Mark,
Obviously, the nature of the amplification depends on the nature of
the music. For some music, subtle amplification is just meant to
bring you closer to the instruments -- like Reich's "Music for 18
Instruments", in which everyone is amplified. The sweeping, dramatic
crescendos and
On May 7, 2007, at 10:22 AM, Andrew Stiller wrote:
Prior to about 1870, the rule was that an accidental applies to all
octaves within its measure. Since then the rule is that it applies
only to the octave in which it was written. The problem is that the
classical standard repertoire is dom
On May 7, 2007, at 4:25 PM, Darcy James Argue wrote:
I wlll never understand the anti-amplification fundamentalists.
Like any other aesthetic endeavor, there is good amplification and
bad amplification.
I come out of the opera world, which is populated by anti-
amplification fundamentalis
On May 7, 2007, at 5:20 PM, John Howell wrote:
I would never accuse Mark of doing this deliberately, because I
don't believe he would ever do so, but in the message below he
carried what I actually said to a "reductio ad absurdam," setting
up a sort of straw man,
I never meant to set up
If you don't mind staying soft, find a good drummer who can play
softly. I heard Joey Baron (who can wail away with the loudest of
them) play softly enough in a master class that we could hear the
singer perfectly without a mic, and he swung like a mother!
If you ever want to get above a mp
On May 7, 2007, at 7:25 PM, Darcy James Argue wrote:
I wlll never understand the anti-amplification fundamentalists.
Like any other aesthetic endeavor, there is good amplification and
bad amplification. Good amplification is rare, but good anything is
rare.
It's like the vinyl versus CD
You will need to either ditch the drummer and write exclusively
hushed, intimate music -- or mic the viola. If this is a regular
group, you should consider adding a sixth member -- the best
soundperson you can find. They are worth their weight in gold.
You should also check out this YouTube
Chuck,
Everything you say makes perfect sense, and clearly you know best
what's best for your own music. Obviously if you *want* the sound of
distance, you wouldn't want to sabotage that with close-mic'ing.
However, I would be remiss if I didn't point out that the Vanguard,
by a happy acc
Arggh! hard to balance. Trombonist play soft - with various mutes.
String quartets are balanced - jazz quartets are not, but they can be
- with careful playing on everyone's part. By careful, I don't mean
passionless, nor even that there should not be moments when some
instruments drown
Hi Noel-
You may- or may not- appreciate the fact that the following paragraph, with
only very minor editing, has been re-typed- enlarged, laminated and posted
up in my Bandroom.
Full credit is given to you as the author.
Brilliant summary of what makes a note 'right'
Thanks
Keith in OZ
Keith
Hi Chuck,
I've got a jazz quintet with double bass, piano, drums, trombone and
viola. Any suggestions about getting a balance between the bone and the
viola without amplifying the viola? I'm using Finale for the music (just
to keep this on-topic!).
We're going to be playing in a smallish space an
On May 7, 2007, at 4:25 PM, Darcy James Argue wrote:
I wlll never understand the anti-amplification fundamentalists.
Like any other aesthetic endeavor, there is good amplification and
bad amplification. Good amplification is rare, but good anything is
rare. Good amplification can actually
On 07 May 2007, at 9:18 PM, Chuck Israels wrote:
(on recordings, or through a microphone feed)
Chuck -- there is a *substantial* difference between the two. I don't
think they can or should be conflated. Especially since good
amplification is subtle and blends seamlessly with the acoustic
"Listening to music through speakers (on recordings, or through a
microphone feed) is like getting kissed on the telephone."
Jerry Rosen - former associate concertmaster and pianist of the BSO
(freely quoted).
"Not exactly - it's more like eating a picture of food."
Bill Dobbins - jazz pia
It was interesting that when I produced my first round of recordings in the
Czech Republic they understood everything I wrote in Italian, not
necessarily what I wrote in English (e.g., "white keys"). To communicate
"rim shot" I had to rap my pencil against the side of the table at a slant.
Zawsze c
Hello all,
Just wondering if anyone on the list has done any analysis of late
Takemitsu works? I"m currently rounding out my thesis--an analysis
of Archipelago S.--and would love to be able to discuss my ideas with
someone. If any of you are interested, please let me know.
Best regards,
Couldn't get back on this right away--in the middle of final exams,
grading papers, etc.
I would never accuse Mark of doing this deliberately, because I don't
believe he would ever do so, but in the message below he carried what
I actually said to a "reductio ad absurdam," setting up a sort of
I wlll never understand the anti-amplification fundamentalists. Like
any other aesthetic endeavor, there is good amplification and bad
amplification. Good amplification is rare, but good anything is rare.
