Axwell@a... wrote:
>A Choristers' Guide To Keeping Conductors In Line
>
Funny thing about this. 35 years ago, when I was a young tenor in a
major Utah chorus, we were preparing for a concert at the Hollywood
Bowl. In the choral section of Gustav Mahler's Symphony #2 the tenor
section was given the melody line by the conductor, Maurice Abravanel.
But the double viola section seemed to be overshadowing us (it's a Tenor
thing). I called out to Dr. Abravanel during a lull and explained that
I believed the conducting at pages ?, measures ?? (don't remember) were
not right. 360 faces turned to me, wondering who had the gall to
challenge the famous conductor. Dr. Abravanel stared at me and said,
"Can you do better? Come up here and you show me how you would conduct
it." I hesitated. "Now" he said! You could hear a pin drop. I had
completed a years study with Leonard Bernstein at Juilliard but had
never been given the opportunity to conduct a symphony of this size.
But I was a tenor and tenors can do anything.
I took the baton and leaned over to the viola section and told them to
play that one passage softer. Then I conducted the symphony and choir
for that one passage. The tenors could be heard much better than
before, I felt. I handed the baton back to Dr. Abravanel and rejoined
the tenor section. Dr. Abravanel returned to the podium and instructed
the viola section to disregard my instruction then said to all of them,
"I am the conductor. You will heed me, not some upstart who believes he
knows better." Some laughter. He paused. Then continued, "I want you to
continue to play the passage you just did as he told you." And we went
back to the rehearsal.
Tenors RULE!
Dr Dean
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"We have to keep in mind we are a nation under
God, and if we ever forget that, we'll be just a
nation under." (Ronald Reagan)
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