Hey Alan, how about the CSO's Donald Koss?
David Royko
recently (specifically, the Shostakovich 10th under P. Jarvi), I found
myself wondering: What does Alan Watkins think of him? Any stories,
annecdotes or tales out of school?
Dave Royko
(I must be in a People Magazine mood today)
Dave Royko's Self-Promotion Department:
My book, "Voices of Children of Divorce,"
is in paperback at Amazon.com (and elsewhere):
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312254695
Various music reviews, articles, Ben stories (Adventures in Autism),
and etcetera, are here: http://www.geocities.com/davidroyko/mypage.html
MW
> While watching looooong time CSO timpanist Donald Koss do his thing
> recently (specifically, the Shostakovich 10th under P. Jarvi), I found
> myself wondering: What does Alan Watkins think of him? Any stories,
> annecdotes or tales out of school?
> Dave Royko
I hear that one of his "sticks" is a very large hammer that he uses on
management when the contract negotiations happen every few years. The
resulting sound sound is "$$$$$$" or, as notated among those
in-the-know, "NYP+1".
:-)
alanwa...@aol.com
David Royko wrote:
> While watching looooong time CSO timpanist Donald Koss do his thing
> recently (specifically, the Shostakovich 10th under P. Jarvi), I found
> myself wondering: What does Alan Watkins think of him? Any stories,
> annecdotes or tales out of school?
>
> Dave Royko
I cannot really help. I do not know him personally except through
reputation which is pretty high. I assume he played on the CSO
Bruckner recordings and there is some very fine playing on there. I
believe I read once that his wife is also a percussionist but I could
have got that confused with someone else.
I know he has been with the orchestra for a long time but that is not
unusual among timpanists:):) Kalman Cherry has been with the Dallas
Orchestra for many years as well.
Kind regards,
Alan M. Watkins
MW
those totally ignorant, like me.
When the Cleveland Orchestra came to Chicago, the timpani set that was
being used looked nothing like Don's- the entire base was copper in
color, not silver, giving the appearance of something far older. Don's
set looks totally standard to me, at least superficially. I don't know
what this amounts to at all, but it was curious.
I was probably also curious because the Cleveland Orchestra played
Shostakovich 8, and the timps sounded dark and colorful. The CSO
always sounds more "technicolor"- Cleveland was a more single-hued
orchestra.
And now you can give me an award for bad writing about music. Thank
you, thank you.
Josep Vilanova
David Royko wrote:
> While watching looooong time CSO timpanist Donald Koss do his thing
> recently (specifically, the Shostakovich 10th under P. Jarvi), I found
> myself wondering: What does Alan Watkins think of him? Any stories,
> annecdotes or tales out of school?
Don't they have a woman with long blondish hair and glasses as a
percussionist? Maybe she doesn't play the timpani. She is the only CSO
percussionist I remember.
j
Dontait...@aol.com
On Oct 17, 2:22 pm, "Josep Vilanova" <josepvilan...@hotmail.com> wrote:
[About the CSO percussion section]
> Don't they have a woman with long blondish hair and glasses as a
> percussionist? Maybe she doesn't play the timpani. She is the only CSO
> percussionist I remember.
Gary Stucka can certainly answer this, but yes they do. Her name is
Patricia Dash ("Patsy" to everyone who knows her). She plays smaller
percussion, I think.
I must add that she and her husband have for some years done
something extraordinary with local children. They have a group made up
of kids from about seven through fourteen who make up a percussion
ensemble sponsored by the CSO. Many of the children enter it knowing
nothing about the instruments or even classical music. The kids master
not only their instruments but the most complex rhythms and everything
else and make up a complete percussion ensemble. They seem able to play
anything brilliantly. A year or two ago Cliff Colnot made an excellent
arrangement for them of part of The Rite of Spring. It was
mind-boggling to hear the recording of it and know how young the
performers were and that most knew nothing about classical music when
they began.
