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Inspiration

What I Learned Listening to 119 Recordings

November 17, 2020 by Jonathan
Inspiration, Listening, Musicality

 

            One of my graduate school professors shared his strategy for preparing for auditions. Before setting foot on stage, he would listen to 20 recordings of every piece he prepared for the audition. This inspired me to commit to the same level of preparation for my own auditions. Although I had already listened to some of the pieces on the audition lists dozens of times, I decided to begin again and follow through on his challenge. The experience was transformative beyond words. Below I will share what I learned along with my personal favorite recording of each piece. As a side note, you may notice that 119 recordings is not divisible by 20. Although I did listen to 20 recordings of each and every piece, the final recording I heard was terrible. Instead of ending on a sour note, I just left the final recording out of the count! Without further ado – What I learned Listening to 119 Recordings.

Live recordings are magical.

            An irresistible energy permeates live recordings. I found myself unusually drawn to live recordings despite their occasional flaws. However, certain live recordings were so excellently performed that I assumed them to be studio recordings until the rounds of applause began after the final movement. In fact, several of my favorite recordings out of the 20 recordings per piece were live recordings. For example, one of them was Natalie Clein’s Haydn C Major Concerto. These live recordings held something special that no studio performance could replace – a charismatic zest and vitality that I crave for my own performances.

The ensemble makes or breaks the performance.


            Although I was primarily listening to the solo cello part of recordings, all the other instruments are indispensable. My jaw was on the floor hearing the pinpoint accuracy of Les Dissonances and Xavier Phillips playing the Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1. The cellist was wonderful, and the orchestra was outstanding. Conversely, I nearly turned off an older recording of Schelomo not because the soloist was uninteresting, but because an out of tune oboe player ruined the spirit of the piece. Notably, the particular recording was not a live performance but was rather a studio recording.

I’m not the only one who plays out of tune.

            Speaking of intonation! Some immediately recognizable cellists have recordings that are severly out of tune. This may seems harsh, but upon looking up reviews of the recordings, I found that critics agreed when a recording contained noticeably sour intonation. It reminds me of a story that Steven Isserlis tells in which he was listening to audition tapes for Prussia Cove with another jury member. Isserlis had slipped in one of his own recordings just for fun under a different name, and surprisingly did not make the cut for his own masterclass! Of course intonation is not everything, although it is perhaps more highly valued today than at any time at history. I still do feel better knowing that I am not the only one who plays out of tune, on occasion!

I’ve barely scratched the surface.

            Listening to approximately 2,197 minutes of music has only whet my appetite. Each time I hear a piece again, I know better what to listen for and how to better appreciate the piece. I saw many recordings that I would love to listen to beyond the 20 I had originally planned. The more I listen, the more I hear and am amazed by all the variety and nuance that each performer brings to their individual performance. And now for a list of favorite recordings of each piece with soloist:

J.S. Bach Cello Suite No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1008 – Ralph Kirshbaum (If I had to choose just one recording. Thankfully there are a million more from which to choose!)

Ernest Bloch Schelomo – Steven Isserlis

F.J. Haydn Cello Concerto in C Major, Hob VIIb:1 – Natalie Clein (Live!)

György Ligeti Sonate– Luwig Quandt and Alisa Weilerstein (I can’t choose just one! Matt Allen’s live YouTube recording comes in at a close second.)

Alfredo Piatti 12 Caprices, Op. 25, No. 7: Maestoso – Richard Narroway (Live performance and tutorial!)

Dmitri Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1 in E-flat Major, Op. 107 – Xavier Phillips (Live!)

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©2020 by Jonathan Simmons. All rights reserved.

 

 

 

The Most Expensive Advice I Ever Received

September 25, 2020 by Jonathan
Inspiration, Left Hand, Masterclasses, Musicality, Pedagogy, Right Hand, Shifting, Technique

            Developing as a musician requires learning from the greatest pedagogues and performers on your instrument, often taking place through public masterclasses and private lessons. Sometimes these events can be quite pricey as sought-after teachers can charge hundreds of dollars for a lesson. Below are five nuggets of advice that I have gleaned from some immediately recognizable cellists from whom I have had the privilege of learning. I will share their words followed by how I applied them to my own playing. You will notice that a few of these quotes are not original to the teachers from which I first heard the quotes. Where possible, I have attributed the quotes to those believed to be the original author. I do trust that I am not revealing any trade secrets that were meant to be kept for a select few. Enjoy learning the most expensive advice I ever received!

