Beethovans 3rd and 9th...

[Ken Smith]

I play the 3rd next week and I play the 9th on May 5th. Do I put the 9th away and concentrate ONLY on the 3rd and then shed the 9th or work on the 9th as well over the next week?

I played the 9th about 35 years ago and don't remember a thing. The 3rd is no piece of cake but the 9th looks like a nightmare! I must do a good job next week as well so I was just wondering if anyone out there has been in my shoes before and might have some advice.

Don't take too long as I rehearse tonight and next Tuesday and play the 3rd on Wednesday. To make things worse, we are also playing the Russlan & Ludmilla Overture at about 600 mph as well as the Sibelius Violin Concerto with a guest Violinist from the Philly Orch (Paul Roby). That is the easiest of the three but not easy by any measure so I have my work cut out.

My main dilemma is the 9th and very little time to work on it. I was busy with the Mahler that I just did Saturday and the Conductor told me in the parking lot afterwards "way beyond my expectations" (as far as my little Solo went). He emailed me today and said "Your solo exceeded all expectations Friday night and was well above anything you did in rehearsals. Bravo! It was my personal highlight of the evening!". Actually it was 'fair' in my mind. I played it perfectly in every rehearsal except one which he happened to remember so anything was an improvement..lol

So as you can see, I am expected to pull it off as if I have nothing else to do in my life..lol

[Nick Hart]

I'd say hike up the practice time and woodshed them both. The last movement of Beethoven 9 is enough to make even the best bass players sweat and certainly can not be learned well enough in that time frame. Beethoven 3 doesn't nearly as many complicated licks as 9 and will take a fraction of the time it will take to learn Beethoven 9. For the Sibelius, if you can do ricochet you'll do fine and its just a lot of counting, and the Glinka isn't terribly hard, just practice a lot of scales and that will go over well.

[Brian Gencarelli]

Ken, If you have until May 5th for B#9, put it away until after B#3. You can practice both, but I would study the 9th without the bass this week. Find all your trouble spots, listen to the symphony and watch your part go by. Put in bowings, fingerings, etc...

Nick is right, the 4th movement is a bear, but so awesome. The recit is actually the easy part of that movement. Just start playing the fugue in slow motion. Choreograph the fingers.

Listening and knowing the score as well as the conductor is my goal for all these masterworks. I feel it is important to know the music backwards and forwards... it helps to learn it under the fingers if you know "where it is going".

May the force be with you.
Brian

[stan haskins]

Originally Posted by Brian Gencarelli

Nick is right, the 4th movement is a bear, but so awesome.

agreed.

Originally Posted by Brian Gencarelli

The recit is actually the easy part of that movement.

DO you really think so? I find it very difficult to time after the first phrase ("oh Freunde, nicht diese Toene"). The notes aren't hard, but the phrasing . . . well, I 'm still working on it. YOu're talking about the low string recit, right? The one that bass singer repeats before the Marciale later?

Originally Posted by Brian Gencarelli

May the force be with you.
Brian

And also with you.

[Ken Smith]

Did the 3rd and it went well. Did the first run-thru rehearsal last light on the 9th. Skeleton crew only. I asked my old NY Phil teacher about it and said if you get picky with the f, ff and fffs dynamics, you wont hit all those fast notes/jumps but if you play easy you will have more time for the shifts. Even the Basses in the NY Phil miss a few notes at light speed playing the Cello part and an instrument 2x the size the Cellos are playing.

Now that I have a clue what's going on around me and the tempos, I need the 'force' and then some to pull it off 80% or better being the picky guy I am about playing.

[Brian Gencarelli]

Ken,

When the adrenaline kicks in you will be able to move those fingers fast enough.... fight or flight!

Stan, I understand the timing issue... I just try to play what is on the page when I am practicing it. (like for an audition.) I try not to put too much interpretation of my own into it, and save that for the conductor.

The first time I performed Beethoven #9, I was about 22 playing in the Augusta Symphony (GA) and got put Assistant with my college professor. Talk about pressure... (insert sweating bullets icon here...) Just to make things interesting, we did Beethoven #1 on the first half of the concert.

I have done it several times since then. It gets better every time. As of now I have performed all the symphonies except #4. Don't know why... just doesn't get programmed much. I want to do it to complete the cycle.

Anyway, have fun with that Ken! It is your Destiny!

Brian