Great Rehearsers

[Prommer]

We all have our opinions about who the great conductors are or were, in performance, but what about the different but rather closely related art of rehearsing an orchestra? (Though I concede that there will be some who can ignite a performance from an orchestra on little or none, if need be.)

I offer two rather different approaches to get the ball rolling, the famous Stuttgart rehearsal of Carlos Kleiber of the Fledermaus and Freischutz overtures (the only time he was ever properly/officially 'caught' doing so); and Dr Karl Bohm rehearsing the VPO in Don Juan.

Both of them amazing in completely different ways!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOu1Qq7_vBU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKqPrtLLHLQ

I wonder what your thoughts are, perhaps especially the players among us, and if any of you have any other suggestions of great rehearsers we should consider on this topic?

[LaurieWatt]

We all have our opinions about who the great conductors are or were, in performance, but what about the different but rather closely related art of rehearsing an orchestra? (Though I concede that there will be some who can ignite a performance from an orchestra on little or none, if need be.)

I offer two rather different approaches to get the ball rolling, the famous Stuttgart rehearsal of Carlos Kleiber of the Fledermaus and Freischutz overtures (the only time he was ever properly/officially 'caught' doing so); and Dr Karl Bohm rehearsing the VPO in Don Juan.

Both of them amazing in completely different ways!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOu1Qq7_vBU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKqPrtLLHLQ

I wonder what your thoughts are, perhaps especially the players among us, and if any of you have any other suggestions of great rehearsers we should consider on this topic?

What an interesting topic for a thread. An interesting aspect of this is that category of conductors who are fabulous musicians but cannot beat time coherently to save their lives - or, are too old to be able to do so reliably - but work with such great orchestras and get their message across such that the performances are terrific. I will leave names to others but might revert!

[DracoM]

Bohm would drive me round the bend if I was a harpist!!
He must have had the most fantastic ear for / memory of the finest details of texture in all parts. Scary!!

[Petrushka]

Bohm would drive me round the bend if I was a harpist!!
He must have had the most fantastic ear for / memory of the finest details of texture in all parts. Scary!!

I was just simply in awe watching Böhm rehearsing Don Juan. I've never seen anything like it. Anyone who wants to know what a conductor does should watch this and learn.

I went to a few rehearsals with Abbado, Haitink, Tennstedt, Solti, Markevich and Svetlanov back in the 1980s and the only one who was in any way similar to Böhm here was Solti who also had a fantastic ear for detail.

[LaurieWatt]

... was Solti who also had a fantastic ear for detail.

...but about whose conducting technique, as opposed to his musicianship and ear for colour and detail, many musicians were vitriolic!

[Petrushka]

...but about whose conducting technique, as opposed to his musicianship and ear for colour and detail, many musicians were vitriolic!

I saw Solti rehearsing the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in the Berlioz Damnation of Faust at the Royal Albert Hall in 1989 and it was fascinating to watch. I remember he did that trick of racing round the hall listening and shouting his instructions from various locations in the auditorium regarding the balance.

[Prommer]

I was just simply in awe watching Böhm rehearsing Don Juan. I've never seen anything like it. Anyone who wants to know what a conductor does should watch this and learn.

I went to a few rehearsals with Abbado, Haitink, Tennstedt, Solti, Markevich and Svetlanov back in the 1980s and the only one who was in any way similar to Böhm here was Solti who also had a fantastic ear for detail.

Couldn't agree more - he would appear to be missing nothing, though much is of course his view of how things should go rather than Holy Writ. He had a useful stratagem thereto, however, of recalling his time spent discussing the scores with Strauss, with Berg etc etc, which I imagine helped disarm criticism!

[slarty]

One of the great orchestral trainers was Rudolf Kempe. There is a superb example of his art available as a CD.
-http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kempe-rehearses-Beethoven-Ludwig-van/dp/B00000I180/ref=sr_1_2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1389135599&sr=1-2&keywords=kempe+beethoven+7

He is rehearsing Beethoven 7 & Egmont with the Dresdeners in 1970.
Admittedly it helps to understand German, but even so it is quite brilliant - the CD lists it as a first rehearsal - it is a commercial release by Berlin Classics.

