The Rite of Spring
?si=Z_PFROroOzaCwcYw
= new reply since forum marked as read
Ty, MF!
My first thought was "been there, done that" -- and with 15" Utah organ woofers putting some real punch in those bass drum beats, so my little Creative PC speakers couldn't hope to compare. But seeing it on video was much more interesting than just listening. Not only is it great to see the musicians actually putting themselves into the performance, but a lot of surprising details, even some I didn't know or notice previously, came through.
Of course TROS is infamous for the opening bassoon solo, written higher than any bassoon part has a right to be, to exploit the unusual timbre of the instrument in this range (a favorite Stravinsky trick). Really makes the first bassoonist earn her chair, which she certainly did. But the first surprise (to me) was something that's obvious enough on listening closely, but really apparent on viewing -- it's woodwinds all the way at first, and man, does this orchestra have the woodwinds ! I'll have to dig up the score at some point to see how much of this was called for by S., and how much was by their choice. THREE oboes, and one of the TWO English horn players ready to double on oboe? S.'s favorite flute, the alto, adds an extra stand to the flute section of course, but ... TWO piccolo players (OK, one also plays flute)? Add two regular flute players, and you've got five stands for flutes, all apparently scored differently. Wait a minute! Back to the double reeds -- ***TWO*** CONTRABASSOONS ?? -- one of them doubling on bassoon occasionally, to join the other THREE bassoons ! (No Heckelphones, though -- how did S. miss that opportunity?) Less glory for the single reeds, with two regular clarinets & two bass clarinets, w/one switching to clarinet some. Oh, and lots of work for the Eb clarinetist -- when you play Eb, you're not just first chair, you're IT. And any mistakes you make will be heard throughout the concert hall, riding over the rest of the orchestra. Fortunately, he didn't seem to make any, which is good because you really could hear him over most of the other parts and S. wrote a LOT for him to play. Good projection (in the GOOD sense!).
The disposition of the orchestra is interesting, forgoing the usual sea of violins (do we really need that many?) for a two-tier system with the woodwinds elevated above the strings, all in a straight line before the conductor, seemingly to be chosen like keys on a piano -- or impaled with a glare, as needed.
Woodwinds carry the first four minutes or so, with just a touch of solo horn and pizzicato cello and/or double bass, and then the low strings start that chugging beat which characterizes so much of the piece. A piccolo trumpet briefly appears, then vanishes for the night (although I think I spotted a couple of Eb trumpets toward the end). That beloved alto flute has lots to say, in the hands of a blond albatross who actually plays with a STRAIGHT headjoint (try that sometime!). When the brass finally enter the fray, it's as a Hermanesque platoon of EIGHT horns, each evidently with a unique part -- sometimes half sit out (not always the same half), sometimes some play with bells elevated (not the same ones ?), and two of them switch to Wagnertuben (aka Wagner "horns" ), but not always both at the same time. All this has me thinking that S. somehow derived a particular pleasure from making the breakdown of parts as intricate as possible. What was he thinking as he was doing this ? It's a thought to toy with.
One more unusual instrument -- bass trumpet. This poor guy had to shell out for two mutes -- the guys in the music store must love him. "Wotsat, myte ? For bass trumpet ? TWO of them ? Gor blimey, that's two in the same decade ! Um, there'll be a six-month wait."
Are those mini Coke bottles muting the trumpets ???
Pizzicato fortissimo on a double bass is apparently a whole-body exercise.
The LSO is not so stuffy that blue & purple hair is forbidden.
Is that Corey Booker on cello ?
After repeated watchings, I may have fallen in love with that blonde bass clarinetist. I'm not sure why. 
