes, we have the choice of switching off playing sections.
But I would rather meet the challenge of playing the whole passage myself. The difficulty is not only the notes, but keeping track of the number of repetitions of the figure, which don’t necessarily match up with the rhythms.
Naturally, I tackled it by first playing through it slowly, memorizing (the first rule of learning music) as quickly as possible the notes. I marked in the necessary fingerings, and noted the larger beats of the rhythms.
Then, contrary to popular methods, I attempt to play the passage as close to full tempo as possible, “winging it”, so to speak. This shows me the “height of the mountain”, and also encourages the kind of determined focus required to play it well even under good circumstances. It also highlights the difficult transitions, where one finger must switch in a potentially awkward way.
With this information in the databank of memory, I return to the method of slow practice and work it up to tempo.
This morning, however, my lip was so sore (after a week off to care for my mother, then diving back into practice), that I simply could not repeat the passage without causing more damage. My lip needs to heal a bit before rehearsals begin with the orchestra this week.
So I resorted to “virtual practicing”, another valuable tool for learning music. (I have to admit, I was reminded of this type of practice by my friend Joar Henriksen, in a recent post on his new blog.) Holding the clarinet to my lips (only to steady it against the finger motions) and without any pressure or blowing, I finger the passage. (You can also do this without the instrument entirely, for an even more challenging virtual workout)
The advantages of this practice are as follows:
1- By separating parts of technique, you can readily focus on any unnecessary tensions in hands, arms and neck when fingering the notes without the often overwhelming task of doing so with all parts employed. (I emphasize unnecessary tension to clarify that healthy tension is indeed required)
2- Without the sound of the notes, it is necessary to “hear” the passage in your mind’s “ear”, and thus imprint it more firmly in your memory.
3- You will develop stronger, more rhythmic fingers, both in the conception by your mind, and by the necessity of fingering more clearly (rhythmically) to keep track of the notes.
“Nothing communicates better than art. It is quicker than language and clearer than philosophy.” Frederick Weisman
“If the key is in question in Shostakovich, it’s always in the minor.” Gunther Herbig
I’ve been using Twitter to query my followers about the value of music and the arts. I was curious if people thought there is a purpose to classical music beyond entertainment. According to Wikipedia, entertainment “consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time.”
One person wrote of the value of classical music, “To cultivate a healthy mind, it’s needed!” Another said ” Music is the one language we all understand.” Another said good classical music helps us “explore truths and open conversations beyond wordly understanding”.
But few can explain how and why some music goes beyond mere entertainment. Music can challenge the audience to a wide range of emotions from bleak to angry to ecstatic.
Some of the music on program of this weekends Columbus Symphony concerts may stir the listener to more than a lulled state of amusement. We’re are playing two pieces by Dmitri Shostakovich, his 10th Symphony in E minor Op. 93 and his Piano Concerto No. 2, in F major Op. 102 written for his son, Maxim. Gunther Herbig leads, with his wife Jutta Czapski playing the piano concerto.
The Symphony was first performed soon after the death of Stalin in 1953. It was his first symphonic work since his (second) “denunciation” by Stalin’s government in 1948.
The first movement opening is bleak, desolate. A ruminative, only mildly optimistic theme is played by the clarinet and developed, almost bitterly, by the rest of the orchestra. Glimmers of hope (major chords) are but passing shadows. A second theme, introduced by the flute, is jovial by comparison, waltz-like, but certainly not what I would call happy. When the clarinet returns with the first theme, the solo seems to wander aimlessly before finding the theme again. Later the bassoons take the theme and darken it more with their plaintive tones.
The second movement, probably the most famous in the symphony, is said to be a “portrait of Stalin.” I found this video on YouTube which makes the point quite clear. It is relentlessly angry and violent, miltaristic and unstoppable.
The third movement is again waltz-like, but not light in spirit. It communicates more sarcasm and irony, an almost creepy drunken mood, a sodden, bitter smile: Dark circus music. A horn solo, repeated numerous times in the middle, signifies Shostakovich’s name (thumbing his nose at Stalin?), and his love for a student named Elmira Nazirova.
The fourth movement, after an alternately tender and eerie slow opening for oboe, flute and bassoon solos, goes into another ironically humorous theme which builds to the ecstatic, if not happy, ending.
This symphony is surprisingly well known and loved by audiences. Why? It seems to reach out and draw the listener in, not so much to entertain, but to offer an emotional glimpse of one of the darkest periods in human history.
Luckily the piano concerto is un-customarily sunny for Shostakovich, and should be a nice balance for the program.
The difficult passages in the Sierra “Fandangos” were, as I expected, mostly for “effect”, meaning the notes themselves didn’t matter as much as the shape and volume of the passage. Delfs used the word “Sirocco” to describe the blurs of loud runs. A Sirocco is a “hot or warm wind of cyclonic origin from an arid or heated region.” The piece overall was entertaining and colorful, and used the orchestra effectively. I can see why Sierra has gotten some attention as a composer.
