2.28.2019
The 5 stages of performing music:
Playing pieces you have no connection to
“I don’t know what this is”Playing pieces you have heard
“I know what this is”Playing pieces you have heard performed live
“I have experienced this “Playing pieces you are aware others have performed
“This piece has its own life”Playing pieces which have been performed by people you know
“My life is connected to the life of this piece”
The past two weeks, I have been working with the CCM Chamber Orchestra on Igor Stravinsky’s “Histoire du Soldat” and William Walton’s “Façade: An Entertainment”. While this is certainly not the first time that I have been playing a piece that falls into the fifth stage I listed above, it is the most aware I have been of the connection I have to the history of the pieces I am playing. Having copies of the part from Stravinsky’s original publication of “Histoire…” as well as editions from Morris Goldenberg, James Blades, and William Kraft, it is difficult to not be overwhelmed by the amount of thought and effort that these titans of the percussion world have given to this piece—a piece they respected enough to take a nearly unusable manuscript and turn it into a notated version which is much more manageable.
Personally, I have seen seen and heard this piece performed by three different ensembles. The first two at CCM played by percussionists Michael Launius and David Abraham and most recently at Interlochen Arts Academy played by percussionist Chandler Beaugrand. Each of these performances occurred at very different points of my life. The first was when I had just started at CCM, the second was as I was completing my undergraduate studies, and the last was during the 2017-2018 school year when I was no longer playing on a regular basis. While each performer played well and brought their own experiences to the performance, what remains with me is not the playing, but the relationships I have built with these performers. I cannot think about “Histoire…” without thinking of these friendships and the professional relationships I have built and the community of artists who are so willing to share their experiences and thoughts and answer questions at a moment’s notice.