20.06.11 Light Music

[salymap]

The most 'squeaky gate music' I have ever heard was a long rehearsal, composer present, with Sargent and either LSO or RPO I think of Artur Schnabel's 1st symphony. The orchestra were hysterical with laughter as the rehearsal went on and the composer explained how it should sound. Such a great 'classical' pianist too.

[hmvman]

And all these guys were able to work to oreder and to produce quality stuuff to satisfy maybe a film producer at very short notice. No communing with the muse for years on end before inspiration strikes.

Reminds me of a story I was told, I think about Richard Addinsell, who when asked for some film music in a hurry was trying to explain to the producer that it wasn't easy to write good orchestral music in such a short timescale. The response was, "we don't want it good we want it Tuesday."

[ardcarp]

I just posted this under BAL, but realise it should have gone here:

Having dipped in and out of this Light Music weekend, I find myself wholly accepting of the genre. All the writers of it seem to be incredible musicians, craftsmen and yes, even inspired. It isn't that easy to write excellent tunes with excellent counter-melodies and to clothe the whole lot in orchestral colour that is so 'right'.

I am intrigued however by the politics (yes, politics) of some of the well known light music composers. Do you think they were all a bit Conservative with a big 'C'...maybe even jingoistic? I just get a feeling they may have been, but have no (well not much) personal knowledge.

[Nick Armstrong]

BBC over-exposure has done a genre a disservice, I think. Its essential conventionality and even banality gets thrust into the foreground. At least with me.

I've always been drawn to 'light music' in small doses - born in the early 60s, I caught the tail-end of it, with theme tunes on the wireless ('Men from the Ministry' was a parental favourite), etc... Hence I found quite a lot of what I heard nostalgic (including hearing for the first time in 40 odd years, and identifying for the first time, a tune my dad often used to whistle).

And in their own right, some of the pieces are as catchy and felicitous and 'well-crafted' as music can be.

But I have to agree with the above quote - it's fine for 20 minutes, but after that, the relentless cheeriness and lack of 'oomph' get me down. I haven't yet been able to hear the Building a Library on Light Music but did catch part of the recommended disc on Classical Collection - rambling, slightly more ambitious Eric Coates... oh dear

Light music seems to be diminished by too much proximity with other pieces in the same genre.

I am catching up on CotW via the podcast though - and that is ideal: the contraction of the music extracts in the podcast format means that the pieces never outstay their welcome, and as an illustrated talk I'm finding it interesting.

Especially the mention of Arnold's English etc Dances and the brief discussion of what is Light Music. I do find persuasive the quote that Light Music is defined by the tune being more important than what happens to the tune.

The borderline with 'serious music' seems to me to be that the latter has slightly more sophisticated ambitions and means of achieving them. Rather than just creating a mood, often a cheerful one but sometimes wistful, more serious music attempts to create a more complex or more subtle atmosphere, to convey something more inward. Hence I don't feel that Arnold's Dances are light music: they are attempting to distill some sort of essence of dance, local character or colour, using more complex harmonic and rhythmic techniques, I think.

[Norfolk Born]

Does anyone else remember 'Eugene and his Serenaders' who played for several years in Hastings? A serious musician friend of mine, a really good pianist, took asummer job with them. The diet was largely Ketelbey and pieces like that and it was hellish for my friend to warble the necessary 'Backsheesh or whatever it was in the Ketelbey. Still in brought in some money. Happy days.

....and what about 'Troy and His Banjoliers' and 'The Big Ben Banjo Band' (no, I'm not making these up)?

[John Wright]

....and what about 'Troy and His Banjoliers' and 'The Big Ben Banjo Band' (no, I'm not making these up)?

Not made up but one is wrong; should be Troise and his Banjoliers, and prior to that he had Mandoliers. Anyway the leader/director was Pasquale Troise. They sold 1000s, indeed 100,000s of records in the 1930s. The public wanted it! Later the leader was Jack Mandel.

Norrie Paramor led the Big Ben Banjo Band which started off just for a bit of fun, but the British public loved it. Norrie Paramor also had the Big Ben Hawaiian Band and the Big Ben Accordion Band, the latter being less successful.
Geoff Love also had a banjo band which recorded on Deccaa's Studio Two label.

All that sort of music can be found today in most charity shops, unsold; I would certainly refrain from including it with the 'light music' that R3 featured as they didn't, in the main, write original music, just performed 'cover versions'. It's a sound/genre scoffed at today, the modern term for it might be 'cheesy'.

Pseudonyms were common for much of that 'cheesy' muisc, maybe the arrangers wanted it not to be associated with theiir more 'serious' output.

In the 1960s Geoff Love sold 1000s LPs issued as Manuel & the Music of the Mountains.

Johnny Gregory (real name Juanito Gregori) was 'Chaquito', Syd Dale was 'Gonzales', Reg Pursglove sometimes performed as Gene Arthur and his band, and then there was Mandingo. Various arrangers issued Mandingo records Alyn Ainsworth, Brian Fahey, Nick Ingman, Geoff Love, Tony Osborne, Mike Vickers, Roger Webb probably more.

Yes a genre all of it's own, can't imagine R3 or even R2 given it any serious play in the future.