September 25, 2005

• He's more famous for his recordings of Bach's Goldberg Variations. One of my favourite CDs! And coincidentally, not knowing about his birthday, I played it this morning. Or actually itunes decided to play it this morning.
• Gould´s Goldberg Variations are rightfully famous. mare linked the 80s recording though, which is imho pretty mediocre and a radical departure from the frenzied interpretation of 1955 which was the basis for his fame. The 55 recording was as far as I know quite a scandal in its´ time, as it took great liberties with Bach´s piece.
• Excellent post! (More about the Voyager Golden Record here)
• Not all of the '55 recording was frenzied. The version of Variation XXV is exquisite in its melancholy languor. Also, the 80's recording also represents departures from the conventional school of Bach playing, as epitomized by Tureck, however we were more used to departures by then. Thank God for Gould, he singlehandedly brought Bach playing out of the Mausoleum. BTW, today is also the birthday of Shostakovitch, another composer that Gould recorded.
• hey there were gloves in that picture too. don't forget the gloves. bach is really fun to play.
• Shostakovich, that's a neat coincidence, kamus! I guess I should take more time with the Goldberg. One of the things that didn't grab me about the GVs is the opening theme. I should probably give it more of a chance.
• It's a shame this post has generated so little commentary, I really enjoy Gould's music, and even though the movie about him was largely fictional, it was still fun to watch.
• Although "32 Films" wasn't bad I really loved some of the documentaries made by Bruno Monsaingeon about Gould. At first I used to be very bothered by Gould's humming in the recordings but after seeing the films I now think it's great! Weird that. It's a shame this post has generated so little commentary... Okay, this sounds like a mission to me. From now on every year, on Gould's birthday we should do something monkey-wise. A post, a picture, I dunno... something.
• We could hum. We could hum one of the Variations. Or Happy Birthday. Whatever. *unbuttons shirt collar, clears throat*
• ...yeah! And while we're humming we should play some piano.
• I've popped in to read the comments here a few times, so I'm quite remiss in not saying "good post". I followed the links and got distracted!
• *carries in battered chair*
• I agree re the humming, I think it makes his music seem that much more alive, almost as if he's there in the room at the time (in a nice way). I always listen very intently to his recordings not only to appreciate the music, but to hear his humming in the background. I don't know if I'm the only one who feels this, but I like to think that if you think about someone who's passed away you make them come alive again if only for a little while. So I've been trying to think about Gould and his music and about that possibility all throughout the day.
• Hey these gloves don't fit!
• re the humming, I think it makes his music seem that much more alive... Hey that exactly sums up my feeling as well! You expressed it admirably. It's like having him there with you, he's immediately got another dimension that no other recorded pianist has. In fact classical recordings are so often intent on sonically perfect "performances" that they end up with an antiseptic inhuman product. Gould was a perfectionist in overseeing the recording process but the fact that he left in his humming makes it so much more personal.
• Glenn's chair:
• The humming is part of who he was and the music he played. I consider it indespensable. BTW, there are other notable pianists who vocalize while playing: Errol Garner, Duke Ellington, Keith Jarrett, Count Basie and Oscar Peterson. All jazz players.
• I should probably give it more of a chance. Absolutely, StoreyBored. If it's any consolation, I took a while to get into the GV's myself. I like you, was unentranced by the opening theme at first and the "exciting" variations don't happen until around Variation VIII. Once I got that far I was totally hooked. As you may know, the GV's were composed in order to help a wealthy patron of Bach get to sleep at night- his harpsichordist would play one variation per evening just before retiring. The early variations are more peaceful and sleep inducing but at some point Bach must have said "f#&k it!" and wrote some very lively virtuosic variations starting around var VIII, as I mentioned before. Yep give it a chance, it's one of the most stunning achievements of Bach and the Baroque era in general.
• mk1gti: I totally agree. Wasn't it the Greeks who thought immortality lay in never being forgotten? As long as someone's thinking about you, you're not really gone. I've always enjoyed that idea.
• It's also kind of like 'Our Town' where they talk about those who have passed away and you see them come alive again. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/americancollection/ourtown/
• Thanks meredithea, I wasn't aware of the greek connection, I'll have to take a closer look at that. But yeah, it's kind of comforting to think of a grandparent or loved one and imagine them there with you again. . .
