Jason Heath offered an excellent addition to Drew McManus’ Post-a-Day series for Take a Friend to Orchestra (TAFTO).
Jason makes an excellent point about the effectiveness of conductor rambling in drawing the audience into orchestral programs. I am young and inexperienced enough to still be pretty wide-eyed when a thoughtful, intelligent conductor sheds new (to me) light on a piece I am playing. I often wish he had said that in rehearsals, so I could allow it time to settle in and affect my performance. Seasoned musicians, on the other hand, often find these same-old, same-olds tedious and unnecessary. Jason’s thoughtfulness on the value of these moments is a longview which should be taken by more musicians who value their jobs.
Take a minute to read some of the TAFTO contributions at Drew’s site.