IUP Day 2
Went to the Concert Band’s rehearsal of Bloom. Their director, Jason Worzbyt, has done a great job with the piece – he takes it a a little bit faster than I do, and at first I was apprehensive, but much to my amazement, it works! He also had the low brass chords swell and recede on each chord change – something that had never occurred to me, but seemed very natural once I heard it. Jack and I were discussing this while we listened, and he made an interesting observation about this same experience with some of his own pieces. At times, other conductors have done certain things with a piece (whether a different tempo or some other interpretational difference) that he hadn’t thought of, but it ends up working…for them. He went on to say that this successful, different interpretation by someone else doesn’t alter the way he does the piece, and in the case of Bloom, I agree, at least with regard to the tempo. The next time I conduct it, I will take it at the slower tempo. It was definitely an odd experience to doubt my own, usually finicky, sense of tempo. Kinda cool, though.
Enough interpretational wonkery. Here’s the band after rehearsal (with Jason and I obscuring a few members – we really need to come up with a better posing arrangement):
The band sounds really solid on the piece. I’m quite excited about the concert tomorrow (which happens to be some 40 miles away at the Pasquerilla Performing Arts Center in Johnstown, PA – long story involving unfinished hall renovations and such). It’s always fun to have multiple pieces on a concert. It’s really gratifying to hear how much attention to detail both Jack and Jason have put into Radiant Joy and Bloom, and both bands are obviously more than prepared for the show. Concert report tomorrow evening (or Monday, if we party too hard)…
Now back to work on Loose Id for the Sound Inn Brass ensemble – more about that later!