Working with an orchestra is in general a very exciting job. Like every company or office, also orchestra's have their own identity and peculiarities. The biggest difference with an office is, that unlike a manager - who never deals with all the staff simultanously - a conductor faces (plusminus) 70 different individuals, from the first violin principal up to the traingle player in the back of the orchestra, simultaneously: in real time. Each and every movement and reaction of every player is under scrutiny of the eyes and ears of the maestro. Every change, even how minute though, is not dealt with through week-long e-mail correspondances, but immediately! For sure, every CEO from a huge multinational would be green with envy, to hear that such an effective communication in an organisation does exist.
Furthermore, the musicians are not just a selected few skilled section managers, with unskilled auxiliary blue-collar workers under them - the whole lot is educated, experienced, sometimes having more experience than you have, and most of all, by nature, very stubborn or else they would have hardly ended up in this profession.
Throughout the decades, societies have changed; from conservative to liberal, from homogenous to multi-ethnical/cultural, from religious to secular. Also in orchestras, changes were never too far off. We remember of course, how Toscanini when not being too content about the players' performance would yell at them and rant for minutes. He was said to rule as a tyrant. Even Otto Klemperer slamming his hand on the score and shouting, while rehearsing Beethoven's Egmont Ouverture, insisting the violins should have been playing a different bowing (in my eyes, even a bowing which doesn't make any sense; but that's subjective).
Nowadays, this shouting, yelling, even spitting at players, is no longer acceptable of having your way as a conductor. In the old days, perhaps raising your voice was perhaps thought to be a sign of authority, nowadays you'll not get away with this - in fact reach the opposite. So while refraining from the old techniques, you still have to direct these 70 hard-headed musicians, in order to have them play it your way. It's a psychological cat-and-mouse game, where the ultimate winner should be you.
To make this game a bit more exciting, as a conductor you will find out, that each orchestra is different in handling, and even some national treats can be found in the ensembles. American orchestras behave differently, like the Dutch, or the German, Japanese or Czech orchestras. While one is militarily disciplined, the other may be very annoyingly recalcitrant, formalistic versus casual, playing as a whole corpus up to divided into sections, which cause you grey hair keeping them together. And what works with one band, doesn't have an effect on another. No dull moment.
Remembering an orchestra recording in Prague (which I witnessed 1982 still as a student) where the players from the Prague Symphony Orchestra seemed coming from a different planet, than from the orchestras I was used to in Holland. A stiff, formal, disciplined group, playing relatively well techniques but somewhat overly inhibited. Not knowing - at that time - wheter it was pure shyness or something else.
This brings me actually to a diary entry of Ján "Janko" Cádra, a Slovak author and translator from Myjava, who became a fanatic follower of Gustav Mahler even knowing him personally. He describes one very interesting passage in his memoirs, as he attended a rehearsal of Mahler's Symphony No.7 in Munich, conducted by the composer himself (October 1908). Mahler - as a conductor - was notorious for his high demands from the players, which resulted sometimes in uncomfortable situations.
What struck me most about this entry was the mention of the Czech Philharmonic. I quote:
"The corrections didn't cease. He [Mahler] constantly tapped his baton against the lectern, and as usual, the orchestra would stop playing. In this, it was a noticeable difference with the Czech Philharmonic, where Mahler, strangely enough, never managed to finish his explaining, which would show its protest by either simply stopping to play of a few instruments or with the chatting of several players. Here, we have a formidable discipline, no squeaking or walking around /.../"
With some amusement I read about the working-discipline of the Czech Phil a hundred years ago. A bit different from a usual Czech orchestra in 1982 (and even 2008).
