Samuel Andreyev. Composer. From Paris. The photo is copyright Philippe Stirnweiss 2008.
Did you learn anything in music school? Or does the phrase “circle of fifths” mean nothing to you?
I learned much at the Paris Conservatoire: beyond the obvious technical competence which everyone must acquire in their own way, I was given the freedom and time to develop my fledgling ideas in the most extraordinarily fruitful and stimulating atmosphere..
What’s your favorite “bad” piece of music? And briefly justify your crappy taste.
I consider a lot of the oboe repertoire I play to be bad music, for instance, Pasculli or Kalliwoda. Endless sequences, rather uninspired melodic content, and so on. Yet, despite the lack of intrinsic interest, the performance of this music perhaps can be justified by the fact that it is fun to play, and expanded the technical possibilities of the oboe. I also have a soft spot for Bow Wow Wow, which I refuse to justify.
Your five-composition-long playlist for Schoenberg would contain:
Five pieces for orchestra, Four Orchestral Songs, the Second Quartet, The first Kammersymphonie, and the String Trio.
Congress calls on you to draw up a bailout plan for contemporary music! What do you do?
There are only temporary, provisional solutions to this ‘problem’, which I don’t believe really is a problem, except for certain composers who insist on living off their irrational compulsion to write music. However, the single most important area requiring development, especially in North America, is music education in public schools. Without that basic groundwork, it would be difficult to change the situation in any significant way.
These are fun, David! Thanks….