Don Tait
Michael Schaffer
I know he is actually self taught, never attended a music academy. I
think he is the only musician in a major orchestra that I have ever
heard of who hasn't fornally studied music.
I don't remember too many details about his story though, but there is
a portrait of him which tells how he came to learn the timpani and join
the CSO in this book:
http://www.amazon.com/Season-Solti-Chicago-Symphony-Orchestra/dp/0025420003/sr=8-1/qid=1161115417/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-6864809-9683167?ie=UTF8
If you are interested in that kind of background information, I can
only recommend you grab a copy (or maybe they have it in your local
library). There are plenty of such stories in there, plus a fairly
comprhensive portrait of the orchestra, its players, management, how a
season is put together, what happened during that season (the book was
written in the early 70s, 1972 or 73 or so) etcetc. Definitely a great
portrait of the orchestra as it was then with plenty of background
information.
Some of it really shocking: Did you know the CSO first wanted to hire
Karajan after Martinon? That may be hard to handle for some, but it is
true...
Dontait...@aol.com
On Oct 17, 3:07 pm, "Michael Schaffer" <ms1...@gmail.com> wrote
>I know he is actually self taught, never attended a music academy. I
> think he is the only musician in a major orchestra that I have ever
> heard of who hasn't fornally studied music.
> I don't remember too many details about his story though, but there is
> a portrait of him which tells how he came to learn the timpani and join
> the CSO in this book:http://www.amazon.com/Season-Solti-Chicago-Symphony-Orchestra/dp/0025...
> If you are interested in that kind of background information, I can
> only recommend you grab a copy (or maybe they have it in your local
> library). There are plenty of such stories in there, plus a fairly
> comprhensive portrait of the orchestra, its players, management, how a
> season is put together, what happened during that season (the book was
> written in the early 70s, 1972 or 73 or so) etcetc. Definitely a great
> portrait of the orchestra as it was then with plenty of background
> information.
> Some of it really shocking: Did you know the CSO first wanted to hire
> Karajan after Martinon? That may be hard to handle for some, but it is
> true...
Yes, Don Koss was a mathematics teacher before he joined the CSO and
I believe is indeed self-taught as a timpanist.
The Karajan business to which Michael referred is the reason Martinon
left the CSO. The idea that he was fired is incorrect, as is
the idea that Claudia Cassidy of the Chicago Tribune got him fired. She
was gone from the paper in 1967, a year before Martinon's contract was
up for renewal. What happened was that while the CSO board was
negotiating with him they were simultaneously talking with Karajan
(behind Martinon's back) about Karajan possibly replacing him. Being
the typical naive bankers and other cultural gadflies who run American
orchestras, they thought Martinon would never hear about it. He did, of
course. He told people he intended to re-sign as the CSO's Music
Director but when he heard of that treachery, he left.
The irony is that it's unthinkable that Karajan would ever have taken
on running an American orchestra with the expected deference to social
gadflies and he might just have been stringing them on, as we say in
the USA.
The book Michael recommends is very good if you can find it. By the
way, I have been told on good authority that Solti hated it (imagine
italics) and that everyone around him knew not to mention it within his
earshot.
Don Tait
Don Tait
Michael Schaffer
On Oct 17, 1:33 pm, Dontaitchic...@aol.com wrote:
> On Oct 17, 3:07?pm, "Michael Schaffer" <ms1...@gmail.com> wrote
How come? I don't remember anything really negative about him in the
book. Which doesn't say there isn't anything. I just don't remember too
many details since its been a while since I read it. But I don't
remember anything about Solti which would have stuck in my mind because
it was so negative. The general tone is one of celebration of the
orchestra and its people.
Dontait...@aol.com
On Oct 17, 3:38 pm, "Michael Schaffer" <ms1...@gmail.com> wrote:
>How come? I don't remember anything really negative about him in the
> book. Which doesn't say there isn't anything. I just don't remember too
> many details since its been a while since I read it. But I don't
> remember anything about Solti which would have stuck in my mind because
> it was so negative. The general tone is one of celebration of the
> orchestra and its people.
