On 18 Apr 2010 at 14:14, John Howell wrote: > And of course his 5/4 waltz movement from another symphony is a > masterpiece of non-standard meter, alternating 3+2 with 2+3 > throughout, that was unequalled until Brubeck's "Take 5"!
I don't know the exact level of the orchestra that this was asked for, but I recently heard a recording of a live performance of Tchaikovsky's 6th that gave me pause. It was the Gustavo Dudamel's Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra under the baton of Claudio Abaddo. It was a very nice sound, really crisp playing in the strings, excellent contributions from all other sections, too. But in the 5/4 waltz, they really didn't get it. Perhaps it was Abbado's fault, but I attribute it to youth. It's complicated getting the right feel for that piece. It's not quite the old Viennese waltz distortion of the rhythm, but there's something of that required to make it come off the page, seems to me. So, that was an extremely accomplished youth orchestra, and it was difficult for me to listen to it. I shudder to think what a beginner group would do to it! Of course, they have to start learning the subtleties of style somewhere, so as teaching piece, it might be very good. Not sure I'd want to hear a performance, though! -- David W. Fenton http://dfenton.com David Fenton Associates http://dfenton.com/DFA/ _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list Finale@shsu.edu http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
