Be Your Own Judge & Jury: You CAN Hear What I Hear!
Thomas McCauley John J. Cali School of Music, Montclair State University Mccauleyt @ mail. montclair. edu
During the months of February, March, and April of 2016, I listened to and“ adjudicated” more than 200 high school and middle school concert bands throughout North America. Although it has been an unusually busy stretch for me, this is not a complaint. I am always humbled to be invited to serve at band festivals wherever they may be. The groups I hear at these festivals have spent many hours preparing for their performances and have spent, in some cases, large amounts of money to attend.
With all due respect to my colleagues who often join me as clinicians / adjudicators at these festivals( many of whom are wonderful artists and teachers), it seems clear to me that, in most cases, hearing and identifying the weaknesses of the groups attending festivals is not magic and does not require a great deal of special talent or ability( although“ fixing” those issues does). If the adjudicators can identify these issues, so can the directors of the bands. And with a bit more awareness and diligence, band directors and their students could have a much more satisfying experience when attending a festival.
Here are some basic issues to consider before bringing a group to a festival:
Selection of Repertoire
The annual concert band festival is the time during the academic year when we as conductors and students try to prepare and present a performance of high quality repertoire played at the highest level possible. The annual debate we have with ourselves and our colleagues is: Do we program a slightly less technically demanding piece and play it extremely well; or do we program a piece that is more technically demanding which, perhaps, may not result in an exemplary performance? There is no standard answer to these questions because each situation, each group, and each conductor’ s priorities are different. Personally, I would rather hear a less technically demanding piece played extremely well. Why? Because I believe that the annual concert band festival is one of the few opportunities we have to teach and reveal true mastery of the repertoire we choose. Mastery must be taught, felt, and experienced, and the preparation for the annual concert band festival is the perfect opportunity for that to happen. Programming a piece that lies just beyond the musical and technical reach of our groups is a pedagogically sound and often educational experience for our students, particularly if the goal is to expose them to different composers, different genres, and different styles of music. However, these pieces can and should be performed during other concerts throughout the academic year. Programming a“ justout-of-reach” piece at the annual concert band festival may really only teach your students how to survive it without being embarrassed.
Be sure that your programming is varied, with moments of both calm and excitement. If you are required to play only two pieces, please don’ t select two pieces by the same composer. This may seem like very basic information, but I’ ve seen it done far too often.
Wrong Notes and Rhythms
It is not possible to have a successful festival performance without having all the correct notes in the correct places. Again, although this may seem like a given, surface level issue to some, it bears mentioning here because far too many groups arrive at festivals playing obviously wrong notes throughout their performance. An occasional“ oops” happens to everyone, but pervasively inaccurate notes and rhythms speak to a lack of awareness on the part of the conductor.
Beauty of Sound
After all is considered, and all else being equal, the element that separates the good bands from the great bands is their approach to sound. Everyone in the ensemble MUST be producing the most beautiful sound of which they are capable at all times and in all circumstances. This takes time, persistence, and a willingness to strive for beauty of tone throughout each and every rehearsal; especially during the warm-up procedure. The musical elements of good pitch and beauty of sound are inextricably linked. Beauty of sound and accuracy of pitch should be the primary concern of every member of the ensemble at all times.
Articulations
Not all accents,“ fp”,“ sfz”, etc. are created equal. For example, a printed“ fp” in a piece by Mozart is quite a different sound than the same printed“ fp” in a piece by Karel Husa. Some useful questions to ask might include: * When was the piece written? * Are there any traditional performance practices of which I should be aware?
* Have I listened to other pieces by the same composer, and can those other performances help inform my interpretive decisions?
TEMPO 60 OCTOBER 2016