An even bigger surprise was when Joshua Bell, who happens to be in HK right now, decided to turn up for our rehearsal! Made for a really superstar-studded day!
Now, I'd like to write about the musical advice I've received being here in the orchestra. The conductors here do demand a lot of precision and it was quite a struggle for all of us initially to meet their demands but we're getting much closer each rehearsal. Precision not just in rhythm and pitch, but also in following all the text in the score. It feels like a really anal, perfectionist attitude to it. Every single dynamic marking, articulation, tempo, mood is scrutinised by the conductors and I do agree with this way of interpreting! We have to interpret a piece according to what the composer has written! We should not rewrite the piece. Any nuances we'd like to make should be done according to the composer's intention!
Maestro James Judd has also tried to instil a very singing way of playing the music which is great! He really makes us not play any note without intention and I believe that's what we should always aim for! Every note should have a purpose, an energy. Accents are very good targets to aim for when building a phrase. Whole bars can be pickups to an accent! Even the brasses are challenged to make our parts sound alive and musical even though it's very much accompaniment. We might always be thinking we should be really stable and in time and in tune but we have to get beyond those and start making music! It should never be boring!
Well that's all I can recall for now. 1 more full day of rehearsal followed by a morning rehearsal on Friday and off to Hanoi we go!
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