This PM I was listening to Gerhardt on In Tune. He was being interviewed about his admiration for Rostropovich and his new release of Rostro encores. When asked about his own efforts to commission new cello works he said that he thought that it was now even more difficult to get such works past their 1st or 2nd performance so as to stand any chance of entering the repertoire. He was asked why this was.
I hazarded a guess he might say the cello repertoire now much broader, thanks not least to Rostro's own efforts, so harder for new works to squeeze in. But his answer was much more interesting: he blamed the lack of scores with piano reduction of the orchestral parts. So students can't really play them over,and further he reckoned that many modern works didn't permit an effective piano reduction anyway. Not something I'd have come up with in a million years - comments from the knowledgeable please!
He was also asked about his turning down an offered seat in the Berlin PO where his father played - with interviewer commenting something along the lines of "Who wants to play in an orchestra if you can play solo?" He said No, he loves playing in an orchestra and often asks permission to join the cellos for the second half of a concert after he's done his concerto in the first. His reason for rejecting the BPO? Because he reckoned he was naturally lazy, wouldn't practise enough, and might soon get flung out on his ear!
My only experience of a concerto soloist joining the band was Craig Ogden after a performance of the Concierto de Aranjuez with a Cornish amateur orchestra who couldn't muster a harp for the Ravel Pavane after the interval. He sat down modestly in the band and did his considerable best to provide it on the guitar - wish I knew whether he'd had any chance to rehearse! Anyone else spotted a soloist in the band in the Gerhardt fashion?
Tonight Gerhardt finished with the truly hairy last 4 minutes of the Kodaly solo sonata in what sounded a wonderful performance, the 'bleeding chunk' aspect notwithstanding. Do catch his upcoming full performance in London if you can - I can't
(Sorry, don't have the details but Mr Google should oblige.)
I hazarded a guess he might say the cello repertoire now much broader, thanks not least to Rostro's own efforts, so harder for new works to squeeze in. But his answer was much more interesting: he blamed the lack of scores with piano reduction of the orchestral parts. So students can't really play them over,and further he reckoned that many modern works didn't permit an effective piano reduction anyway. Not something I'd have come up with in a million years - comments from the knowledgeable please!
He was also asked about his turning down an offered seat in the Berlin PO where his father played - with interviewer commenting something along the lines of "Who wants to play in an orchestra if you can play solo?" He said No, he loves playing in an orchestra and often asks permission to join the cellos for the second half of a concert after he's done his concerto in the first. His reason for rejecting the BPO? Because he reckoned he was naturally lazy, wouldn't practise enough, and might soon get flung out on his ear!
My only experience of a concerto soloist joining the band was Craig Ogden after a performance of the Concierto de Aranjuez with a Cornish amateur orchestra who couldn't muster a harp for the Ravel Pavane after the interval. He sat down modestly in the band and did his considerable best to provide it on the guitar - wish I knew whether he'd had any chance to rehearse! Anyone else spotted a soloist in the band in the Gerhardt fashion?
Tonight Gerhardt finished with the truly hairy last 4 minutes of the Kodaly solo sonata in what sounded a wonderful performance, the 'bleeding chunk' aspect notwithstanding. Do catch his upcoming full performance in London if you can - I can't
(Sorry, don't have the details but Mr Google should oblige.)
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