Good amplification can actually allow for a more intimate sound,
bringing the instrume
John Howell wrote:
[snip]> through speakers. My conclusion, after listening VERY
critically, was
that our Roland sounded just as good as the Steinway, when the Steinway
was miked, even though it would never come close to the actual acoustic
sound of the Steinway.
the problem in such situati
At 3:21 AM -0400 5/7/07, Raymond Horton wrote:
I don't see the fuss. A guy is trying to prove he can replace
_live_ musicians, but does so by posting _recordings_, some of
which are so badly reproduced they could never be mistaken for live
players, even though the recordings were once made fr
No, that would miss the point. The guy is trying to replace live
musicians in a live performance space, unless I read incorrectly. Do
the test in a live performance space, not through speakers. Live
instruments are always at the mercy of poor reproduction.
This is what I do for a living
I wrote:
I think it is more important in a score to try and convey the spirit
and style to musicians rather than bogging them down in minutia that
could ruin the outcome.
Noel Stoutenburg wrote:
I must say it seems to me that in the set of skills which
musicians are reasonably expected to ac
A music store in Portland, Oregon is looking for someone local to
teach a class in Finale. Anyone who is interested please contact
Eric Warlaumont at Portland Music Company, 532 SE MLK Blvd.,
Portland, OR. The phone number is (503) 226- 3719 or (800) 452-2991.
I like how Donald Erb puts explanations in his scores. He doesn't
make them too lengthy, but if the requests are unusual, he will often
put an "!" at the end. Sometimes his comments are humorous. "You will
sound like an insane monkey," and that kind of thing. It gives the
musicians a laugh, but
On 7-May-07, at 1:08 PM, Andrew Stiller wrote:
On May 7, 2007, at 2:36 AM, Randolph Peters wrote:
The conductor of the new piece, who later became a friend in spite
of my music, just laughed at me. I'll never forget how he pointed
to one of my instructions and asked me what in the world I
Friends,
while Randolph Peters wrote:
I think it is more important in a score to try and convey the spirit
and style to musicians rather than bogging them down in minutia that
could ruin the outcome.
I must say it seems to me that in the set of skills which
musicians are reasonably expecte
On May 7, 2007, at 10:41 AM, Chuck Israels wrote:
On May 6, 2007, at 11:36 PM, Randolph Peters wrote:
For example, I sometimes get asked if an accidental in one octave
affects another octave. (Where are these otherwise fine musicians
taught anyway?) I find it an especially strange question
On May 7, 2007, at 2:36 AM, Randolph Peters wrote:
The conductor of the new piece, who later became a friend in spite of
my music, just laughed at me. I'll never forget how he pointed to one
of my instructions and asked me what in the world I thought the
conductor was for -- didn't I think he
On May 6, 2007, at 11:43 PM, Aaron Rabushka wrote:
Hmm--I wonder if Respighi's nightingale record caused the same furor.
For decades, even after the advent of musique concrète, this recording
was regarded as a cheap gimmick, and was invariably cited as such by
Respighi's detractors.
Andre
On May 6, 2007, at 11:47 PM, Mark D Lew wrote:
it's always possible to make your score even more precise. You can
give an exact metronome mark for every change of tempo, including
every ritard. You can litter the score with dynamic markings, at the
top and bottom of every hairpin. You ca
On May 6, 2007, at 8:12 PM, Linda Worsley wrote:
Maybe not, in American English, but writing "fi-re" encourages a
really gross pronunciation with the ugly "YUR" emphasized at the end.
Ah, this is a very important point. Colloquial pronunciation is
NEVER incorrect
True. And ugly isn't i
On May 7, 2007, at 4:29 AM, dhbailey wrote:
All that conductor had to do would be to have said "I'm sorry, how
does this work for you?" and tried something a bit differently, and
he would have had the orchestra eating out of his hand.
It amazes me when people haven't learned that lesson an
At 5/7/2007 10:29 AM, Christopher Smith wrote:
>But all that aside, why does anyone go a concert at all these days?
Good question.
I go to local performances where I personally know the musicians
involved. I used to be a music teacher and I know that the current
directors appreciate it when
At 5/7/2007 10:41 AM, Chuck Israels wrote:
>On May 6, 2007, at 11:36 PM, Randolph Peters wrote:
>
>> For example, I sometimes get asked if an accidental in one octave
>> affects another octave. (Where are these otherwise fine musicians
>> taught anyway?) I find it an especially strange question
On 7-May-07, at 6:41 AM, Phil Daley wrote:
I have been to live musicals where there was no pit band. The
music played there was far superior to this sample. But, I suppose
the music could have been recordings made from live musicians.
