my baroque adventure

So, my last post took place in a German town where I was attending a baroque music festival. In this one I want to describe the beginnings of my serious studies as a baroque violist.

As a way of explaining the difference between the way modern classical musicians and baroque musicians interpret music, listen to the following two versions of the first movement of the Bach double concerto. First is Stern and Perlman (modern instruments), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vesrqFeq9rU, and after Andrew Manz and Rachel Podger (baroque instruments), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIOh5Iq683o. You'll probably notice many differences, the most obvious being that they play at different pitch levels.

The masterclass in Germany was with Elizabeth Wallfisch, a well-known Australian baroque violinist. She was great-always brimming with energy and enthusiasm, and also a wonderful person. I felt like that class was a bit like a 'honeymoon' with the period instrument world. Ok, four days to have some lessons and prepare a concert. Let's go. There wasn't much time for discussing the subtleties of different tuning systems or picking things apart.

On the contrary, my first lesson on the baroque viola with my new teacher Florence Malgoire in Geneva was quite...rigorous? I felt a bit like a lowly modern player who wants to be a part of the baroque world whose innumerable technical habits and musical intentions of a modern violist make her something of an impostor. That said, I think that there are different levels baroque-ness, the purists, the less pure, etc, and I've worked with baroque musicians from all parts of this range. I think probably also my teacher probably wants to start fresh with me, and really take care of obstacles in the beginning.

I find, however, that as a teacher her approach is far more musical than any of the teachers that I've had in the past. My assignments for the week included exercises and scales, but also 'speaking' the words of a recitative from an aria with my bow. It might sound funny, but my modern teacher does not play a role in my creative process. It is more, how can you sound good? and good means musical, of course, but he doesn't teach that way.

She also said at one point, "This sonata is in E major, which is a luminous tonality." Perhaps part of her being so musically oriented comes from her active performing career, but I think at the base it is an inseparable part of her as a person. A student brought a slow movement of Bach that was less than immaculately prepared, and perturbed, she questioned them "But how could you do this to such beautiful music?"