Quotables
There is an old adage in the business world that a relevant anecdote or metaphor can be worth a thousand data points. In the music world, these same two elements can be worth many hours of classes or individual lessons.
The General Comments section of the "Quotables" features comments made by, or stories about distinguished professionals and the manner with which they practiced their craft in the performing arts that should be of interest to musicians and music lovers alike, while the For Trumpeters Only section addresses issues that would be of interest to that particular segment of the music community.
Much of the editorial content of the "Quotables" pages was originally either published, or prepared for publication in music education and/or trade journals, or included as subject matter in international master-classes and seminars by Thomas Stevens during the years 1978 through 2001. The original materials have been edited for inclusion on this site, and they are listed in the reverse chronological order of their posting.
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For Trumpeters Only
James Stamp, Jean-Pierre Mathez and Editions Bim
Quotable: “I am absolutely amazed at what Jean-Pierre has done for me!”-James Stamp (1983) in a toast to Jean-Pierre Mathez, who was not in attendance, at a dinner with Irving Bush and this writer.
Quotable: “And Jean-Pierre Mathez made you a star!” Irving quipped in response to Stamp’s toast, paraphrasing (in a kind of sprechstimme) a musicians’ insider joke from the big band era (“Benny Goodman made me a star”), which was always sung over the second phrase of “I Can’t Get Started,” a popular song written by Vernon Duke and the first-ever best selling record made by a trumpeter, Bunny Berigan, who also did the vocal, in 1937 (Irving's longtime friend, trumpeter/vocalist Jack Sheldon, included the Benny Goodman line verbatim in his band's recording of the same song made over half a century later).
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For Trumpeters Only
Utility Music
Music and Musicians in the Service of Others.
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A Further Comment on Orchestra Auditions
How Objective is the Audition Process?
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Orchestra Auditions Nowadays: Say What?
Nowadays?
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Favorite Misnomers
Favorite Misnomers: An Andy Rooney Moment
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Those Confounding Triplets (and such)
During a recent master class, an old performance problem reared its ugly head: the proper execution of slow (tempo or duration) triplets, which no one in the class could play accurately.
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A "My Schlossberg Seven" Update and Commentary
A follow-up on an earlier post..........
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My Schlossberg Seven
It Would Be Fair to Assume They Are The Real Thing.
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Point/Counterpoint-Musical/Technical
Q. What's a Tourte have to do with it?
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The Hindemith Trumpet Sonata-Whatever Works?
Did Hindemith Write Program Music?
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Performance Consistency II-The Experiment
Not "one more time" or "one more once," but one time only (contradicting the Count of Basie).
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Performance Consistency I
Quotable: "There are no second chances in music"-old and oft-repeated music business aphorism.
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