It's been some years since I was told about this (on good authority
though, I must say), but I'm relying upon memory. I seem to remember
that Solti disliked the idea of "inside" musicians' stories appearing
in print. I haven't read the book in a long time and don't remember
much about him in it that was negative either.
I'll ask my source and try to get back.
Don Tait
alanwa...@aol.com
Dontait...@aol.com wrote:
Two things. Percussionists do this with kids all the time as it needs
no bowing, no embrouchure etc and is the most easily accessible of all
orchestral sections to children and because it's FUN and because it is
noisy.
For nearly 40 years I have done school-meet-the-musicians concerts and
the longest queue is always for the percussion section and the first
question is always: "Can I hit it or Can I have a go?" Of course they
can!
As previously posted, little girl in the queue looks at the suspended
cymbal and says to me: "Can I hit it?" "Go ahead". Timid stroke not
much above pp.
I say: "Go on, really hit it." She tries again and we are somewhere
near f.
I say: "You can't hurt it. REALLY hit it."
She looks for reassurance. I say "Yes, REALLY hit it, you can't hurt
it."
So she grips the mallet with both hands and we are somewhere near a
Sfz. Big smiles from both of us!
Second thing: although all percussionists learn their art (if such it
is) initially through the Snare Drum rudiments as they contain the
rudiments for all percussion instruments, the snare drum is not
particularly common in symphonic music and you are likely to spend most
of your time playing cymbals,bass drum, triangle, tambourine (among
others) in the percussion section.
I cannot begin to tell you how seriously underrated small percussion is
as played by the likes of Patricia Dash. It is seriously neglected by
many teachers. Often, very seriously neglected but that will often be
what gets you the job.
It is actually the heart of the percussion section!
All of those have an "art form" of their own, silly as that may appear.
But they do!
Michael Schaffer
On Oct 17, 1:58 pm, "alanwatkin...@aol.com" <alanwatkin...@aol.com>
wrote:
> Dontaitchic...@aol.com wrote:
> > On Oct 17, 2:22?pm, "Josep Vilanova" <josepvilan...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> > [About the CSO percussion section]
>
> > > Don't they have a woman with long blondish hair and glasses as a
> > > percussionist? Maybe she doesn't play the timpani. She is the only CSO
> > > percussionist I remember.
>
> > Gary Stucka can certainly answer this, but yes they do. Her name is
> > Patricia Dash ("Patsy" to everyone who knows her). She plays smaller
> > percussion, I think.
>
> > I must add that she and her husband have for some years done
> > something extraordinary with local children. They have a group made up
> > of kids from about seven through fourteen who make up a percussion
> > ensemble sponsored by the CSO. Many of the children enter it knowing
> > nothing about the instruments or even classical music. The kids master
> > not only their instruments but the most complex rhythms and everything
> > else and make up a complete percussion ensemble. They seem able to play
> > anything brilliantly. A year or two ago Cliff Colnot made an excellent
> > arrangement for them of part of The Rite of Spring. It was
> > mind-boggling to hear the recording of it and know how young the
> > performers were and that most knew nothing about classical music when
> > they began.
>
> > Don TaitTwo things. Percussionists do this with kids all the time as it needs
> no bowing, no embrouchure etc and is the most easily accessible of all
> orchestral sections to children and because it's FUN and because it is
> noisy.
Are you familiar with the music education for children approach
developed by Carl Orff? What do you think about it?
alanwa...@aol.com
Dontait...@aol.com wrote:
> On Oct 17, 3:07?pm, "Michael Schaffer" <ms1...@gmail.com> wrote
I doubt these comments. Mr Koss may have majored in maths (as did
Ansermet and Boulez) but as I note he recorded the (percussion) complex
Soldier's Tale I do not believe he was self taught.
