Allison
Thanks for your comments and compliments.....keep them coming!....well, only if they can be genuine.... Actually, I've been following a thread, needling away in my usual way: there has always been criticism about the stuffiness of some of our concerts, sometimes specific and sometimes aimed at classical music in general. However, I've no grumbles against our audience. All our recent concerts seemed to stir up the right feelings, even the squeaky gate Osborne one - very satisfying. I worry (I always worry....that's me) that classical music is getting all dusty stuck in a cupboard up in some ivory tower. It's not. Having spent my life in a studio band paddock, I'm now looking over the hedge and wondering if enough people are really enjoying 'doing' music - playing an instrument and going to concerts. (You, very obviously, are.) If they're not, then we have to make concerts more attractive - without diluting anything. In China and at the Proms, I was struck more than ever by what a huge difference the audience can make to a performance, and to the piece of music itself, and I've been obsessing about that since. Maybe I'm more tuned in to the audience now, but it feels a lot better here in Glasgow than ever before. And, yes, the hall itself has its own important part to play.......and presentation.......you wouldn't slap a beautifully prepared meal down on any old plate and leave it in the back court in the hope that someone might wander by and enjoy it. And the programmes need to be attractive - this season's are brilliant. The music market is changing shape, and nobody is sure, in this brave new digital world, what shape it's changing to. When I came to Glasgow the SNO could regularly fill the City Hall two nights a week; at which time 90% of our work was 'dry' studio recordings. Now we rarely do a dry recording (except CD sessions). I like the informality of our afternoon concerts - whether it's Discovering Music or straight concerts, like next week - and, considering the limited market for daytime audiences, a goodly number of people turn up. I feel that nowadays there is a better overall sense (politically speaking) of the importance of orchestras. My daughter was in Bremen during the October week, with some members of the Glasgow Schools Symphony Orchestra, playing in an international youth orchestra. She returned overwhelmed by the sheer buzz of being part of an orchestra - the people, the music, the cultural bridges, the whole performance thing. How many people can look back on these events as some of the greatest fun they ever had? There are equivalents in the likes of sport and drama; so the essential ingredient X seems to be in the 'group' bit of the whole thing. And, by the way, amateur pianists and orchestras on Radio 3 this month? What a great idea - the ´óÏó´«Ã½ (aka your licence money) building the base of the cultural pyramid on which it depends. No judgement, no competition - just doing it. Mind you, over there in China, they've realised what our government hasn't realised yet: if you want to improve literacy and numeracy then you do music first.........shucks, my record's stuck in a groove, just read my blog of the 21st January.
Anthony
The urbane and windswept gypsy look is so de rigueur this season, I'm here to tell you. If you were in doubt...meet Greg, the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO's Mr. October... or as he's better known, Greg Lawson, our Principal Second Violin.
Greg is one of nine players who we've chosen to front this season's Glasgow campaign and represent the diverse personality of the orchestra. We'll be introducing them to you throughout the course of the season. He's quite a fellow, our Greg. He joined the orchestra earlier year as Principal Second Violin; he's the featured soloist in the folk-jazz-klezmer outfit Moshie's Bagel and he's an established and justly acclaimed soloist in his own right. We've not just chosen him, and our 8 other models, for his come-hither glance and the fact he takes a great photo. In this age of celebrity, it's far more effective to promote individuals as de facto ambassadors for our art rather than a large group.
The ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO is (justly) acclaimed for its ensemble precision, described on the classical music blog as an orchestra that "plays together as a single instrument". But what is an orchestra but a collection of individuals. Most musicians in a large orchestra believe they're anonymous. But regular concert-goers know who the musicians are - by name if not by face. At every concert I get cornered by punters who comment directly about many the merits of our individual players, and I've yet to hear a negative remark. So if Lesley Garret is to opera what Charlie Dimmock is to Landscape Gardening, who represents the modern face of orchestral music? Charles Hazlewood? Sue Perkins? Goldie? I suggest that Ilan Volkov, Greg Lawson and the rest of the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO are pretty good advocates.
Next to the varied opinions we all have of the repertoire on the players' music stands, the media we use to promote the work of the orchestra are never going to be to everyone's taste. We would argue it's the subjectivity of the choices that makes it interesting, though, because for every player that we use to promote the work of the orchestra there are 75 others we could have chosen just as easily. By keeping them anonymous, we're merely doing them a disservice.
Stephen Duffy
Marketing Communications Manager, ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO
Some nice responses to my 'On the bill with Beethoven' blog - thanks. Chili Pipers, Chilli Peppers, Shmilli Pizzas - whoever they were, they were great, and they stirred up a real hoolie from the audience. I'm such an old fogey I didn't even know who they were.....sorry! You ('you' plural) half picked me up right about enjoying these open air gigs - I'm ambivalent about them. Conditions are difficult for playing - the most beautiful evenings are cold and damp by 9:00. Rehearsals are messy and piecemeal because of all the technical stuff that has to be sorted out. For myself, I'm not much of a partying type, I'm uncomfortable in large crowds; and, anyway, we are so pre-occupied up on the big sound stage that it is virtually impossible to feel in the flow of the fun and camaraderie going on in the huge audience. We spend our lives trying to make beautiful and refined sounds - but there has to be industrial amplification. We need gutsy power in our playing, but if it's achieved by just turning a knob, then, isn't it depersonalised - isn't that somehow artificial? I remember doing the cello solo part in Vivaldi's 4 Seasons ("Viv") with Nigel Kennedy......in the rain......on the Edinburgh Castle esplanade......making a noise through the PA that probably scared the shoppers down in Princes Street. But......his "Viv" was the first classical piece to make it into the pop charts. After every big open air concert, even after a whole evening of rain at Glamis Castle, I come away exhilarated by the sheer sense of fun and comradeship whipped up in these concerts. The warm blast of appreciation - that's what we're for - intoxicating.
I haven't been to T in the Park, or Glastonbury, or Womad etc. I look at the pictures of thousands squelching around in mud.....they wouldn't be there if there wasn't something very important going on. All that open-air-ness, the craft stalls, queuing for the loos........ Is it a 'back to basics' thing going on - a re-earthing of community and identity - I'd be interested in your ideas.
I was asking a serious question: without pandering to anyone, or diluting anything that we do, could some of that fun migrate to our regular concerts? What is the open air element that doesn't happen indoors? The last two concerts in the City Hall nearly answered my question. Beethoven 9 was a great experience - plenty of uninhibited cheering - the piece itself is as much a community rite as a work of art. And the 'Hear and Now' Nigel Osborne concert last Saturday - a good turnout, relaxed atmosphere, plenty of uninhibited cheering - what was the secret? It was cutting edge modern music - especially the beautiful viola duo - but all accessible. Tom Service and Nigel were chatty and personable in the lengthy interview bits. Why is there an intimidating etiquette (or whatever) at some of our concerts? Plenty of classical music is serious and sombre, but does that need to create an inhibiting atmosphere? Inhibition is false seriousness. Pomposity and pumped up intellectualism are death to creativity - they also destroy camaraderie. The audience on Saturday brought an almost Prom like contribution - they exuded a sense of, 'We're here at this modern music bash because we like it, and we're going to enjoy ourselves'. They ditched the restraints - and that helped us, the players. For various non-musical reasons the rehearsals had been a struggle, and then the audience brought something for us that was liberating, and that helped create a memorable event. Let's have more.
Anthony
