Mitchell Guido

Conducting 2

Observation of a Performance


For this conducting observation, I watched Professor James John conduct the
pit orchestra and vocalists for the QC production of The Dialogue of the Carmelites. It
was indeed interesting to watch a conductor work with both instrumentalists and
vocalists simultaneously. While I have played in pits for musicals before, operatic
compositions are far more intricate and musically complicated.
Unfortunately I could only see the top half of professor John, and the back
row of musicians in the pit. However, I could still get a good sense of professor
Johns posture even with just this view. Generally he was bent over, especially when
conducting the pit. When focusing on vocalists or dramatic loud moments, he would
straighten his back and increase the area of his conducting box. He was not bending
over out of bad habit though: instead he was trying to not block the stage. Since he
was on a high podium, he could possibly block or interfere with the audiences view
of the stage if he stood up straight the entire time. Regardless, the posture did not
decrease the effectiveness of his conducting. If anything, he used his posture to
maintain eye contact with the musicians and to keep the intensity of the music even
during the quiet sections.
Professor Johns arms, even when conducting simple or soft patterns,
generally took up a large conducting box. This was probably so that everyone in
both the pit and on the stage could see him clearly. It was interesting to observe how
professor John was able to control the dynamics and the textures of the patterns
even when they were so large. I know that for me, it becomes difficult to control
patterns as they increase in size. Professor Johns hands were generally relaxed and
flowed, as did the rest of his arm. When appropriate, he would tense his arms and
make sharper movements with his wristsas there were definitely times in the
opera that called for this. Even during these times, though, his hands were very
relaxed. They were so relaxed in fact, that at one point he flung his baton straight up
into the air (a good 10 feet). It was during the prep for a big cue, at the top of which
the baton left his hand, and Professor John gave the cue with just his hands. He then
took another baton from his stand and continued conducting like nothing had
happened.
His patterns were all very clear. Often, he would use melding or some sort of
pattern that outlined a phrase rather than every beat, to help with tricky entrances
or complex passages. Even when doing this, the patterns remained clear and the
orchestra could easily follow him. In addition this, he would often conduct the pit
with one hand and gives cues to the vocalists on stage with the other hand (he
would use either hand depending on the situation). Or instead of giving a pattern to
both the ensemble and soloist, he would give one group a pattern and one group
phrase shaping. Professor John also balanced the musicians very well, often giving
multiple dynamics and balancing signals (pointing and gesturing up or down) to the
pit and then cuing and adjusting the dynamics of the soloists. Since there are no
microphones in opera productions, professor John had to pay extra attention to the
balance of the entire productionsomething much harder than just balancing an
orchestra or choir alone. This type of dual-mindset was very impressive, especially
since it worked so well. The soloists and ensemble were always in sync (at least
from what I could hear). Since I sat on the side of the theatre, I could see professor
Johns face during the production, and it certainly matched whatever was happening
in the music. While he did not seem to over dramatize what was happening, his
facial expressions were appropriate and effective. Since the hall was so dark and
there were so many different layers of music happening, it was probably more
important that the musicians follow his baton anyway.
Something I noticed about his general conducting style, is that during moving
sectionsand particularly during one patternshe will point his baton down
during beat one. So during the ovular motion of a one pattern, he will add extra
weight to the downbeat by tipping the point of the baton down and leading into the
downbeat with the baton. At first it seemed strange to me, but it was clearly
effective and did not obscure the pattern at all. Another particularity that I noticed
with professor Johns conducting was his ability to stretch out any pattern without
distorting the intent of the phrase or sacrificing other musical aspects (dynamics,
cues, etc). I noticed this in particular, because this is something that I trying to work
on: to be able to take any pattern and adjust it for any mood or texture that a piece
of music calls for, without losing the general shape of the pattern. Of course I have
seen conducting do this before, but the music for The Dialogue of the Carmelites
would often change texture quickly, without warningmore so than most
orchestral or band pieces, as the music must follow the text/plot. Thus, it stood out
to me how professor John could seamlessly change his pattern without loosing any
efficiency.
Overall, I was very impressed with professor Johns conducting during the
production of The Dialogue of the Carmelites. Without such a superb conductor, the
production would not have come together as nicely as it did.