There was a synthesizer guy present, and some of t
On 7-May-07, at 10:41 AM, Chuck Israels wrote:
On May 6, 2007, at 11:36 PM, Randolph Peters wrote:
For example, I sometimes get asked if an accidental in one octave
affects another octave. (Where are these otherwise fine musicians
taught anyway?) I find it an especially strange question
On May 6, 2007, at 11:36 PM, Randolph Peters wrote:
For example, I sometimes get asked if an accidental in one octave
affects another octave. (Where are these otherwise fine musicians
taught anyway?) I find it an especially strange question when the
music is far from tonal.
I've had
At 5/7/2007 07:29 AM, dhbailey wrote:
>Survival and success in so many aspects of life lies in knowing when to
>simply say "I'm sorry" even if you don't feel it.
>
>All that conductor had to do would be to have said "I'm sorry, how does
>this work for you?" and tried something a bit differently,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
In a message dated 07/05/2007 11:29:02 GMT Daylight Time,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
those who simply try to have a pissing contest with an unknown composer
(or a conductor they want to ridicule), to show them who is the
alpha-dog in the group and try to make th
At 5/7/2007 06:02 AM, dhbailey wrote:
>But it's important to note that many of the people who got it right
>first time work with samples all the time -- the bigger question would
>be "If these recordings were played to the general public, would any of
>them guess that it wasn't live musicians pla
At 02:12 PM 5/6/2007, John Howell wrote:
>>Woodwind groupings also are strange in that the vibratos don't match
>>each other. It is more than just being in tune with each other, live
>>musicians also phrase, breathe and vibrate in ways that mesh with
>>each other. You can have the world's biggest
In a message dated 07/05/2007 11:29:02 GMT Daylight Time,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
>those who simply try to have a pissing contest with an unknown composer
>(or a conductor they want to ridicule), to show them who is the
>alpha-dog in the group and try to make the composer look like a
Randolph Peters wrote:
[snip]>
Then again, Mahler was a conductor and he wrote paragraphs of
instructions in his scores.
[snip]
This just proves that there's nobody like a conductor to know the
liberties that conductors take with scores (Mahler, perhaps as much as
anybody). The composer si
Raymond Horton wrote:
I don't see the fuss. A guy is trying to prove he can replace _live_
musicians, but does so by posting _recordings_, some of which are so
badly reproduced they could never be mistaken for live players, even
though the recordings were once made from live players. His
co
Christopher Smith wrote:
On May 6, 2007, at 11:47 PM, Mark D Lew wrote:
You can litter the score with dynamic markings, at the top and bottom
of every hairpin.
Hmm, I've been doing that lately, partially to keep one of the trumpet
players in my brass quintet from eating up rehearsal time by
Raymond Horton wrote:
...
I have to agree with Mark: figure out for yourself where the
diminishing returns begin and go with that. Besides, I still get
flummoxed by questions I never anticipate. For example, I sometimes
get asked if an accidental in one octave affects another octave.
(Wher
Kim Patrick Clow wrote:
I got it the first time. Not sure why but I didn't have any trouble
making a choice.
Very cool post though,thanks for sharing this.
It's very interesting reading the reactions on this list, and how some
have guessed correctly the first time, others needed a second or t
On May 6, 2007, at 11:15 PM, Darcy James Argue wrote:
But sometimes, you want the players to work it out for themselves.
It's like, "C'mon, you guys -- you're all good musicians. I
shouldn't have to hold your hand every step of the way. Use your
ears and use your judgement. If there's a di
I doubt they played the low-fi files for the Juilliard and Berklee
profs. I think they probably just compressed the hell out of the
online versions to save on bandwidth, but I would assume they would
have used CD-quality audio when they administered the test in person.
Otherwise, it would b
I don't see the fuss. A guy is trying to prove he can replace _live_
musicians, but does so by posting _recordings_, some of which are so
badly reproduced they could never be mistaken for live players, even
though the recordings were once made from live players. His
computerized recording so
...
I have to agree with Mark: figure out for yourself where the
diminishing returns begin and go with that. Besides, I still get
flummoxed by questions I never anticipate. For example, I sometimes
get asked if an accidental in one octave affects another octave.
(Where are these otherwise f
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