• I think I'll do that, kamus, and give those variations a second try! I've had some good experiences with music where I've stuck with something and it blossoms into a wonderful revelatory treasure. (Actually i count the WTC as one of those). The background story for the GV is kinda quaint. I like the idea of Bach getting his dander up though. Didn't he get put in jail one time for getting into a fight with someone in his choir? Oh, and thanks for the list of other performers who do the vocalizing. Isn't it curious that the jazz musicians do this more than classical musicians? is it the improvisational heritage?
• is it the improvisational heritage? Not so much as the fact that experienced improvisors (and composers too) generally learn to externalize the music by singing the musical notes they "hear" internally. It's how many musicians actually practice improvising- that is, by singing out loud what occurs to them in their musical imagination. Music is essentially an extension of vocal expressiveness. While many fine classical players also learn to sing the notes they recreate, the tradition in classical music has been to condemn most physical expressions of music making as being "distracting" and the musical establishment actively disourages such mannerisims. Personally I think that's one thing wrong with Classical music as it exists today. IMO, the mannerisms, unless extreme, show that the performer is in touch with the music and as such, is actively connected with the spirit of the music. It is possible and indeed depressingly commonplace for one to build something of a career without being terribly musical at all. Many technicians, and I mean that word in a pejorative sense, have learned that they can survive by merely playing accurately but not necessarily expressively, beyond what is written on the page. And for many in the audience, a performer who play rapidly and accurately is probably good enough. A genius such as Gould was able to find much more in the music that is not on the page, and thus earns a place in musical history as one of the great musicians of our time. sorry for the long winded answer
• is it the improvisational heritage? Not so much as the fact that experienced improvisors (and composers too) generally learn to externalize the music by singing the musical notes they "hear" internally. It's how many musicians actually practice improvising- that is, by singing out loud what occurs to them in their musical imagination. Music is essentially an extension of vocal expressiveness. While many fine classical players also learn to sing the notes they recreate, the tradition in classical music has been to condemn most physical expressions of music making as being "distracting" and the musical establishment actively disourages such mannerisims. Personally I think that's one thing wrong with Classical music as it exists today. IMO, the mannerisms, unless extreme, show that the performer is in touch with the music and as such, is actively connected with the spirit of the music. It is possible and indeed depressingly commonplace for one to build something of a career without being terribly musical at all. Many technicians, and I mean that word in a pejorative sense, have learned that they can survive by merely playing accurately but not necessarily expressively, beyond what is written on the page. And for many in the audience, a performer who play rapidly and accurately is probably good enough. A genius such as Gould was able to find much more in the music that is not on the page, and thus earns a place in musical history as one of the great musicians of our time. sorry for the long winded answer
• I love Gould's humming/singing. I love Jarrett's, too. To me, it's passion bleeding from their minds into the world.
• I saw Jarrett on a bad night; it was pretty much all showmanship, vocalese, fucking the piano, etc. In general, I enjoy his playing very much, but ce soir là, it wasn't happening. I'd love to see his trio w/ de Johnette and Peacock.
• ...experienced improvisors (and composers too) generally learn to externalize the music by singing the musical notes they "hear" internally... Thanks for that enlightening comment Kamus, definitely no apology needed! My musical knowledge is skimpy at best but yesterday I was thinking: isn't there a connection between Bach's variations and jazz improvisation? Granted Bach didn't come up with the variations on the spot but do they share the idea of taking a musical idea and riffing on it? And I wonder if any jazz/classical musicians would try to take it further by say, coming up with even more variations (even if it were still in Baroque style although I suppose there's no reason why it can't be other styles).
• SB. You are correct and through the baroque and into the classical era when composers wrote variations, they were largely written down improvisations based on the harmonic structure of the theme -much as jazz musicians do today. Also up until the classical era, composers, performers and in particular, organists were expected to be accomplished improvisors. Bach could very likely have improvised the entire GVs with little difficulty in a single sitting and in his day he was actually more famous as an improvising organist than as a composer. Some jazz musicians have improvised on classical structures- I remember hearing Chick Corea improvise on a Scriabin Prelude years ago- it was very beautiful- and case in point, jazz pianist, Uri Caine recently recorded his version of the GVs with interesting results. Also, thanks for this post. It was unexpectedly poignant for me to see Glenn's hat, scarf and gloves. He is missed.
• Thank you kamus, for adding your deep musical knowledge to the thread. I have an afternoon appointment with the Goldberg Vs!