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Re: Versatility and Doubling (was Vibrato) -Reply

I must say I think it's a shame that this thread has descended into
name-calling. There's a question here which is well worth discussing further,
but as far as I can see Jeremy's and Adrian's contributions are calculated to
bring it to a full stop.

The world seems to be divided into those (perhaps the minority) who find it hard
to believe that amateur musicians can usefully double instruments without loss
of quality, and those who actively encourage such doubling. If this is a
misrepresentation of anyone's point of view, I'm sure I'll be corrected :-).

My own take on this is that I've heard players, particularly young players,
suffering from exactly the problem that Trond Otto Berg describes. I emphasise
the young players because of course it's a particularly pernicious error to
overstretch the young player and perhaps destroy his confidence: but the results
of adult amateurs trying to double unwisely (no pun intended, Jeremy) can also
be pretty appalling - in my view, it depends on the player, and has quitre as
much to do with physical capabilities (at least in the brass world) as with
musicality. I, for instance, play BBb bass and couldn't usefully double on
anything higher than 2nd baritone (though I could probably revert to folk guitar
if required :-)): but a colleague happily hops between BBb and 3rd cornet
(although, as he'd admit, not quite to the same standard). At the same time,
we've all heard orchestral euphonium parts played by a trombonist, and does it
sound like a euphonium? Not for my money.

The way I see it, professionals (and yes, I'm sure we would all seek to aspire
to professional musical standards) do what they must to earn their bread, and
I'm not qualified to offer them advice. The amateur's priorities are different,
though, and he/she needs to think carefully before attempting something that may
adversely affect their playing.

Any (constructive) comments?

Martin Taylor
BBb Bass, Wantage Silver


>>> "Adrian J. Raven" <aj.raven@xxxxxxxxxx> May 30, 1998  8:44 am >>>
JEREMY P WISE wrote:

> Who is this knob Trond Otto Berg - should be re-named Trond Otto Berk.
> 

Very well put!

cheers,
Adrian


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