15 Feb
2013
15 Feb
'13
10:19 a.m.
On 14/02/13 19:35, Fons Adriaensen wrote:
On Thu, Feb 14, 2013 at 11:16:27PM +0530, Rustom Mody
wrote:
I agree. Same goes for Mozart, especially symphonies - I simply
can't
stand it when conductors (voluntarily or not) can't keep the tempo.
On Thu, Feb 14, 2013 at 10:15 PM, Folderol
<folderol(a)ukfsn.org> wrote:
I can't imagine how the initial 'Magnificat' could
be played
in any other way than 'a tempo giusto' without breaking it.
It's a collective outburst of joy, leaving little room for
hesitation. This displays the very rigidity I don't like.
But as I said, it's a matter
of personal preference.
I wonder how much is the performer and how much the original
composer-intention? Herreweghe tends to maintain rather strict tempo even
for romantic era
orchestral music, maybe that's one reason why I like his work in
general. Rubato (in the broad sense) for me is something that can be
done by a soloist or a string quartet (within reason - it becomes
slimy rather easily). For a full orchestra plus choir it mostly sounds
fake to me.
As for 'Romantic' music (but also 'Baroque') I think there is space for
intelligent agogics - again what I think is important is the concept of
'beat' (more in the way ethnomusicologists intend it), that is.. the
tempo may locally fluctuate, but the listener should have the sensation
of a steady beat/flow... simple in theory hard to achieve in practice.
Although not perfect this is one of my favourite interpretations of the
Fifth (not to mention I love the conducting in general, the facial
expressions, the way he addresses instruments..) - in my humble opinion
tempo here is managed very well (and notice he is conducting by heart):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6K_IuBsRM4
[...]
I found it difficult to sit still in my chair :-)
When I listen to the Magnificat (but Bach in general) I can't stop
myself from rhythmically fidgeting, sometimes with some 'armchair
conducting', not to mention humming - which probably makes me look quite
weird when on the metro :)
Lorenzo.