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MLTs amazing Interpretation of music and Glenn Gould
Many years ago, if someone asked me if I wanted to hear a cover of the Beatles or the Beach Boys, I would probably reply with something like, “why would I want to listen to someone else’s version of a Beatles or Beach Boys song, when I can listen to the Beatles or Beach Boys themselves play it”.
This all changed when I heard San Francisco as interpreted by Mona and Lisa. I always loved that song, but after listening to it for years it lost it’s magic and started dragging on me, until Mona and Lisa’s beautiful vocals and harmonies transformed it into something so beautiful and uniquely their own, and there are countless other great classic songs that Mona and Lisa added value through their interpretation to bring a song back to life that is new and all MLT, but still remains true to the qualities that made the song great by the original artists. While My Guitar Gently Weeps, God Only Knows, Time Of The Season, White Room, Nowhere Man, Walking In The Air, Best Years of Our Lives…..and on and on….
With my classical music background before discovering MLT, the magic Mona and Lisa bring to the table reminds me of what I found remarkable about legendary pianist Glenn Gould. Classic FM, a global online classical music radio station, is to Classical music what Rolling Stones Magazine is to Pop/Rock. Classic FM put out a list of the 25 Greatest Pianists of All Time, and Glenn Gould is listed #9. Just to put this in context, Glenn Gould is rated above Mozart and Liszt, and just behind Chopin and Beethoven in this list. So he is quite highly regarded in the Classical music world. In the 50s’ Glenn Gould did a historic interpretation of Bach’s “Goldberg Variations”. His record actually became a best seller! While that work is considered one of the greatest musical works of art, before Glenn Gould’s famous recording of it, it was considered a lesser known more obscure Bach work. Glenn, through his unique interpretation, brought that work to the forefront in classical music. For me personally, I never really got into Bach’s piano works as much as Beethoven or Mozart, until I started listening to Glenn Gould’s Bach.
I think what Glenn Gould says in this short video, underscores for me what MLT does that makes their covers so remarkable and second to none.
“I’m not a pianist”. – Glenn Gould. He called himself a composer who expressed himself through the piano. When he saw notes on a printed page, he looked on them as a fellow composer, Glenn played it as he felt, he was a composer paying his respect to other composers.
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9 Replies
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Thanks. That was fun.
With respect to what GG said, I think there are differences between musical genres. I think you may follow classical music more closely than I have, although I was brought up with it and always a fan. I didn’t know until a few years ago what a cadenza was, for example. Improvisation – in classical music?!
The music I’ve spent most of my time following in recent years is jazz, and other improvisational music when I was looking for something to see live.
I always thought Jazz is kind of in the other direction from classical, the musician is expected to place his own stamp on what the composer provided. It is highly improvisational. How many times has a different type of piece, for example, a show tune, been turned into a jazz piece, even a standard. And sometimes it’s just, you state the theme, go off on whatever solo you want to, and then come back to the theme.
Thinking of Gould’s love of Bach reminds me of another Bach lover, Hilary Hahn, who is a favorite of mine. Seeing her live is definitely on my short list of music to see.
What you leave out is just as important as what you put in. Finding the right way to cover a song is a great test of artistry. It should be recognizable, but still say something new, and respect the original. Easier said than done.
I am not sure the average listener appreciates the incredible importance of the arranger. I remember watching Dr. John play “Right Place, Wrong Time” solo in a bar. A great rendition, fistfuls of keys is what I think of that style, but then you compare it to the one he released on his album that was a big hit, which is very different. That’s the arranger. The Twins always have great arrangements.
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Hi Chris
It seems classical and jazz are on opposite ends of the spectrum in so far as classical being really structured and jazz is much more free for the musician to add his own creativity and expression into the piece. I think in classical, musicians and even orchestras add nuanced variation within the structure of the music, and within that fairly narrow room to play are able to add their own unique expression that can make one musicians performance remarkable while another’s just accurate. I think Glenn Gould in some instances has improvised and pushed that envelope. There is one famous performance of a Brahms piano concerto where the conductor Leonard Bernstein before the performance even made an announcement that he did not agree with Glenn Gould’s interpretation, because Glenn played the piece in parts much slower and deliberate than what the accepted speed was. There are even some music critics who complain they hear Glenn and not Bach in some of his works. One thing no one can’t deny is Glenn Gould’s interpretation of Bach is mesmerizing, and listeners return to Bach because of that amazing experience, and I think when a musician can do that, it is job accomplished. Glenn once said what is the point if you are just mimicking exactly how everyone else played a piece.
