For more classes like this one, please visit the Benjamin Zander Center - www.benjaminzander.org/ Katharina Giegling, violin Interpretations of Music: Lessons for Life with Benjamin Zander Dave Jamrog Audio/Video
Dear Benjamin; I've been a student of Music for over 60 years and I have never seen a teacher so inspired. I think you must have been touched by Terpsichore herself. Bravo ! And thank you for making these posts... as a historic record of how teaching should be done. I watched over 20 of your Master Classes and these students grow right in front of our eyes. Truly amazing.
I thing I enjoy about Benjamin's interpretation class more than master classes of other masters is how much he enjoys the music with the student instead of just judging on the technical aspect
Mass in B minor, St Matthews Passion, the Chaconne, Art of Fugue, Well Tempered Clavier I/II, Cello Suites.... the problem with Bach is that you can say what you said for about one third of his music.
This masterclass made me realise the beauty of the D minor sonatas. A lot less festive than the exciting E major sonatas, but so much spiritual depths!!
The cellist Rostropovich, in describing the famous atonal Sarabande from the 4th Cello Suite (I believe, or 5th, can't remember), talked about in the same way. A cosmic pulse that Bach's music had, that will line up even your breathing with it.
Bach is the math of beauty. Other composers have captured their own lives and emotions in music, but Bach has a certain clockwork perfection to his composions, like a computer scanning bars of sunlight.
Katharine plays with wonderful pure intonation and great love. It's good when we see her head to toe, because what she's doing, she is doing with her whole body. This music invites intelligent listening: we hear (imagine) the not-played harmonies. And once we can hear them, they too point to something beyond. What a great masterclass!
I prefer her more modern approach to a 'historically-informed' version! But both approaches exist. And perhaps one could even synthesise the two styles, Baroque and Romantic, into a third way.
Does anyone know what edition he is using? I have the Galamian edition but when I try to play or follow along with it the book wont stay, the edition Benjamin Zander looks like something that would stay on a stand.
Dosent have to look at the bow amazing talent . Thousands of hours practising . I know cos i play the trumpet and you have to plsy every day to get that good
There is a need to make as many videos of these interpretation classes with Maestro Zander before it's too late. I am not of course wishing him to pass on, just wishing we could get all this recorded for future musicians. With respect to this video, this is the only masterclass I couldn't watch all the way through. I found the violinist's movements exaggerated and distracting.
Beautiful playing. Perfect intonation. Playing with a full heart. I do not agree that this was too romantic. Benjamin Zander has to say something, of course, otherwise, his presence would be meaningless. I do like his psychological approach. That way it is easy for the artist to swallow some critical remarks. But Katherine's playing is superb in my opinion. I enjoyed it very much. And let me say here that even if it was a bit more expressive than Bach had had it in his mind - so what? Can't we add a bit of our flavor to it, being human beings of the 21st century? Is it a crime or a sin to play it slightly according to our feeling? I don't think so. Katherine expressed beautifully her character, her being. I think it was touching and is still touching. I saw another master class with Benjamin Zander while teaching a cellist who played the Bouree by Bach. So, Benjamin Zander basically said the same thing to him, meaning he should play it more the people would expect him to play. Why not let artists once in a while expressing their unique way? In fact, i think even Bach - in case he would be listening - , that he didn't mind and rather he might find it amusing if not really actually captivating and even appreciating.
i think Zander had high respect to the composer and stuck to the originality of the music - what a true musician ! That particular piece itself was already expressive enough and it is not necessary to add extra embellishment as otherwise become difficult to hear the original idea intended behind.. and i absolutely agree ! that is what classical music is all about.
Looking at other comments pointing at Bach's divine music, here we must point to his court job, 23 children and these two pieces being dances. An example of a baroque Allemande (Germanic, or the German way) ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-cZWDrjLO7r4.html. Be aware that Bach did worldly evening concerts called "Nachtmusik" (night music), a word that Mozart later played with, with his Eine Kleine, and that other composers translated into a Romance word: nocturne (Chopin played Bach daily.) All secular entertainment. Baroque Sarabande performance: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-GjLTTgv5FUQ.html . Yes, Bach composed divine music, but there was much more to this multi-faceted man.