Andre Watts performed the Beethoven Emperor piano concerto like a seasoned pro. His famously full tone on the piano transformed the piece into something larger than life. Delfs followed his lead with a rich and full accompaniment, which few pianists could cut through, but Watts had no trouble.
Unfortunately, the concentration of both performers and listeners was annoyed by a high pitched whine from a hearing aid or some other electronic device. Delfs even spoke to the audience between movements, requesting the owner of offending hearing aid to turn it off.
The incident reminded me of similar event I experienced a few years ago. It occurred at a concert of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion which I attended at the Kennedy Center. A guide-dog, which accompanied a listener in the audience, didn’t like the music being played, and whined through several movements. The conductor did not stop and request that it cease immediately, but the animal and its owner were asked to leave during intermission. Yet the entire audience had to withstand a substantial distraction during an otherwise stellar concert. It raises thorny questions about the limits of inclusiveness at concerts.
I had forgotten how tricky Beethoven concertos could be. His 1st piano concerto has a lengthy clarinet solo in the slow movement. His violin concerto has another such delicate and difficult solo. Tonight’s concerto, the 5th and last concerto he wrote for piano, has yet another dicey part, difficult to tune and phrase, especially at the dynamics Beethoven requests. Yet I felt better than usual about it, armed as I am now with Legere synthetic reeds, which don’t collapse under the stresses of heat and tense playing. After the concerto, I commented to my colleague Woody that I had never felt so (relatively) comfortable in a performance of that piece.
The second half featured Brahms’ magnificent 2nd symphony, which a friend of mine claims is his best. It’s Brahms’ “happiest” symphony, with cheerful themes throughout. Yet I never fail to be amazed at Brahms’ rich and dense score. In my view, there is more music packed in each measure of Brahms than any other composer. It’s as if he wrote a piece two hours long, and then somehow condensed the same emotions into 45 minutes. Delfs’ traditionally expansive reading allowed us to feel and explore much of the hidden detail.
As for my own experience, I was a happy clam. I had settled just this week on playing my Hawkins B mouthpiece. I had not played it much with the Legere reeds, but after I grew accustomed to the combination, I was quite happy. For the first time in years, I felt and heard the resonance of my own sound coming back to me from the hall. Remember, the Ohio Theater is quite large, 2800+ seats, and not a particularly resonant hall. Much of the sound just bounces around the boxy stage. But I remember the comfort of knowing I had filled the hall with my sound, when I was playing on my old Lelandais in its heyday before it lost its integrity. Tonight I felt that resonance again. Hallelujah!
As for Gremlins, they exist. They will creep into a passage and throw a few notes off, just for gremlin fun. As any seasoned orchestra player will tell you, if one person gets a gremlin, they are sure to bounce around to a few other players before ceasing. There were a few gremlins tonight, but nothing Brahms’ glorious music couldn’t handle.
This weekend the Columbus Symphony is playing a symphonic concert featuring pianist Andre Watts in Beethoven’s 5th Concerto, Emperor. Andreas Delfs, former music director of the Milwaukee Symphony, leads us in Johannes Brahms’ 2nd Symphony in D Major.
Delfs had some interesting comments during our rehearsal of the Brahms today. At one point, wanting to urge us to play particularly passionately in one place, he said “You never know how many people in the audience are hearing this for the first time.” I agree. And his comfortable familiarity with the piece promises a rich and noble reading.
To open the concert, we are playing something new to us, Roberto Sierra’s Fandangos, written in 2000.
Mr. Sierra, Puerto Rican, was born in 1953. He studied in Europe, notably with György Ligeti, a well known avant-garde composer, whose music was featured famously in the move 2001 A Space Odyssey.
Fandangos has some passages which are, for all practical purposes, unplayable. The photo below shows the first page, listing the tempo at quarter equals 96, the second photo shows the passages in question. Notice also that the first page also says “Improvisatorio, and a bit later “con garbo”, meaning “jauntily”. The possessed passages will definitely sound improvised, and not just a little bit jaunty.
Dear Mr. Sierra, what were you thinking? Why did you write such fiendish licks for us? Musicians are good creatures, never wishing to harm anyone, except themselves. Did a musician mistreat you at a tender age? What did we do to deserve banishment to the guilt-riddled purgatory of failing to play exactly what is written? Please, send me a list of clarinetists who can play these licks perfectly, and I’ll show you a clarinetist like the technical genius monster Kari Krikku, or another once in a generation player.
So Mr. Roberto Sierra get the “Naughtiest Composer so far” award.
The other works are Mozart Symphony number 32 in G, and the Violin Concerto, Opus 14 by American Composer Samuel Barber. Like Mahler, Barber wrote this iconic concerto in his late 20s (b1910-d1981).
