by Kenneth Woods | Aug 5, 2006 | A view from the podium, Nuts and bolts
I seem to have a habit of referring to some conductors as Zen masters, and a friend recently asked what the hell I mean by this. First, though a disclaimer- I would never begin to claim any particular philosophical experitise or deep understanding of the true tenants...
by Kenneth Woods | Jul 18, 2006 | A view from the podium, Nuts and bolts
This represents a very unscientific sample, but I think I’ve worked or studied with seven people who, in turn, studied or worked with Copland, including one who was his assistant and another who was both a close collaborator and a boyfriend. All were very gracious in...
by Kenneth Woods | Jul 16, 2006 | A view from the podium, Nuts and bolts
The greatest music festival in the world, the BBC Proms, got under way on Friday evening with a concert by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Jiri Behlolavek (who I assisted at the NSO a few years back). The major work on the program was Shostakovich’s Fifth...
by Kenneth Woods | Jul 11, 2006 | A view from the podium, Music and Media, Nuts and bolts
Interesting discovery today. Ligetisplit, a Chicago based blogger (I think the whole question of annonymous blogging, especially in the music world, might merit a post in the near future). He’s started uploading clips of various conductors to YouTube with his...
by Kenneth Woods | Jul 8, 2006 | A view from the podium, Nuts and bolts
So, back to sustaining…. We talked in some detail about one small bit of Beethoven, and some of what we had to understand in order to begin shape the sound to make the music sound as alive, vibrant, intense and directed as the composer wants it to sound. For the...
by Kenneth Woods | Jul 7, 2006 | A view from the podium, Favorite posts, Nuts and bolts
Very briefly…. My favourite moment in the second movement of Beethoven 3 is bars 157-159 (just after letter E), when we hear a very soft, very high a-flat in the first violins, followed by a very loud, very low a-flat in the celli and basses, then a very loud a-flat...
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