Self-indulgence in performance

[kriskicksass]

Is it wrong to be self-indulgent and play 'eccentrically'? For instance, there's some music where I would like to let my rubato go to the point of distorting note values, but my teacher and my more noble side force me to play in better time. And what about pedal in Bach? I know it's scandalous these days, but I happen to like using some half-pedal to wet the sound. Of course I never perform with pedal, but I sure do like practicing with it.

I like to do lots of these little things that are considered bad practice. But is it really so wrong?

[blackink136]

I would say no! If it sounds good, you should go for it, even in performance. And besides, a big part of being a musician is adding your own style or flavor to whatever you're doing. Bach's dead! So I doubt he'd mind if you added yourself to his stuff.

[stevie]

If it sounds good, you should go for it

 

[daniloperusina]

Well, the reason you go to a teacher is to be taught!:-) And to be taught is to be enlightened. Forcing an opinion on someone is not to enlighten, that's to brain-wash. And to brain-wash someone is to kill his/her spirit. And what kind of artists are we, if we are not alive? Then we are dead artists, of course!

No, if you are curious, you have to find out! If no one else likes the result, that's another issue altogether...

[palika dunno]

"Bach has to be played with pedal, but with reasonable, careful and very sparing pedal."
                                    (bad translation from the german version)
 -Heinrich Neuhaus

 

[henrah]

Whatever feels good and sounds good, do it. If people don't like it, that's their problem, and should in no way effect how you play music for yourself.

You are not playing for the audience. You are playing for yourself, and the audience just has the privilege of watching you.

[jas]

I think it depends how self-indulgent you get. There comes a point when the performer actually begins to get in the way of the performance, and the audience feels that the performer is shutting them out. The communication from performer to audience breaks down and the audience may as well not be there. It's one problem I have with Lang Lang. If you watch Richter, Argerich, Hamelin, etc. (who are all infinitely better performers, IMO), they barely move at all. No agonised facial expressions, and no looking like they're about to fall off the bench.

With Gould, for some reason, I get the feeling that he wasn't playing up to the audience when he did all of his hand gestures and ecstatic faces, maybe because he did it whether he was performing in front of a live audience or not. But with Lang Lang it looks affected.

You are not playing for the audience. You are playing for yourself, and the audience just has the privilege of watching you.

I don't know if I necessarily agree with that. If you're not going to play for your audience, why perform at all?

Jas

[justliam]

I think one pianist (possible Hamelin) was asked about why he chose to use pedal during some Bach, to which he replied - "well I didn't get here in a horse and carriage did I?"

[invictious]

Look at Lang lang! he keeps the audience entertained with his facial expressions!

[gorbee natcase]

Record yourself and see which you prefer You may be your own biggest critic.
Maybe you will be judged for bringing new light on a beaten path
But then again maybe not. now you need to ask yourself am I a gambler who doesnt play safe.

Performance is a gamble anyway, but rather just betting on black (roulette) do you dare put numbers down instead. The rewards would be larger, but also the pottential fall.

      go for it

[henrah]

Great link to roulette gambling Gorbee

[lostinidlewonder]

There are people who play for themselves and people who play for others. Sometimes different periods of time in our life determines how we have to play. If you are in a univeristy and playing in exams then of course you must  play for others you cannot play how you like. When you play with an orchestra or piano trio or whatever you also cannot fully play how you like you must walk that straight line and play for others otherwise you will throw everything out of wack.

When you do your own solo performance you can play for yourself. I play with lots of changes in Ravel's music which the composer himself despised! But it is my own peformance, it is what I want to do, if people have a problem with it then they should run back to their homes and listen to the CD recordings which give them so much comfort! I hate one dimensional playing. Be confident that you can play a piece strictly and also with your own flamboyance. Then do whatever you like from there.