STANLEY tells it all – Studying Sousa: style/3
Reading both John Philip Sousa’s autobiography ‘Marching Along’ and ‘A Sousa Reader’ it’s clear the European national styles kept him occupied. Sousa looked for answers with the composers, which he didn’t connect to a given nationality. In his opinion, composers function as themselves where ever they are. Food for thought and lengthy discussions, even to this day! However, there are some interesting historical facts to be considered here.
In the early days, composers were instrumentalists who lead the performances of their work. Either from behind their harpsichord or standing in front playing their violin, at times supervising with gestures of kind. Since new music was composed for nearly every event, there was a lot of it. It had a reason and purpose, but was a consumer product, not an Art form as yet. So, when a composer walked in, he automatically became the leading performer. This approach became the standard.
Composers conducting their own music, meant it was rehearsed until he was satisfied with the result. He knew how it had to sound. Therefore, every composition was performed as intended by the composer and yes, there was only one way: his! In this respect Sousa had it right. He could relate to the enormous impact of their input, since he was one of them. Composers living and working in their own enviroment a.k.a. habitat, creating their music of the day, played a sincere role on the national styles. At least, that was the idea Sousa had. However, there are other influences to be considered as well.
During the Romantic period, classical music gradually became the Art form it is today. A pivotal development which occurred during Sousa’s lifetime. This meant orchestras started building a repertoire to perform and music was choosen on it’s merit, not on it’s composer. Now, what to do when the composer is not available to lead the performance of his music? Appoint somebody else to do so, off course! A specialized musician called conductor. This new profession developed simultaneous with the rise of the symphony orchestras in the late 19th and early 20th century. To this day, the conductor is looked upon as the musician who interprets the music as composed by others. Meaning, he must be a master style as no other.
The question is: what, if any, was the conductors impact on the European national styles? If nothing, whose was? In other words, what was and is the role of the musicians in the orchestras on the matter of style?
To be continued.
Stanley E. van Wel MM – Music Director
Posted on LinkedIn.com dated 16 March 2024