by Kenneth Woods | Apr 11, 2013 | A view from the podium
“If there was anything that Brahms profoundly detested, it was theorizing. For him, music was a matter of living perception, of living experience; he considered it pointless t to speculate about the conditions of its effect. That concepts such as expression,...
by Kenneth Woods | Apr 10, 2013 | A view from the podium
And suddenly it was April… 2013 is shaping up to be the slowest year yet for the blog, but not for lack of good intentions or good ideas. It’s just been, yet again, even busier and wackier than past years- a trend which is getting increasingly daunting as it...
by Kenneth Woods | Mar 28, 2013 | A view from the podium
The expressions “long-awaited” and “much-anticipated” are clichés that have long since left their real meanings and original usage behind. In classical music-speak, “long awaited” or “much anticipated” are usually used to refer to routine weekly debut performances by...
by Kenneth Woods | Feb 23, 2013 | A view from the podium, Not quite the news, Satire
It was music to the ears of classical aficionados worldwide when President Barack Obama became the first American president to officially call for a national commitment to take exposition repeats in last week’s State of the Union speech . Obama brought repeat...
by Kenneth Woods | Feb 17, 2013 | A view from the podium
I just conducted Bruckner’s Second Symphony for the first time a few days ago- even many of the most pro-Bruckner opinion makers seem to think that only his symphonies from the Fourth onward are worth doing, and the often over-zealous defences of the early symphonies...
by Kenneth Woods | Jan 26, 2013 | A view from the podium
I don’t play trombone, but If I were to play trombone in a Bruckner symphony, I would… Bathe in yak’s blood for a month Shave with an axe Tattoo a picture of Thor’s hammer on my forehead If I were to play trombone in a Bruckner symphony, I would… Practice...
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