Beyond the Score: The Role of Interpretation and Performance

Name:
Course
Instructor
Date:
Beyond The Score: The Role of Interpretation and Performance
Performers can play different instruments for the same music piece, which often requires improvising and interpretation that captures the mood of the audience or listeners. In improvisation there is often emotional reference and interpretation that may include changes to the original music piece, and music for the piano is one more likely to be improvised. Alterations can be only melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic including the changes in textures, dynamic nuances and character. Often many music performances often involve improvisation, but the performers still follow the principles of the genre and occasion, ad this is especially for non-classical music (Goehr 31). The art of improvisation and interpretation in J.S. Bach - Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1, No. 7, Fugue in Eb is apparent for performers on keyboard instruments including Andras Schiff, Wanda Landowska, Glenn Gould and Christophe Rousset.
Andras Schiff’s recording has few improvisations of Bach’s music and the recording mostly focuses on the rhythm. Schiff’s piano performance has included many of the classical pieces form Bach and Beethoven, and as one of the greatest pianists he has played music for soloists, concertos, and symphonies. Gould is able to capture the complicated musical notes and signatures and change in sound when compared to Schiff even as they have similar styles of playing the piano. Nonetheless, Schiff shows mastery in the performance capturing, and most of his recordings are piano performances for Bach. At the same time, Andras Schiff's rendering of Bach's work for the piano he uses the same harmony without reorganizing and reshuffling the notes.
Wanda Landowska (harpsichord) plays the music on parts and this style captures Bach’s focus on symmetry in the fugue, and Landowska is expressive as intended in the music. this piece is using as the performer is able to integrate various tempo modifications and volume contrasts, which results in the music having a lute-like music despite being performed on the harpsichord. Interpretation of this masterpiece at a well-phrased tempo with the sound of the harpsichord and effectively controlled dynamics effects the performer’s improvisation
The harpsichord was used for larger venues when compared to the clavichord. The performer is one of the most famous harpsichordists who play music pieces that are mostly played on the piano and classical music is well suited for the harpsichord.
Glenn Gould’s recording has an intimate and intense interpretation of Bach's music with focus on a slow melody and tempo on the piano and he is deeply immersed in the music performance The moments when the notes are change, Gould’s expressions signal this and show that he is focused on the performance and his interpretation of Bach’s music. The recording is played extremely well, precise, and from the performer’s heart as represented by his movement of the fingers and expressions. Typically, informed performance focused on performer’s accurate interpretation and correct performance of music pieces, but Gould goes even further and focuses on beauty of the perf...