Melissa Kraut The Most Expensive Advice
 “It’s not the thing; it’s the thing before the thing.” Dr. Melissa Kraut

That’s it? I hopped on a plane, paying for an extra cello ticket to learn that? Of course I learned much more in the lesson than this simple statement, but this one memorable quote has stuck with me and influenced my teaching and performing in countless ways. Let me explain.

Many musical elements combine to make for specific climactic arrival points and thus deserve our attention and emphasis. A cadence, the top of a crescendo, and the culmination of an ascending line are just three of a myriad of examples. However as Dr. Kraut pointed out, what draws our attention is not only the event, “the thing,” but also the precursor to the event, “the thing before the thing.” We must take care to build to a climax and increase the anticipation by all the means at our disposal. Primarily this remark was meant to highlight musical elements, but preparation is also crucial in technical matters as well. A smooth string crossing requires preparation from the right side, and a successful shift requires preparation on the left side. Consider not only the end result, but also how you arrive there.

Zuill Bailey Most Expensive Advice
“I wish I had not known you were going to do that.” Zuill Bailey

            Mr. Bailey said these words after I had given what I considered to be a successful performance of some solo Bach. Indeed my performance was technically proficient, and to this day I still believe that I played very well. However this statement is not referring to technique but rather to musicality. I had played well but had committed a worse offence – I had played predictably.

            In music we often become stuck in the rut of playing musical ideas the same way consistently. Whether a sequence that we play with the identical inflection (which is what I had done in said Bach), or a series of repeated notes played in a monotone dynamic, our habits often override our musical sensibility and imagination. A way to rephrase Mr. Bailey’s meaning might be to say, “Never play things the same way twice.” Music making requires an endlessly fertile imagination, and we must never stifle the sense of discovering new ways of playing merely because one way is easier than another.

“Don’t shoot for a hole in one. Aim for the green and putt it in.” Lynn Harrell as quoted by Zuill Bailey

            Truth be told, I never actually had a masterclass with Lynn Harrell, but I did have the opportunity to see him perform Schelomo and to meet him afterwards.

Lynn Harrel Cello Life Blog

He was a generous person and a wonderful musician. (As an aside, on this particular performance, he began the first note of Bloch’s Schelomo on an up bow and used at least seven bows on that first note. Who else could get away with that?!) This quote comes via Zuill Bailey, and I take his word for it that this is an accurate quotation.

            This golf analogy has to do with our method of shifting. Instead of using only larger muscles to propel the hand forward and hoping for a lucky result, “a hole in one,” we should rather use the back muscles to get us close to our target note followed by minute adjustments in pitch using the finger once we arrive in position. This requires a loose hand frame in addition to a sensitive ear. So grab your putter and watch your shifting improve!

Stephen Balderston Advice
“Don’t press. Pronate.” Stephen Balderston

            Cellists hear about pronation beginning from the earliest lessons. However differentiating between pressing and pronating can take ages to truly understand. I would like to demonstrate the difference between pressing and pronating using the following video because words alone might not suffice to explain.

 The first motion demonstrates pressing, often confused with the second motion of pronation. In pronation, the elbow is near the level of the higher string, allowing the arm to drop and pronate sufficiently. This is demonstrated by the bow beginning on the A string and rolling to the D string using primarily a drop of the forearm. Notice that the bow hair does not necessarily need to be pressed closer to the stick when pronating, yet pressing will nearly always result in the hair coming closer to the stick. More on this in a future post about the bow.

            Properly understanding pronation makes a world of difference in stamina and tone. As we learn to use right arm weight and leverage to coax sound from the cello, we save energy, making cello playing a physically sustainable activity. In addition, a discerning ear can tell the difference between the sound produced through pressure versus pronation. As you explore the physical freedom that comes with learning this technique, also revel in the world of resonant sound that opens to you.  

The Most Expensive Advice
“When you first look at the music, it seems impossible, but the impossible just takes a little longer.” Wendy Warner quoting Nell Novak

            I leave you with this quote from my current teacher. The more I reflect on this statement, the more I find it to be true. No matter what your current skill level, you will come across some piece that seems impossible to play. However rarely is the barrier a physical barrier. You and I have the same number of fingers as Yo-Yo Ma (albeit mine are shorter than his!), two arms, two ears, etc. Our inabilities can be overcome as we learn to train our ears and to use our bodies in the same ways which the great musicians of all generations have learned. With training yesterday’s impossibility becomes today’s victory, and then you are off to conquer the next impossibility.

I hope you enjoyed these glimpses of the most expensive advice I ever received. If you like, check out the links below to learn more.

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