2 - Although he never got any credit for it Goodall rehearsed the New Philharmonia many times for Klemperer in the later years preparing the works for recording.

3 - The greatest single rehearsal I have ever seen is still available on DVD -

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Celibidache-Stuttgart-Radio-Sym-Orch/dp/B000NOIWNK/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1389136118&sr=1-2&keywords=Celibidache+Strauss

Recorded in 1964 from the same series as the Kleiber - Fledermaus, this is the most amazing rehearsal I have ever seen or heard or experienced - and all withou a score.

[Prommer]

One of the great orchestral trainers was Rudolf Kempe. There is a superb example of his art available as a CD.
-http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kempe-rehearses-Beethoven-Ludwig-van/dp/B00000I180/ref=sr_1_2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1389135599&sr=1-2&keywords=kempe+beethoven+7

He is rehearsing Beethoven 7 & Egmont with the Dresdeners in 1970.
Admittedly it helps to understand German, but even so it is quite brilliant - the CD lists it as a first rehearsal - it is a commercial release by Berlin Classics.

2 - Although he never got any credit for it Goodall rehearsed the New Philharmonia many times for Klemperer in the later years preparing the works for recording.

3 - The greatest single rehearsal I have ever seen is still available on DVD -

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Celibidache-Stuttgart-Radio-Sym-Orch/dp/B000NOIWNK/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1389136118&sr=1-2&keywords=Celibidache+Strauss

Recorded in 1964 from the same series as the Kleiber - Fledermaus, this is the most amazing rehearsal I have ever seen or heard or experienced - and all withou a score.

Great stuff, slarty, will take a look!

[Prommer]

This too is well worth a look too - Ferenc Fricsay, stricken with the cancer that was shortly to kill him, rehearsing 'Die Moldau' (Vltava) from Ma Vlast. A mensch indeed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp-DrDxtbB4

[amateur51]

This too is well worth a look too - Ferenc Fricsay, stricken with the cancer that was shortly to kill him, rehearsing 'Die Moldau' (Vltava) from Ma Vlast. A mensch indeed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp-DrDxtbB4

Indeed, Prommer - no dramas, no tantrums, just clearly articulated requests politely but firmly expressed. Most humbling.

[amateur51]

Reputations of course can be at variance with reality, but Toscanini's outbursts were legendary, as were Walter's and Barbirolli's more collegiate and cajoling style.

Beecham was very publicly dismissive of those who took rehearsing too seriously and Giulini was said to prefer rehearsing to actual performance. Bernstein tried a mixture of impatient bullying and flattery and always seemed to get his way. Boult seemed to be more business-like, though always with a clear idea of what he wanted and was not above an outburst when he met perhaps surly or uninterested resistance (where's salymap with her Boult stories?).

I saw Previn rehearse the LSO a few times in the 1970s and I was always impressed by his business-like manner and tremendous ear for error and balance.

Those Boehm rehearsals are extraordinary, though I sometimes wonder if his insistence on some apparent details are not more about impressing on the orchestra that he knows the score far better than the players do.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDUK5WdNm-8

But here thereis a hierarchy of response - sometimexs he gets the orchestra to stop and repeat; at other times he comments while not stopping the flow. I wonder which approach works better?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqhMK-r_a1s

Sir Colin Davis in later life seemed to regard rehearsal as almost a metaphysical process but I wonder how much he really had in common with Furtwaengler's views on recreating musical art.

Does anyone know if it is possible to attend rehearsals these days?

[Prommer]

Those Boehm rehearsals are extraordinary, though I sometimes wonder if his insistence on some apparent details are not more about impressing on the orchestra that he knows the score far better than the players do.

Yes, agreed, but to my mind what is even more impressive than his knowledge of the score is his acute listening to what the orchestra is doing, including the differences between the players' dynamics and so on within the sections. Scary at times!

[amateur51]

Yes, agreed, but to my mind what is even more impressive than his knowledge of the score is his acute listening to what the orchestra is doing, including the differences between the players' dynamics and so on within the sections. Scary at times!

I think most of the greats, ancient and modern, have that skill, Prommer but I agree that with Boehm it was scary

[DracoM]

Yes, Solti indeed scared the pants off the ROCG band, and while they resented it, oh brother, did they play for him or what!!