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Casals, Starker, 19/20th century performance practices vs. 16/17/18th century practices, etc.

Posted by willkayakforfood (A) on June 13, 2011 at 21:10:18

In Reply to: C'mon, ladies ... posted by andyr on June 13, 2011 at 19:26:56:

Janos Starker is a great 'cellist, a great teacher, and a very fine man (I've known him for many years), but when it comes to the Bach suites, as a Baroque 'cellist" myself, I don't care how well produced his recordings are, I've never felt he really, fully "got" Bach (not entirely his fault...more on that in a bit); hence I have little interest in those particular recordings (though I've owned them for years). Casals, for very different "musical" reasons, is also not exactly my cup of tea when it comes to Bach (though I also love to hear his recordings of various composers).

Remember...both those guys grew up with, and stuck to purely 19/20th century performance practices--even when performing this early 18th century music (most musicians continue this tradition of obliterating tradition, to this day). Not only are the modern instruments and bows quite different than what Bach knew, and wrote for, the performance practices--as very obviously influenced by the instruments/bows used--were very different before the 19th century. Many of the performance venues were different (smaller chamber halls, etc.), but some are still here today as well (some of the older churches and cathedrals--from small to massive). Unfortunately, western classical music education has spent more than a century operating primarily on the "modern is better/ancient is obsolete" method of historical memory loss; nearly obliterating any chance we'd get to enjoy pre-19th century music in a way more closely related to how the composers "heard" it as they composed it, and even performed it themselves. Lucky for us, a few diehard musicians insisted that we reconsider this approach of willful historical ignorance, and the sky literally opened up and breathed fresh life into music that was dying under the weight of the 19th century approach.

When I first started studying the 'cello (at age four), I too was taught to play on modern (19th century) instruments, along with the standard 19th century approach to performance practices. None of my teachers in those first several years ever mentioned the fact that instruments were once quite different, and that the music I was playing was also performed quite differently than our modern instruments and performance practices would dictate. Still, I loved playing the Bach solo suites (and other works by Bach, his contemporaries, and even those who came before), but as much as I loved it, it didn't really "grab" me as it would eventually, when I would discover the Baroque 'cello. The first moment I picked up a Baroque 'cello and bow, and started to play my beloved Bach suites, I was transported to a place I never knew could exist. It was as if the angels Bach listened to (and faithfully recorded on paper) took my hand, and led me along some of their favorite paths (an always fresh journey I continue to enjoy to this day, and will enjoy for the rest of my days, no doubt).

Hmmm...that clumsy bit of prose above only proves how words escape me--as they should--when it comes to music. In any event, since I first touched a Baroque 'cello in 1980, I've not put it down, and the music of the 16th-18th centuries is as alive and vibrant in 2011 as it was when the ink on Bach's manuscripts was still wet. Nothing like I was taught by all those truly great teachers who, in spite of their many gifts, simply took for granted the "modern is good/ancient is obsolete" approach to performance and teaching. Both Casals and Starker are of that school of thought/practice, and their performance is the natural extension of that approach. They're both great--truly great--but in my view, there are also obvious shortcomings in their approach to interpreting certain bits of music.

Of course, all the above is just the opinionated ranting of one little individual, so if you enjoy some bit of music, performed by anyone you enjoy listening to, it's all good. :)

Um...did someone say something about "recordings"? Sorry, I forgot for a moment. :)

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