Masolino
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Quote:
But it is most direct and (obviously) the way the composers themselves used.
The most natural one, too: since HIP performers are not using substitute instruments that were designed to fit music from different, later times, few makeshifts, maneuvers or calculated adjustments need to be made to "rein things in" or to avoid unintended drowning-outs. Arguably this results in a freer, rather than more self-conscious, condition for performers.
Quote:
It is really a matter of individual perceptional differences. A period performance of Mahler or Rimsky-Korsakov or Ravel may seem minimally different to you from contemporary ones, but I actually have heard enough of a difference in them to think such practices are warranted. All gut-strung strings, winds with narrower bores, a good match between space acoustics and the number of musicians used... these all create tonal and timbral changes that are audible and may be significant to listeners who tend to think along similar lines with performers. Ditto regarding HIP junks which, like modern-performance-practice trash, must remain a set of subjective criteria
Originally Posted by JayG /img/forum/go_quote.gif I agree that it is a boon to be able to hear, for example, the proper orchestral balances in Mozart and Beethoven symphonies/concertos. And using period instruments is one effective way to do that. But it is also not the only way. |
But it is most direct and (obviously) the way the composers themselves used.
Quote:
Also, my comments were directed more toward attempting HIP practices with post-Beethoven composers. Certainly the magnitude of the effect of using HIP practices increases with the age of the music, so it's a more important consideration the farther back you go. |
It is really a matter of individual perceptional differences. A period performance of Mahler or Rimsky-Korsakov or Ravel may seem minimally different to you from contemporary ones, but I actually have heard enough of a difference in them to think such practices are warranted. All gut-strung strings, winds with narrower bores, a good match between space acoustics and the number of musicians used... these all create tonal and timbral changes that are audible and may be significant to listeners who tend to think along similar lines with performers. Ditto regarding HIP junks which, like modern-performance-practice trash, must remain a set of subjective criteria