Direzione d’orchestra ed estemporaneità

Un tempo per improvvisare

Abstract

Through the consolidation of the musical work concept and, consequently, the rise of repertoire, the conductor became the medium of the authorial intent and the sole responsible for interpretation. According to Deldevez (1878), orchestral conducting must be faithful to the text, interpreted through the conductor’s sentiment: for Berlioz (1855), the conductor must possess an ineffable “something”; Wagner (1869) depicts him almost as an ascetic. Conducting, then as now, is an expression of control: that seems to least contemplate improvisation. Over the last few decades, a growing interest in performance studies has led to the emergence of stage-to-page analysis as an alternative to the traditional page-to-stage analysis. Thus, performance results from the inter-relational negotiation between the musicians, hence becoming improvisational. The orchestra enters into a mutual relationship — both musical and personal — between the musicians and between them and the conductor; this relationship gives rise to a performance that is uniquely their own. The extemporaneity is realized only when an osmosis of information occurs between the podium and the orchestra: the relationship of knowledge and esteem, according to Cook, enables the conductor to improvise freely. The comparison between two recorded rehearsals by Sergiu Celibidache and Carlos Kleiber analyses two different modes of improvisation by two conductors. To conclude, some recent developments in the conductor’s current professional role are discussed from the aspect of improvisation.

https://www.lim.it/it/chigiana/7110-chigiana-iii-7-lv-9788855435222.html