oboeinsight

Hmmmm … what IS our “ilk”?

Oboists and their ilk are rubbing elbows with rock stars and folkies as the classical and pop music worlds reheat their long-running flirtation.

More than a half-dozen pop artists — most of them in mature stages of their careers — are turning to orchestras or ensembles to add highbrow elements to albums and reshape their sound in concert. The integration supposedly is smoother than ever.

I read about it here.

And of course the best thing of all is the end of the following:

Beck recorded four songs for his Emotion & Commotion album (out April 13) with a 64-piece orchestra, including his instrumental take on Puccini’s Nessun Dorma aria and Elegy for Dunkirk from Atonement, which features classical soprano Olivia Safe. He plans to occasionally hook up with local ensembles during his band’s U.S. tour launching in mid-April.

The musicians “seemed to enjoy it,” says Beck, who feared working with “a bunch of snooty classical players that didn’t want to be there. But they were very nice.”

See, here’s the thing. A lot of us love doing stuff like this. Not everyone, mind you. There are some musicians who will be snooty, to be sure. But mostly we get a kick out of it.

Life in the Vienna Phil

From the beginning, we have spoken of the special Viennese qualities…. The way we make music here is… something that has a lot to do with the soul. The soul does not let itself be separated from the cultural roots that we have here in central Europe. And it also doesn’t allow itself to be separated from gender… Therefore, I am convinced that it is worthwhile to accept this racist and sexist irritation, because something produced by a superficial understanding of human rights would not have the same standards.

-Dieter Flury, flautist and current business director (a 1996 quote)

Good to read in the same article that they say there is no racism or sexism in the orchestra though:

Hellsberg said: “There is no racism and no sexism in the orchestra” and added that they are “ambassadors for Austria”. He noted “the mathematical disparity between, for example, female flute students and the orchestra” and said “it must be addressed” but added that “playing for both the State Opera and the Vienna Philharmonic makes it very difficult for family life”. He pointed out “two more women have been confirmed”. He also pointed out: “In the first violin section we have two half-Japanese players.”

The orchestra’s spokeswoman added: “Perhaps women are just not as ambitious as men.”

Okay. I’m going to stop now. I want to go eat bon bons and watch some soaps.

Or maybe I’ll make my latté and teach three students.

We’ll see.

MTT … Oboe … Beethoven

So, I meant to mention a little tidbit from San Francisco Symphony’s press conference on Monday. When MTT was talking about Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis, he said that he played second oboe on the work, under the direction of Lukas Foss (I believe this was at USC). He quote Foss saying, “Let Beethoven take you into his sweaty embrace.”

Just thought I’d share that with you all! :-)

Another Take

I thought for sure some readers would respond to my blog entry about our brains not being able to handle contemporary music. But there was silence.

Maybe your brains couldn’t handle the blog entry?!

I thought for sure someone who loves contemporary classical music (please don’t lecture me about “classical” being a period; we use it generally and I’ve caved on that one since “art music” sounds hoity toity) would bash the news. But nope. Didn’t happen.

Sometimes I put things up without giving my opinion because I am hoping to strike up a conversation or I just want to get you all riled up. Didn’t work!

BUT … now I read this:

So the modern music they’re talking about was written by a composer who died in 1951 — 59 years ago. To put that into perspective, it’s like saying people today can’t handle hip-hop because Fats Domino is too outré. Or that Miles Davis’ “Kind of Blue” (1959) made jazz incomprehensible for 2010 audiences. Or people won’t go to movies because Fellini ruined everything.

A lot has happened in the past half century. But you wouldn’t know it by this article.

I read it here. Be sure to listen to the samples.

Just Read

At some point we will regroup and figure out what to do about the music program – the program has been a tremendous source of encouragement in Haiti and will be again. We mourn for the teachers and students who may not have survived the calamity. But even though 50 years of investment in buildings, equipment, instruments, Haitian music manuscripts, and art work is gone, it all lives on in the lives of two generations of Haitian students and teachers and the scores of volunteers who have helped over the years. Music has always been vitally important in the lives of Haitians, no matter how rich or poor, and will continue to be so in the future.

