Comments on: Audiences http://jeremydenk.net/blog/2007/06/02/audiences/ The glamorous life and thoughts of a concert pianist. Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:21:28 -0600 hourly 1 By: ACN http://jeremydenk.net/blog/2007/06/02/audiences/comment-page-1/#comment-2871 ACN Sun, 03 Jun 2007 18:26:17 +0000 http://jeremydenk.net/blog/2007/06/02/audiences/#comment-2871 My neighbors hate me, and I don't even play the Webern. For the past few months, my repertoire has been strictly "normal sounding" - Bach, Haydn, Beethoven, Schumann, Liszt, Wagner. And yet, they hate me. Any advice? I'm not allowed to practice before 9am or after 8pm. To quiet the piano down for the daytime, I've tried everything: mattresses on the wall, thick carpets, foam inside and shoved underneath the piano, blankets on top. It's now so quiet that I can't play louder than mF. And yet, they hate me. My neighbors hate me, and I don’t even play the Webern. For the past few months, my repertoire has been strictly “normal sounding” – Bach, Haydn, Beethoven, Schumann, Liszt, Wagner. And yet, they hate me.

Any advice? I’m not allowed to practice before 9am or after 8pm. To quiet the piano down for the daytime, I’ve tried everything: mattresses on the wall, thick carpets, foam inside and shoved underneath the piano, blankets on top. It’s now so quiet that I can’t play louder than mF.

And yet, they hate me.

]]> By: Sheri M http://jeremydenk.net/blog/2007/06/02/audiences/comment-page-1/#comment-2870 Sheri M Sun, 03 Jun 2007 03:30:47 +0000 http://jeremydenk.net/blog/2007/06/02/audiences/#comment-2870 I like these characters, Doppler Man and Muggle Neighbor. I like these characters, Doppler Man and Muggle Neighbor.

]]> By: Steven http://jeremydenk.net/blog/2007/06/02/audiences/comment-page-1/#comment-2868 Steven Sat, 02 Jun 2007 15:28:34 +0000 http://jeremydenk.net/blog/2007/06/02/audiences/#comment-2868 You go, Webern-player! I love the Variations; there are so many interpretive puzzles in phrasing vs. the liberally sprinkled rests. Everytime I play that piece, I'm surprised at how many people are highly disturbed by it (and sometimes I wonder why that is: It seems to me that it's just a very personal and honest piece. It's certainly not sensational, like the Rite of Spring, and it's even more understated and personal than something like Schoenberg's Three Piano Pieces, which have these expressionistic moments that I could understand people being disturbed by, but I never hear as many disturbed reactions as with the W V. I've been meaning to play Lachenmann's "Guero", and I imagine that might be an equally disturbing piece to these folk, but I have no anecdotes on that as of yet); I played W's Variations about a year and a half ago for a church service that had to do with freedom vs. bondage, Oppression, Moses, etc, and even though services at the church had the occasional Messiaen organ piece, or Peter Maxwell Davies choir piece, the Webern Variations were one of the most highly disturbing musical moments to the regular Jane or Joe. One person said she could hardly tolerate listening to it, that she desperately wanted to flee the sanctuary, but was singing in the choir immediately afterward, and felt that she could not. -Steven You go, Webern-player! I love the Variations; there are so many interpretive puzzles in phrasing vs. the liberally sprinkled rests. Everytime I play that piece, I’m surprised at how many people are highly disturbed by it (and sometimes I wonder why that is: It seems to me that it’s just a very personal and honest piece. It’s certainly not sensational, like the Rite of Spring, and it’s even more understated and personal than something like Schoenberg’s Three Piano Pieces, which have these expressionistic moments that I could understand people being disturbed by, but I never hear as many disturbed reactions as with the W V. I’ve been meaning to play Lachenmann’s “Guero”, and I imagine that might be an equally disturbing piece to these folk, but I have no anecdotes on that as of yet); I played W’s Variations about a year and a half ago for a church service that had to do with freedom vs. bondage, Oppression, Moses, etc, and even though services at the church had the occasional Messiaen organ piece, or Peter Maxwell Davies choir piece, the Webern Variations were one of the most highly disturbing musical moments to the regular Jane or Joe. One person said she could hardly tolerate listening to it, that she desperately wanted to flee the sanctuary, but was singing in the choir immediately afterward, and felt that she could not.

-Steven

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