This may surprise you, but the conductor's job is to conduct, and the player's job is to be conducted.tofu wrote:From my experience in the business world I know that when I've been asked to come in and take over an organization I know that there are going to be people I want to retain and folks who need to go because they are either part of the problem or just unwilling to change and buy into the new concept. I can't imagine how hard it must be to step in as the new conductor of an orchestra and try to execute my concept with somebody else's picks who may not be my cup of tea or unwilling to, if you will, get on the bus.
During the probationary phase, a player will see probably more guest conductors, styles. and interpretations than most non-professionals will ever see in a lifetime. A pro player must know the scores, context, and listen to what everyone else doing so that they can do what the director is directing.
In business, this is one way to make sure your employees never fail, but it's one way to make sure that they don't succeed by too much, eithertofu wrote:it seems to me that orchestras would be better served if the players were forced to stay on the edge to keep the seat
Exactly.Rick Denny wrote:the union agreements that are now in place are in many ways a reaction to bad management and arbitrary treatment
Professional playing is not about being able to physically recreate scores accurately. If it was, then music would have been over with the advent of the digital synthesizer. Rather, it is about collaborative interpretation, at every level.tofu wrote:We have seen it in sports where some great players retire when they see their skills diminish to the point where they might hurt the team and we have also seen the players who linger on and do indeed hurt their teams. At least in sports players can be benched