Read more here.

Alex Klein Interview

… I could quote so much from the interview, but of course that would be cheating! You should go there and read it. But here’s a teaser:

I started on recorder and ordered a good oboe from Germany that came through the Goethe Institute there. Meanwhile, I would go to my oboe lessons only with a reed! [Both laugh] Every week during my lesson, I would play on my teacher’s oboe, and then go home and practice on the reed only. The poor dogs in the neighborhoods! They just hated it!

A Good Reminder

Everything — everyone! — matters. Or at least we should all act as if we do. I’m a one-on-a-part person. This means I have only bagged a performance once, and this was because I was so ill I couldn’t even sit up, much less get dressed. (You all know that story, if you read this blog!) But some players might think they aren’t seen. Or they don’t matter. They do. Always. Nico Muhly (caution, “language” at his site) reminds us:

The performance was great — don’t get me wrong — but Kind and Venerable Sir in the back of the violas: I’m watching u. And y’all phoned it in. That tremolo may not be the most important thing in the texture at that time, but you have to play it like it is — otherwise, what are we all doing with our lives?

I really hate it when I stop caring. And yes, there are times when my part, even being a lone player on either oboe or EH, seems unimportant. But to not care … to phone it in, as we say … well, it eats at one’s soul, I think. I do try to remind myself of this.

Dumping Self-Deprecation (But I’m so GOOD At It!)

If she ever needs to remind herself why she dedicated herself to singing, Joyce DiDonato thinks back to a meeting she had with the great American soprano Leontyne Price. “I said, ‘Miss Price, do you ever put on your own recordings?’ She goes, ‘Oh darling! Sometimes I open a bottle of champagne and listen to them all afternoon. What a gorgeous voice I had!’ ”

The message DiDonato took from this seemingly immodest outburst was that singers should resist the temptation to retreat into a shell of humble self-deprecation. “I’m always self-deprecating, but I thought ‘We get a short amount of time to do what we do, and I want to celebrate it.’ I want to give my best and be able to say, ‘I wasn’t perfect, but I gave everything I had, and I hope you enjoyed it.’ “

I love the above. I’m not anywhere near the level of Miss Price or Miss DiDonato, but I still think there’s something to learn from what Miss Price said. I tend to live in self-deprecation land. Sometimes it’s that I fear that I’m a sham. Sometimes I am just angry at myself for how I’ve played. And other times I’m fearful of becoming arrogant. I really do hate the idea of becoming overly confident or arrogant. But of course putting myself down all the time isn’t a good thing either, and does affect my playing.

There has to be some sort of balance. I can, I’m sure, always play better. But I think all of us can all take great joy in what we do, and there’s really nothing wrong with being thrilled when we really nail something. Self-deprecation really doesn’t do anyone a bit of good, and false humility — something at which I excel (see? I CAN brag!) — is just … well … false. And kind of ugly, too.

RTWT

Blind Auditions (& Shea Scruggs)

“I do feel blind auditions are desirable, because, at the end of the day, if I succeed or fail, I have no doubt it’s because how I played,” Scruggs says. “Orchestras need to have a little bit of faith that a fair audition process will uphold artistic standards.”

The oboist points to the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in New York as an example.

“To my knowledge,” he says, “that’s the only one that holds truly blind auditions, where the winners are accepted before the applicants are ever seen. They have a black principal clarinetist, a black principal trumpet, and a black second trombone. And it’s one of the best orchestras in the world.”

RTWT

Not true any longer, actually: recently San Francisco Opera kept their entire audition behind the screen. I think this is a new practice for them. With us “little folk”: Symphony Silicon Valley does everything behind the screen, as did San Jose Symphony (RIP) before our demise. I used to fight this idea (for reasons other than race, believe me!) but I’ve decided it really is for the best. The tenure review process can deal with issues we might run into once a player wins an audition.

