This Easter I was able to put together a trombone quartet to play for Easter Sunday service. It was a good group; three graduate students and one recent grad (who is headed to grad school in the fall).
It always amazes me how quickly four good musicians can get in sync with each other with minimal rehearsal time. We met about 45 minutes before the performance to sight-read, and then we played the gig.
While overall I feel the quartet did a good job, there were still a few moments during the performance where we came out of sync and things didn't quite line up. The question I wanted to pose in this blog post is as follows:
What are some ways to take four great musicians to the next level of refinement on a chamber ensemble gig?
One of the primary functions of chamber groups is to allow for live music to take place in a setting that does not wish to use a recording, yet doesn't have a large budget (ex: weddings, church services, dances, and dinner parties/galas). And more often then not, these groups are a collection of musicians who have never met. How can we best equip ourselves to be instantly professional musicians, aside from simply spending more time practicing/playing.
Thoughts?
p.s- I know this blog has completely strayed from Brazilian music. Feel free to throw out South American musical groups if you happen to stumble upon them.
I think that if you don't have much rehearsal time, it's great for someone in the group to give cues for rehearsal letters or other big moments to make sure everyone is together.
ReplyDeleteAlso, if you click on Music Online on the UI Music Library website, you can find videos there of the Venezuelan Brass Ensemble (just search for them by name). They are worth checking out! :)