Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Orchestral Bowings (The ART)
My conducting lesson this week was all about learning about the ART of string bowings. It was a very interesting trip, to say the least. My objective was to bow the first violin part of Mozart Piano Concerto 25. I have learned several things about bowings in general--some from Maestro Haddock and some from the book "Orchestral Bowings" by Elizabeth Green.
1. Bowing is about balance and conservation.
2. There are rules about bowing, but most are made to be broken.
3. The bowing should serve the musical idea intended, not just be a technical creation (although this can be a point of starting)
4. There are MULTIPLE solutions for each measure. It is the conductors job to sort out what he thinks best serves the musical idea.
5. Accomplished players like the Cleveland's, Chicago's, and Vienna Phil's of the world have players that can play any bowing they choose and still have it sound the exact same as what the "party-line" bowing is.
6. Bowing doesn't necessarily have to be a strict and rigid thing. Stokowski had his policy of "free bowings" that he used in Philadelphia to create the "Philadelphia Sound." He trusted his accomplished players enough to give them license to vary the bowings.
7. Bowings are important in all pieces, but more important in thinly textured pieces and all pre-Romantic works. The clarity needed in these pieces calls for a more dramatic use of the same bowings. In Romantic works, it is less important because the sound is intended to be much larger. (Some may contest this point, and I would definitely see their point of view)
So that was my excursion into the realm of orchestral bowings. I have definitely learned about and have gained a new appreciation level of paying attention to bowing in performances I see and in my rehearsals.
NOTE: String players reading this are probably thinking, "Yeah, DUH!", but thanks for bearing with me.
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2 comments:
This is huge!!!
I am not a string player but a composer and I've struggled to learn when to use bow markings, phrase marking and the like.
I don't know that I'd classify what I write as Romantic, but it's certainly closer to Romantic than it is to serial. That being said, perhaps there are sections where the bowing isn't so important and I should rely on the players to determine what they need.
Ok... as a conductor, which would you prefer - an overly marked score which gives you no room for personal choice (so, if you want to change you have to break from what's written) or would you rather see less and then make your own choices for things - even though sometimes it's a bit ambiguous as to what the composer was looking for????
Chip
http://interchangingidioms.blogspot.com
Hello again Chip.
As a conductor, it is my responsibility to create bowings which may not already exist. In large orchestras, the section leaders are responsible, but I don't deal with the Cleveland's, Chicago's, and Vienna Phil's of the world! :)
Definitely do not print the bowings unless you are absolutely convinced of what it is that you want to convey musically.
As a sidenote, many pieces are still rental-only from Kalmus. George Szell, the Maestro who "Built the Cleveland Orchesta" (great DVD, by the way) was THE undisputed master of bowings. His bowings are respected in all time and Kalmus printed and maintains a separate copy of every piece which the Cleveland Orchestra plays which have George Szell's handwritten bowings in them--which are AWESOME. That is cool.
Hope that answered your question!
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