Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Yes, I played Swan lake when the Kirov was in Canada a number of years ago and the conductor gave me copies of the various different cadenzas. There are also two completely different Black Swan cadenzas and variations.
Natalia Shameeva (also spelled Shameyeva) and Anna Levina will also be playing at the World Harp Congress this summer in Vancouver. Anna will be doing a demonstration and talk on Russian ballet cadenzas, and Natalia will be performing a recital of Russian repertoire.
Another stunning performance. I can’t wait to hear Sylvain and meet him in person in Vancouver this summer at the World Harp Congress.
Did anyone see the Saturday Night Live episode with Florence and the Machine, with a male harpist in the band? The song was Dog days are Over.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5D03qgJOls is the live broadcast from SNL
This one is the video for Much Music. The harp is on around the 58 second mark.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWOyfLBYtuU
Anyone know who the harpist is?
In Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, if you are playing the very beginning of the movement, count all the bars in between the segments. They go by very quickly, and the committee is hearing the rest of it in their heads, so they will be listening to ascertain that you can count bars correctly.
(1) Dynamic
You’re right that there are different styles, and the dynamics depend on the context. As Carl says, if you listen to the recordings, this will help you decide how loud or soft to play the “piano” sections. If there is thick orchestration, you must play the “p” more loudly, but if it is a solo, then you can show what a beautiful, focused piano dynamic can sound like.
(2) Harmonics in a fast and “ppp” passage.
It depends on the piece. For example, in Respighi’s “The Pines of Rome”, there is a section where the harmonics can be played as normal notes up the octave. This piece is not usually required in auditions. But in Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Russian Easter Overture”, you have to play the harmonics. (In this piece, I alternate left and right hand. I play the left hand harmonics with the same technique as the right hand when the harmonics get too high on the harp.)
(3) Rest in between measures
What is the maximum measures that you would count?
As you guessed, it depends on the speed. Don’t make the committee wait too long. Just make sure that you count the bar or bars in the same tempo as the rest of the passage.Any good blog for some tip?
Google “auditions” and you will find many articles and tips on the Internet. For example, I have one on preparing for auditions. http://www.elizabethvolpebligh.com/articles.shtml#auditionI sent this question to Judy Loman, and she asked me to reply:
They are to find the quarter tone on the top B of the octave by playing the note and hitting it with the metal tuning key until they find the quarter tone down.I am a Harp Column addict as well. It is such a great source of information on subjects dear to our hearts (and harps). I often refer my students to it if they have a question that requires some wide-ranging research. And, yes, if the search engine could be brought back, that would be great.
You can get my book of pieces from The Avondale Press. I don’t think they have this information on the RCM web site.
Here’s the direct link to where you can order it:
http://www.theavondalepress.com/catalog/solos-for-lever-or-pedal-harp/Dear John, I fear that the title of this post may be a problem, as it doesn’t say “available for testing harps”. When I first saw it, I immediately envisaged a line-up of professionals at a clinic waiting to be tested for some communicable illness.
If you don’t get any answers, try re-phrasing the title.The pedal marking is missing in my edition, and the gliss doesn’t show any B#’s, but rather has the repeated C naturals. It would be easy to assume that one doesn’t have to think about the pedals, since the rest are already marked. I have never performed this piece, and was just teaching it when I noticed the omission and marked in the B#. Goodness knows, you can proof-read until you’re blue in the face, and errors still creep in.