But as you say it takes a certain skill and genius in the case of Glenn Gould and MLT, to be able to add their own creativity and expression to the music transforming it into something fresh, new and amazing, while preserving the essence and what made the piece great in the first place.
Yeah, Hilary Hahn is a remarkable violin virtuoso. I previously posted here in the forum a movement of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto performed by Hilary Hahn. An amazing performance.
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“Glenn once said what is the point if you are just mimicking exactly how everyone else played a piece.”
Exactly. Imo, people should hear Gould as well as Bach.
Hahn has videos on YouTube of Brahms’s Violin Concerto from when she was around 20, 30 and 35 years old. She had her first major performance when she was 13.
Her 20 year old performance was excellent, the 30 year old one I thought significantly better, and 35 better yet. She seems to keep getting better, as far as I can tell.
The age she started playing serious concerts is about the same as the Twins. I’m looking forward to hearing the Twins in the future and seeing where they take it.
You mentioned Bernstein being unhappy with Gould’s tempo. I looked for other violinists playing that same Brahms Concerto. Hahn finished in 42 minutes. Jascha Heifetz took 34 minutes.
Heifetz was flying. Maybe back then it was common to play it faster, or common for him, I don’t know, but that’s quite a difference. Other modern violinists I found were closer to Hahn’s time than Heifetz’s. Isaac Stern took 42 minutes, and Itzhak Perlman 45.
So I guess Gould’s not the only artist who varied the tempo.
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Hi Chris
Here is the legendary conductor and pianist Leonard Bernstein’s short speech before the performance with Glenn Gould. This was unheard of for a conductor to come out and say he did not agree with his solo musician, but really what is remarkable is what he goes on to say so eloquently from 2:30 to 3:30 of the video about that refreshing new interpretation by Glenn Gould that made a huge impression on him and made him believe it was important the audience hear Gould’s new interpretation.
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Hi Chris
Here is that performance by Hilary Hahn I remember. I may be biased, but I think the first movement of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto is the greatest violin solo piece in music. The emotional range Beethoven takes you in music here is amazing and second to none. I’ve heard good performances, but when a musician makes it all their own with their unique nuance, and you feel every single note, it is truly remarkable, and I think she pulls that off here.
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I expect everyone here is biased in favor of great music.
My only problem with Beethoven is the same as with Brahms, why only 1 violin concerto?
Wikipedia says the same violinist, Joseph Joachim, who revived Beethoven’s concerto also gave input to Brahms for the cadenza on his concerto 34 years later. And Joachim liked Beethoven’s better too.
Interestingly, in the entry for his concerto, at the link below, Wikipedia also quotes a piece by Robert Philip that says “it was the practice in the early twentieth century to vary the tempo considerably within a movement”. Which might pertain to the differences between Gould and Bernstein.
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Thx for the excellent post. As the years go by I find myself listening to Classical Music more often than not (though I listen to the MLT’s constantly!!). I have some Gould and really enjoy his Bach piano pieces. Back in those times (Bachs) most keyboard players learned to play on a Church organ and then harpsichord and eventually the piano. I truly love the sound of the pipe organ and hence my excitement in hearing the first MLT tune on the new Hammond they just bought Rudi!! It’s not a pipe organ but it’s second for me in the land of keyboard instruments. Especially with the Leslie.
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It’ll be interesting to hear the C3 on an MLT song. I’m very much looking forward to that. Rudi seems to use organ patches frequently. In the Raise Your Head video I see him with 2 keyboards, the upper one I don’t recognize, but the bottom one appears to be an M-AUDIO controller. Not sure what it’s driving. But they both have organ sounding patches.
Any artist as good as Rudi deserves to have the best tools to pursue his art, and its awesome that now he has that.
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Hi Dave
Yeah, I’m looking forward to some new MLT songs with Papa Rudi on that Hammond. I have some CDs of Bach organ works that I really enjoy too. There is something so stirring and moving about a pipe organ sound like this one. I guess that’s why they used them in churches for centuries.
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