Sound Advice

My advice to young people with artistic talent and passion who are worried about making a living is this: get the best training you can. Commit yourself to using your artistic abilities to making a difference in the world. You may or may not make your living (or all of it, anyway) from a traditional job in that field. How many full-time cello jobs are there? (Even fewer if you play, say, the oboe, as a friend with one of the few full0time oboe symphony jobs pointed out to me the other night.)

-Eric Edberg

Please do read the whole thing. It’s good.

Reflection

And if she explains all this to her, the girl might be overcome, at the realization that the music brought this woman here on this blessed evening. And that the music had been there all along, preparing her to be a doctor, directing her hands both as she found the tumors and as she played the keys of the English Horn, and it was for this woman, perhaps, that the English Horn had been placed in her hands tonight.

RTWT

Really?

Anyone have thoughts on this?

As for my negative feelings about Martynov’s Quintet (I still harbor them), the fact that the work claimed the bulk of this review is telling as to the piece’s effectiveness as a work of art. Although it evoked a response of dislike, it still evoked a strong response … and that’s what matters most.

I read it here.

How To Stay In Business …?

“It’s the large, exciting projects that no one thought we could do. That’s what gets people excited, and that’s what gets you noticed,” Michael Kaiser, president of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., told an audience of approximately 150 at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts.

“A lot of people think the way to get through a crisis is to cut art, cut the marketing,” Kaiser said. “So fewer people come; fewer people give money. You cut more, and you get sicker and less important to your community.

“Do really good work. People have gotten frightened, and when they get frightened, they forget it’s about innovation and revenue, not about cost control.”

RTWT

Some Don’t Know This

The ensemble work was tough: when looking at an orchestra part, you have no idea what the rest of the ensemble is doing, plus you have to count through all the gaps in the score. If you’re a sole instrument, there’s no one around you to help you with the next entry.

Some people — those who haven’t played an instrument — think we have everyone’s part on our sheet music. Not so. We sometimes have a few cues of other parts, but not always. I forget that not everyone understands that. I guess I should take a photo of my part sometime so you can see what I’m looking at.

I read the above quote here. It ends with this:

One of the criticisms levelled against critics is that it’s too easy to yell from the sidelines. In many ways, this is justified. In a city like Toronto, home to hundreds of fabulous instrumentalists and singers, quality is something you take for granted. Once you do that, it’s easy to forget the hours and hours of practice, preparation and organization behind every smooth show.

When I officially became the music critic, I vowed that I had to spend more time actually playing music, as well, for the sole purpose of reminding me, sometimes painfully, that I can’t take anything for granted. Because those people on stage certainly don’t.

I love that. Thank you, Mr. Terauds! :-)

Read it all.

Hmmm

Why do I put up with this?

Because, sometimes … things fall into place. And when it happens, it’s almost like I don’t know why. Like there’s some intangible something, in the air, as it were.

And then I want to do it again. Like smoking crack, only waaaay less reliable. Which explains the relatively small number of oboe addicts, I guess.

Well, I guess I wouldn’t know if what we do is anything close to smoking crack … since I’ve never smoked crack. (Wouldn’t know how … I’d probably do it wrong!) But it is wonderful when things fall into place!

I read the above here. I’d add it to my bloglist but I can’t seem to leave a message for the blogger and, in any case, the blog is anonymous and I prefer not to list anonymous bloggers. (I like the bloglist bloggers to be as accountable as I have to be. Go figure.)

Tomorrow is a busy day … UCSC, private students and opera. And I’m assuming my brother and sister-in-law from Germany are here (no phone call today, but I am going to guess they arrived late in the day and are somewhat tired). I guess I won’t be able to see them until Wednesday. How frustrating is that? Sigh.