I have to add though another further passage from his diaries, which this time flatters the Prague musicians:
"The present musicians [in Munich], although obedient, seem to be a less apprehensive than the ones inPrague Prague
I would be most glad, if any of the readers of my blog, who have experienced themselves playing in and with different orchestras (espcially in another country than their own), how they experienced the differences (positive and negative). Comments are most welcome.
regards,
MS
Furthermore, the musicians are not just a selected few skilled section managers, with unskilled auxiliary blue-collar workers under them - the whole lot is educated, experienced, sometimes having more experience than you have, and most of all, by nature, very stubborn or else they would have hardly ended up in this profession.
Throughout the decades, societies have changed; from conservative to liberal, from homogenous to multi-ethnical/cultural, from religious to secular. Also in orchestras, changes were never too far off. We remember of course, how Toscanini when not being too content about the players' performance would yell at them and rant for minutes. He was said to rule as a tyrant. Even Otto Klemperer slamming his hand on the score and shouting, while rehearsing Beethoven's Egmont Ouverture, insisting the violins should have been playing a different bowing (in my eyes, even a bowing which doesn't make any sense; but that's subjective).
Nowadays, this shouting, yelling, even spitting at players, is no longer acceptable of having your way as a conductor. In the old days, perhaps raising your voice was perhaps thought to be a sign of authority, nowadays you'll not get away with this - in fact reach the opposite. So while refraining from the old techniques, you still have to direct these 70 hard-headed musicians, in order to have them play it your way. It's a psychological cat-and-mouse game, where the ultimate winner should be you.
To make this game a bit more exciting, as a conductor you will find out, that each orchestra is different in handling, and even some national treats can be found in the ensembles. American orchestras behave differently, like the Dutch, or the German, Japanese or Czech orchestras. While one is militarily disciplined, the other may be very annoyingly recalcitrant, formalistic versus casual, playing as a whole corpus up to divided into sections, which cause you grey hair keeping them together. And what works with one band, doesn't have an effect on another. No dull moment.
Remembering an orchestra recording in Prague (which I witnessed 1982 still as a student) where the players from the Prague Symphony Orchestra seemed coming from a different planet, than from the orchestras I was used to in Holland. A stiff, formal, disciplined group, playing relatively well techniques but somewhat overly inhibited. Not knowing - at that time - wheter it was pure shyness or something else.
This brings me actually to a diary entry of Ján "Janko" Cádra, a Slovak author and translator from Myjava, who became a fanatic follower of Gustav Mahler even knowing him personally. He describes one very interesting passage in his memoirs, as he attended a rehearsal of Mahler's Symphony No.7 in Munich, conducted by the composer himself (October 1908). Mahler - as a conductor - was notorious for his high demands from the players, which resulted sometimes in uncomfortable situations.
What struck me most about this entry was the mention of the Czech Philharmonic. I quote:
"The corrections didn't cease. He [Mahler] constantly tapped his baton against the lectern, and as usual, the orchestra would stop playing. In this, it was a noticeable difference with the Czech Philharmonic, where Mahler, strangely enough, never managed to finish his explaining, which would show its protest by either simply stopping to play of a few instruments or with the chatting of several players. Here, we have a formidable discipline, no squeaking or walking around /.../"
With some amusement I read about the working-discipline of the Czech Phil a hundred years ago. A bit different from a usual Czech orchestra in 1982 (and even 2008).
I have to add though another further passage from his diaries, which this time flatters the Prague musicians:
"The present musicians [in Munich], although obedient, seem to be a less apprehensive than the ones in
I would be most glad, if any of the readers of my blog, who have experienced themselves playing in and with different orchestras (espcially in another country than their own), how they experienced the differences (positive and negative). Comments are most welcome.
regards,
MS
PS - a small note to percussionists (especially triangle-players, which i mentioned in the first paragrah): I have no intention to consider a triangle player less important than a concert-master. It was meant in a meatophorical way. ALL orchestra musicians, in my eyes, are of course indisposable.
Source: Janko Cádra's diary was published by Milan Palák in the Periodical "Protimluv", Annual 4nr.1-2 issued on 22 August 2005. Translated by myself.
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