![\"shakespeare\"](\"http:\/\/www.angelashornstudio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/shakespeare.jpg\")
<\/a>This is when I stumbled across a piece in the New York Times<\/em> by Charles Isherwood entitled \u201cWhat Makes a Great Shakespearian?\u201d <\/a>\u00a0 He begins by stating how one identifies a great performance of Shakespeare.\u00a0 He says he knows it\u2019s great when \u201cthe language no longer feels remote, when the humanity of the actor and the character seem indivisible, when the emotion being expressed is no longer veiled by poetic phrasing but revealed by it, creating a shock of recognition in your own heart.\u201d<\/p>\nThis statement itself created a shock of recognition in me, articulating exactly how I feel when listening to a great musical performance, no matter the era. I am not distracted by the musical language (whether ancient or written yesterday) or by any affect of the performer.\u00a0 I can hear the music speak and it just feels right.<\/p>\n
Isherwood, in his article, went on to say that, in thinking about the qualities of a great Shakespearean performance, he dug out an old series in his possession called \u201cPlaying Shakespeare\u201d by John Barton of the Royal Shakespeare Company. \u00a0He explains that Barton believes the answer to the question of how to \u201cplay Shakespeare\u201d lies in Shakespeare\u2019s own text, in the form of direction that Hamlet gives to his players.\u00a0 He quotes the speech in part:<\/p>\n
“Suit the action to the word, the word to the action, with this special observance, that you o\u2019erstep not the modesty of nature. For anything so o\u2019erdone is from the purpose of playing, whose end both at the first and now, was and is, to hold as \u2018twere, the mirror up to nature.”<\/i><\/p>\n
I decided to find \u201cPlaying Shakespeare\u201d<\/a> and experience it for myself, and I encourage anyone interested to do the same.\u00a0 The first seven minutes<\/a> alone are jam-packed with extraordinary insight (and more of Hamlet\u2019s speech) into how to begin to approach seemingly remote, daunting material both as an actor and an audience member.\u00a0 Incidentally, watching Ian McKellan, Patrick Stewart and the other very fine actors on the roster read lines and perform scenes in this casual masterclass setting is riveting, as is the conversation between them and Mr. Barton.<\/p>\n As the masterclass continues, it becomes clear that the question of how to help the audience make that leap over time and place is intimately linked to expression.\u00a0 Barton talks extensively about the dichotomy of naturalistic text and heightened text in Shakespeare as well as the natural (casual) ways that lines can be delivered versus the stylized ways.\u00a0 He shows (through the actors on stage with him) several examples of both overly-natural and overly-stylized treatments of both kinds of text, and demonstrates just how powerful it is when the right balance is struck.<\/p>\n At the same time Barton is careful to point out that there is no one best interpretation and that very fine actors and directors passionately disagree on many points.\u00a0 It is, however, important to do the investigative and exploratory work into the details of the text and the characters.<\/p>\n The questions raised by Isherwood and by Barton are not questions of how to reach a general public completely uninitiated or uninterested in Shakespeare, but rather, an investigation of what makes a truly great Shakespearean performance for the theater-going public.\u00a0 For us in classical music, rather than helping us to address the issues of cultivating new audiences and increase the \u201crelevance\u201d to newcomers to music, these points are most illuminating for those of us who are already dedicated to the art form. Perhaps some of the correlations to be made are: to serve the music and our audiences by looking deeply, being intentional, and understanding our role; having a vivid idea of the character and colors we want to communicate; to not get caught up in the cheap trick of over-emoting or distorting for sheer effect.\u00a0 (How easy it is to put the music into our service rather than the other way around.)<\/p>\n It also reminds me, despite the pressure to \u201cmake progress\u201d and get through material, to not neglect the passing on of this deep, investigative approach to exploring and performing music that makes music-making (and listening to music) such a wonderful life-long pursuit.\u00a0 Passed along from music lover to fellow music lover, from teacher to student, it is what will keep our art form truly vibrant.<\/p>\n When I think about the musical qualities I strive for, and what I hope my students will incorporate into their own approach, Isherwood once again sums it up for me so eloquently in a later article (“Your Favorite Shakespeare Performance<\/a>s”)\u00a0responding to readers\u2019 submissions.\u00a0 Among his own favorites were several productions with Judi Dench.\u00a0 He remembers, \u201cher performances were marked by a clarity of thought, a simplicity of speech and a warmth of humanity that I still recall with wonder.\u201d<\/p>\n Clarity of thought.\u00a0 Simplicity of speech.\u00a0 Warmth of humanity.<\/p>\n How perfectly beautiful. \u00a0What more could anyone want from music – \u00a0or from life?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One of the great joys of my musical life is hearing the perspectives of artists who work in other fields.\u00a0 Painters, dancers, writers and actors have all enriched my own musical path.\u00a0 Recently, my exploration has happily brought me to … Continue reading