Her Bach still comes out as too fragmented to me, even after the masterclass. I think Bach had something deeper, more spiritual to say, and when the player breaks that huge structural arch with thecnical issues or ego issues something remains unsaid, something doesn't make sense. I think the magic of Bach's music appears when one lets the music unfold itself, and follows it with passion and love wherever it goes.
You must be more French than your name suggests. To reference a great teacher's anecdote, you've said a great deal about nothing. ... can I gen an "in ze fog", anyone?
I beg to disagree with Dr Zander on his appraisal of the first performance. To my ears it is not a "romantic" interpretation at all. It is a new-age typical performance but with the settings (strings, bow and technique) of the 2dn half of the 20th century. Listen to it again and contrast with the great masters of the 60's, 70's and 80's and you will find that it was Grumiaux, Milstein, and Szeryng the ones who trully set the modern standard of interpreting this masterworks. You may like it or not. You may prefer new-age performances ("the enlightened, the historically informed, the authentic" or whatever way they may wish to call themselves) but you will always play a reaction against those renditions.
To be honest these master classes confuse me. I would say I did not understand what the teachers mean . They talk talk talk and I do not get what they mean, because they do not say concrete techniques , in this self poetry style , the students are already doing fine. As for Bach he was the greatest improviser ever, all he did he wrote blueprints and leave the rest to the interpreter.
some observations (1) the violin play needs to improve the sense of rhythm. The durations of notes are sometimes arbitrary (2) lack of texture variation/contrast. I can hear from the piano where different voices talking to each other. But the violin player did not manage to create these contrasts...
pushes away the pianist (not today, one of the seldom instances he plays the from beginning without Dina) , plays the piano very decently, then states "cannot play the piano"...LOL ( he is certainly no pro piano virtuoso but makes up by far with understanding and interpretation)...-
It’s certainly loud and projects very well. It sounds like the soundpost is right under the bridge. It’s certainly not an orchestra section sound. The warm complex notes are certainly amazing. But it’s uneven. I wonder if those notes that pierce can be made to sound any different! I think she’s a wonderful player.
I like a lot better the romantic interpretation of Bach partitas... How could we know how Bach would the play the partitas himself? That is presumptuous and arrogant.
We can never know for sure, but research has led to the current 'authentic' playing practices that are most likely much closer to how music was performed in the days of Bach, there's nothing arrogant in that. Still: what style of interpretation you like most is a matter of taste. One might even like different styles that are worlds apart...
Allemande: shocked to scroll through comments and see only a couple mention the big stinky elephant in that room, and that stink was her terrible intonation. At her level of playing intonation on this Bach, which is usually the piece intermediate players cut their teeth on, should be impeccable. It was not. If you can't play in tune hang it up. I could care less how wonderful her dynamics and phrasing are if she is out of tune no one can listen it's nails on a chalkboard. My daughter plays this piece as a 3 yr player perfectly in tune but obviously she needs to grow her musicality. Listeners can deal with bore but in tune, better than expression out of tune. Intonation should be your first goal, then expression.
Great playing. Not a fan of the critique. He's being so vague about what she should do differently, I felt awkward watching this for her sake. She plays so clean and has a nice interpretation without his fluff and repeating sections softly on the piano.
Agreed, it's one of Zander's weak MCs. He repeats the usual prejudices (historical play etc.) but notices at least in passing that he is dealing with dances. But who would dance on that? It's boring to hell.
She plays badly and is not a student at the school. The only explanation I can think of is her Russian (or similar, Belarus, Ukraine) oligarch dad donated at least $50 000 to the school so that her daughter could appear on RU-vid with Zander who called her an artist and complimented her abundantly while looking at his watch and making none of the usual effort. Let me take it back, her dad donated at least $100 000 for all these pretend compliments. Other guess based on her being totally mute, and looking at Zander with no hint that she gets what he says, she doesn't speak nor understand a single word of English.
