This past weekend I had the privilege of singing Hector Berlioz’s “Requiem” w/ the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir and the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Dr. Eric Stark, a friend and mentor of mine.
I love going to the symphony and was very excited to sing w/ them. To be on stage w/ that many people who have mastered their craft is a thrilling experience. The performance was well attended and has received fantastic reviews. Everyone who participated seemed to be more than satisfied with the performance. I agree that it was very well executed, but I was surprised by how much I did not enjoy the evening. In fact, I haven’t enjoyed many of the performances I’ve been in w/ choirs through the past several months. I can’t seem to get into the music like I’m used to.
At first I feared that I was just becoming an elitist snob, one of those people who couldn’t listen to any of the master works unless it was played by the Berlin or New York Philharmonic. After a while I dismissed that thought, though… I still enjoyed going to hear the ISO and have always enjoyed any caliber of performance that was honestly given from the heart of the performer(s). Instead I have come to a completely different conclusion: I think that the performance of classical music stresses me out. The preparation and execution of a performance is completely different for me than singing jazz and standards.
When a chorus is learning a movement from Berlioz’s “Requiem”, no detail is spared. The markings are all there in your score… each breath planned out, every pronunciation exact, the dynamics premeditated by whoever prepared the score. It is like musical surgery to me… one little screwup and the whole piece is lost forever. I don’t feel like that in the audience, but when I’m staring at that score, man, I’m just waiting for something to go wrong.
When I learn a standard, I listen to several interpretations and make sure I have learned the composer’s original melody. However, the feeling once I have walked up to the mic is completely free of those thoughts… I attempt to be in a place of pure, honest expression. It feels more like the music operating on me than the other way around…
I realize that this may be too black and white of an argument, but it seems to me that may be the difference of the two art forms at their core, performance wise.
