Musical Decisions in Performing for Others

-Like composers and arrangers, performers make musical decisions. -When performers work in small groups such as trios, these decisions need to be agreed upon by all members. -otherwise, the performance will not be good. -Because musical groups can become very large, a single leader is needed to make the musical decisions. -Conductor – the director of an orchestra, choir, band, or other performing group. -they must know the music well enough to hear an error by a single musician. -some say a conductor must have ears good enough to “hear the grass grow”.

The Role and Skills of the Conductor -As musical leaders, conductors have many responsibilities: -select music -rehearse musicians and their performances -maintain a steady beat for the group -facilitate the performers interpretation of the music -make important musical decisions regarding expressive matters such as tempo, dynamics, spirit, and phrasing. -give visual cues to help the performers play their part. -help the audience feel the music with their gestures.

-conducting requires technique and a superb sense of rhythm. -Conductors indicate the meter of the music by beating a pattern. -this pattern shows the number of beats in a measure and the tempo or speed of those beats. -The first beat in each measure (the count of one) is always straight down (the strongest motion the arm can make). -Conductors follow this pattern with other beats as well (2, 3, 4, 5, etc…) -They always end with an upbeat which prepares them again for the downbeat (beat 1).

Playing with Tempo -One of the decisions that conductors make involves tempo. -Conductors often take great liberty with a composition’s meter. -They manipulate the time in a way, hurrying one beat here, dragging another there – called rubato. -Rubato – the free treatment of tempo with in a musical phrase. -This flexibility helps achieve expressiveness. -Many of the great conductors have used rubato, going against the steady beat - the results can be spectacular!

***Activity*** Listen, find, and conduct the triple meter in a great waltz. The great conductor of the Philidelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy, loved to conduct the waltzes of Johann Strauss II. He also loved to do so with plenty of rubato. Listen to his recording of the “Blue Danube Waltz” Blue Danube Waltz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D_4ALUM5Do -At first try to only conduct the downbeats on beat 1. -Once you get the hang of what Ormandy does, conduct the waltz using a triple pattern. -Match Ormandy’s tempo with a metronome. How steady is the pattern?

Female Conductors -Throughout music history, the conducting of musical ensembles has been dominated by men. -Even today, female conductors tends to be an exception. -In spite of such barriers, some women have been able to achieve recognition and success as conductors.

-Marin Alsop – Conductor of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra for 12 years and currently the conductor of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and a star on the orchestral scene. -main instrument is violin, but also plays piano and classical guitar. -entered the pre-college Juilliard School at age 7! -decided to be a conductor at age 10 when she saw Leonard Bernstein conduct in New York City. -Received the “Barrier Breaker Award” – a testament to the difficulty faced by female conductors. -Alsop has said in interviews that female conductors face discrimination and hardship. -She once wrote – “it would be naïve of me not to notice that women aren’t leading major orchestras”.

***Activity*** Can you stay with a recording as you conduct? Listen to Marin Alsop conduct part of Leonard Bernstein’s film score On the Waterfront. Conduct as you listen, keeping the following questions in mind: Score: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukrNPARiGsU -Will your beat pattern be in 3 or 4? -Why does it seems so difficult to find beat 1? -If Alsop needed to change her beat pattern from 3 in one measure to 4 in the next, what would she do?