Apologies and Misconceptions.

First and foremost, I offer my deepest apologies regarding my insensitive and ‘flaming’ remark that was made on the tagboard as ‘…’recently; I meant it in a matter-of-fact tone but I do know I have no talent in speaking nicely to people at many times. Once again, sorry to whoever I have offended and I hope it will not be taken to heart.

Still, I would personally like to correct some of the gross errors made by ‘Toreador’ who has a post right below this. Some of these misconceptions can be fatal. Please do note that it is perfectly fine if you, the reader, does not agree with my views, but the views below are also partly factual and partly generally accepted opinion.

1. ‘CONDUCTORS DON’T MAKE ANY SOUNDS’

Contrary to that belief, many conductors DO make a hell lot of noises on the podium, even during performances. Perhaps the conductors whom you readers have experienced do not make sounds, and you definitely do not hear it on most professional videos. For example, SCO conductor Tsung Yeh makes a little grunt in his throat every time he conducts a strong beat (which is really rather often actually) and is usually audible to the performers and the unfortunate row of people that sits right up front. My orchestral conductor makes a soft hissing sound throughout the entire performance, often blending into the tone of the string players and actually helping to give them more drive in their performance.

There have been countless cases where conductors who are so used to making noises on the podium end up wasting much precious time in the recording studio. (Mind you, renting a recording studio for an orchestra/band and hiring all the audio crew is really EXPENSIVE.) The conductors often do not realise it and are often embarrassed when audio engineers claim that there is some sort of foreign noise affecting the recording. Foot-tapping, batons hitting the music stand, and even jumping conductors help to contribute to the available force of the percussion section.

2. The disclaimer that ‘Toreador’ talks about ‘conducting an orchestra/ensemble of COMPETANT musicians who do not need to practice articulation/intonation/tone/rhythm or other mundane aspects.’

Competent musicians are not competent without a tedious daily practice routine. Orchestra rehearsals take up a few hours of a day’s time at most. Such little ‘mundane’ aspects are what makes up the professional player’s ‘appetisers’, if one is to compare the daily life of a musician to a good meal. Usually, performers spend up to six hours a day practising (albeit with tact), and a quarter to half of this time is spent on ‘mundane’ aspects, and in the process of trying to improve themselves, the performer never stops practising these basics even for a single day. As aspiring musicians yourselves, you should also take these as great examples and practice as much as your schedule permits.

3. The difference between an Instructor and Conductor

A Conductor has many titles; they may be, ‘Music Director’, ‘Resident Conductor’, and even ‘Instructor’. Of these titles, we often look down upon the one of ‘Instructor’, because he is usually one that goes around teaching school bands rather than honing his skills on a professional orchestra. But when one ponders about it, is it not obvious that the job of a good Instructor is a lot more difficult than a Conductor, and deserves a lot more respect? A conductor of lets say, the SSO, faces a competent orchestra that will play well regardless of whether the conductor conducts well. (Of course, a good conductor will be able to help the orchestra play better than their individual standards.) However, an instructor has to educate the students in theoretical, practical and musical aspects, has to sensitise the students to his conducting gestures, AND still be able to help the students perform as best as they can!

Some spelling errors found are:
‘Conducters’ – Conductors
‘Maent’ – Meant
‘Competant’ – Competent

For further posts by me on conducting and performance, follow the links below:
http://chssband.blogspot.com/2008/09/skills-of-modern-conductor.html
http://chssband.blogspot.com/2008/09/tips-for-aspiring-and-even-professional.html
http://chssband.blogspot.com/2008/10/recorded-and-live-performances.html
http://chssband.blogspot.com/2008/07/little-on-conducting.html

Still, I DO agree that conductors are supposed to make the players’ eyes shine—albeit inspire them to play better than they think they can! That is a wonderful point there, ‘Toreador’, and I wish all of you a Happy Lunar Niu Year!

P.S. Hope the Istana performance went well :D