Journey of 100
at the JCC on the Hudson in Tarrytown, NY just next to Hyatt Doubletree.
371 S. Broadway, Tarrytown, NY 10591, phone (914) 366-7898
Admission $5
http://shamesjcc.org/events/2017/01/23/events/j.s.-bach-journey-of-100-lecture-performance/
From my perspective, this performance touched into something that is hard to put into words…certainly a sense of me being able to “step back” in part, from “doing” (a state familiar to many musicians and others who perform on a regular basis), the music being organized in a new way…it left me feeling a new sort of freedom within a rhythmic structure, one larger than the measures of the harmonic phrase.
I finally achieved a balance for the Bass voice that I like – one that envelops, or surrounds the listening space and allows me to place the Soprano and Tenor voices in the middle of that space, and give them dynamics and articulations distinct from the Bass voice.
From my perspective, this performance touched into something that is hard to put into words…certainly a sense of me being able to “step back” in part, from “doing” (a state familiar to many musicians and others who perform on a regular basis), the music being organized in a new way…it left me feeling a new sort of freedom within a rhythmic structure, one larger than the measures of the harmonic phrase.
Some of my more creative fingerings that I devised to help create separation of the Soprano, Tenor and Bass voices that are present throughout the work, still present challenges for me. One spot in the Corrente and two in the Gigue. A wee bit more practice time needed here…
Some of my more creative fingerings that I devised to help create separation of the three “voices” (soprano, tenor, bass) that are present throughout the work, still present challenges for me. One spot in the Corrente and two in the Gigue. A wee bit more practice time needed here…
Well this performance was one of the best yet overall. The right attitude and expression in the opening movement (Allemande), unity of flow through the entire work, and assimilation of the fingerings I use to clarify the various voices in fast technical passages (Corrente and Gigue), so that they “disappear” (meaning you can’t hear them you only hear the music) – all these were just “there”. Still some internal confusion in musical organization of the 2nd part of the Gigue, that led to small errors, some three-voice measures in the Chaconne that were screwed up. I can tackle those this week and see where we are in next week’s performance.
It has been a year since the last one. Not for any particular reason, however. I just have been focussing on the two other Partitas – in b and E – and establishing the independent characters of the three Fugues.
Presented jointly with Dr. Dorit Donoviel, Deputy Chief Scientist, National Biomedical Research Lab.
6pm Drinks, 7 pm Presentation/performance at The Explorers Club
46 East 70th Street
NY, NY 10021
Private performance while serving as Artist Faculty at Bennington Chamber Music Conference. Greenwall, Auditorium, Bennington College, Vermont 10:30pm
The work is certainly changing, literally under my own hands. Allemande, Corrente, Sarabande, Gigue, Chaccone: deep within that one continuous flow of thoughts and feelings some core element is starting to emerge, beginning to come to my awareness. Look to this page for more on this in the next months.
Bach’s 3 and 4 independent voices are starting to emerge more clearly and simply through my bow; that’s great, makes me think of being able to more easily apply that bow technique to the three Fugues.
Thank you to my friends and colleagues for sharing this late night Passage after a long day and week of work.
Tonite, 10:30 pm in Greenwall Auditorium on the campus of Bennington College.
I am very excited to be playing for one of my dear creative colleagues next Monday. Since the last Chaconne (#25, 12/28/2014) I have been focussed on moving my residence, and have allowed the Bach to lie fallow through the deep winter.
Now it is Spring, and I am coming back to the Bach after these few months’ hiatus; I am finding a new level of understanding, particularly in terms of tempo and rhythmic organization, choosing to explore specific influence from two great Maestros with whom I have worked at the MET for many years. More on that later!
in memory of my friend Lev Gogish. White Plains, NY
Greene Gallery, on the Guilford Green – Guilford, Connecticut
5 PM – $15 admission to benefit Guilford Better Chance
RSVP 29 Whitfield St, Guilford, CT 06437
(203) 453-4162
Sunday June 29, 2014 – 6 PM – FREE ADMISSION – West 89th Street between Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues. The Chaconne opens this short program…Beethoven’s String Trio in G Major comes next – played with my friends Artie Dibble, Viola, and Lindy Clarke, Cello.
This outdoor concert was blessed with perfect weather and a large, appreciative audience…lots of families with children, and the little ones were getting up and coming to the front of the stage area and dancing away with pure delight…somewhat astonishing for me because their delight and joy was like a second counterpoint to this work of Bach’s and it was challenging to stay plugged into the deep flow of the Work and not “fall out” into the dancing of the children!
I had spent a lot of time in the last week working on purity of intonation as well as stronger rhythmic organization, and I was happy that that work wasn’t wasted…that being said it is humbling that even at this 23rd time, for me, thorough practice is still an essential component: there were areas of which I assumed in my practice sessions “ok, that part’s fine, don’t need to invest time there”, that would have benefitted from slow, mindful work….sigh….I remember reading Kreisler’s writing about train travel providing him time to review in his mind every tone of the works he was performing, to sort of, in his words, “re-carve” the grooves on the disc (the vinyl or glass LP recordings of his time)….I will remember that going forward.
The Beethoven seemed an easy delight to play – in gusty winds that required us to pause and carefully replace the clothespins that held the music onto the stands!!! Artie and Lindy are, simply put, terrific.