THOUGHTS
By the beginning of an upcoming concert season.
How does the perception of music that we listen to live change? Take one of the famous piano concertos as an example. A professional pianist listens to this performance from the angle of his values and, of course, primarily focuses on the soloist's performance. The composer, who is in the hall, listens and hears with other ears, evaluating the composition as such and enjoys its perfection. The tuner of the piano on which this concerto is performed, listens and evaluates the sound of the instrument on which the soloist plays, making his own conclusions accordingly and, of course, does not miss the overall sound in relation to the orchestra. The conductor, who is in this hall as a listener, makes his own conclusions, not missing the peculiarities of the interpretation of his colleague at the podium. An ordinary listener, rather, reacts more emotionally to the performance, finding his favorite moments for himself. A music critic tries to analyze what he heard all the time and makes important notes and accents. So who brings the greatest objectivity to the assessment of such a performance?! I think that this assessment is summed up by everyone sitting in the hall. And what do you think about the diversity of our perception, considering that the success of the performance depends not only on the artists, but also on the listeners.
On the Art of Conducting
Observing the art of conducting of the past and present, the ever-present obvious question arises: what is conducting in the truest sense of the word? The most primitive approach to this matter is the idea of how clearly such a leader controls the meter, tempos, dynamics and balance. Many admirers and performers of this type of creativity believe that this is the art of conducting and the more clearly and accurately you use it, the more successful their position in this field. However, when faced with video recordings of the best representatives of the past in this profession, for example, with such as Furtaengler, Munch, Toscanini, Stokowski, Mravinsky, Klemperer, Kleiber, it becomes obvious that the basics of conducting listed above are by no means all that leads to such a grandiose and undoubtedly outstanding result. First of all, this is determined by how much a conductor can be called a Musician with a capital letter. What are his inner intentions in reading this composition, has a clear concept and decision to achieve his idea emerged? Conducting as a process can be concentrated on the desire to achieve a perfect form, to find in a gesture those means that will help to demonstrate the only true character, to play with his own special unique sound, the ability to cement all the elements of a given score and thus achieve a complete fusion of all groups of the orchestra and soloists. Thus, the conducting style of real masters is very individual and unique. What is the result of the sound if the leader is able to achieve a certain sound, using special gestures, a special conducting touch and a special sound management. To what extent is his conducting technique equipped to be able to show and instantly change, for example, articulation in the orchestra. Is he able, due to his hypnotic abilities, to achieve an instant result, without resorting to endless repetitions and even worse, tiresome lectures at rehearsals. How convincing should he be so that the orchestra accepts him and unconditionally and inspiredly embodies the proposed character of the performance in sound. With orchestras of the first magnitude, the conducting technique also changes greatly, since it is not at all necessary to concentrate on distributing introductions and endless timing, supposedly supporting the general ensemble. Of course, such an experienced leader will not duplicate what the orchestra does successfully without him. He will feel and understand what he can contribute to the already finished sound, how to modify it and direct it in the direction you need, how to manage the entire process so that the performance under his direction turns into a revelation of the master, with such an effect as we can observe in outstanding dramatic actors in their stellar moments on stage. An outstanding performance result is always an inseparable attitude to the technique of playing and artistic embodiment. Leading an orchestra means always paving the way for performance, being ready to instantly switch from one group to another, being ready at certain moments to concentrate on rhythm, and on meter, and on articulation, and on sound production, but at the same time not to get hung up on the details of building a form and maximally revealing the spirit, meaning and dramaturgy of a given work.
Note:
«Talent and personality are far from the same thing. If personal qualities, character, actions, criteria are transmitted genetically and very often are parallels of their ancestors, then talent or in its highest manifestation Genius is a gift from God. We must not forget that such a gift is also a colossal responsibility, a mission in life, an order from above, or do it... When we evaluate the personality of such outstanding representatives of humanity, it is necessary to remember this eternal division and try to be objective in our passions and worship».
Note: On the introduction before the performance.
“The desire to share this fragment is primarily connected with the meaning and content of what I wanted to draw attention to before the start of this performance. I hope that such a practice of a speaking conductor helps the perception of music and focuses on the main supporting points of the concept of the composition, if there is one, of course. I have never prepared myself as a lecturer, but at the most important moments I allow myself to talk a little with the audience, to tune them up, or something. In Russia, it has always been customary to have a musicologist or "music witch" in philharmonic societies. There are wonderful memorable examples of this, such as Solertynsky, Dobrokhotova, etc., but it is better if the conductor himself is capable of this. Then both the introduction and the performance itself become organic”.