You do not just pick up Soldier's Tale as you go along. No way.
The timpanists for Haydn and Mozart might have hacked their way through
the parts (as indeed we know they did, Haydn not much taken with
self-taught timpanists, see Salomon concerts) but Maths would not get
you through Soldier's Tale technically. No way.
Don't believe it!
alanwa...@aol.com
.
>
> Are you familiar with the music education for children approach
> developed by Carl Orff? What do you think about it?
If you are talking about Schulwerk, yes I am. It is brilliant as it
involves children easily in music making.
Sadly, however, Mr Orff also wrote Carmina Burana which regularly gets
monstered on account of it being popular or used on TV ads, ignoring
the fact that quite a lot of it is extremely difficult to perform.
Who knows? But there again I was brought up on Mr Smetacek's Triptych,
rarely performed today I think.
Michael Schaffer
On Oct 17, 3:08 pm, "alanwatkin...@aol.com" <alanwatkin...@aol.com>
wrote:
> > Don TaitI doubt these comments. Mr Koss may have majored in maths (as did
> Ansermet and Boulez) but as I note he recorded the (percussion) complex
> Soldier's Tale I do not believe he was self taught.
>
> You do not just pick up Soldier's Tale as you go along. No way.
>
> The timpanists for Haydn and Mozart might have hacked their way through
> the parts (as indeed we know they did, Haydn not much taken with
> self-taught timpanists, see Salomon concerts) but Maths would not get
> you through Soldier's Tale technically. No way.
>
> Don't believe it!
>
> Kind regards,
> Alan M. Watkins
I don't know to what extend Mr Koss received private tuition, but the
book described his path the the CSO in a lot of detail, and it was very
clear that he had not attended a formal teaching institution like a
music academy or conservatory. I don't remember any details - there are
a lot of stories in the book about a number of musicians in the
orchestra -, but I do remember that very clearly because it is quite
extraordinary.
You know, that sometimes happens with particularly talented people. One
of the two principal bass players of the BP doesn't have a formal
musical education either (his father was a bass player though and
taught him), he just got his first job when he was 16 or so, and joined
the BP at 20 or so.
Michael Schaffer
On Oct 17, 4:39 pm, "alanwatkin...@aol.com" <alanwatkin...@aol.com>
wrote:
> .
>
>
>
> > Are you familiar with the music education for children approach
> > developed by Carl Orff? What do you think about it?If you are talking about Schulwerk, yes I am. It is brilliant as it
> involves children easily in music making.
>
> Sadly, however, Mr Orff also wrote Carmina Burana which regularly gets
> monstered on account of it being popular or used on TV ads, ignoring
> the fact that quite a lot of it is extremely difficult to perform.
Why is that sad? It's not Orff's fault that a lot of people like the
music. Well, it is, in a way. But I can't see anything bad about that.
It's not his fault anyway that the music gets used in ads and films all
the time, or rather, just the introduction. Just like it isn't Strauss'
fault so many people like the introduction to AsZ, or Prokofieff's that
many love the Dance of the Knights.
Matthew Silverstein
> You know, that sometimes happens with particularly talented people. One
> of the two principal bass players of the BP doesn't have a formal
> musical education either (his father was a bass player though and taught
> him), he just got his first job when he was 16 or so, and joined the BP
> at 20 or so.
And Mozart taught himself to play the violin . . .
Matty
jrs...@aol.com
Yeah, but he never played "A Soldier's Tale" on it.
--Jeff
Michael Schaffer
On Oct 17, 8:16 pm, Matthew Silverstein <msilv...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> On Tuesday, October 17, 2006, Michael Schaffer wrote:
> > You know, that sometimes happens with particularly talented people. One
> > of the two principal bass players of the BP doesn't have a formal
> > musical education either (his father was a bass player though and taught
> > him), he just got his first job when he was 16 or so, and joined the BP
> > at 20 or so.And Mozart taught himself to play the violin . . .
>
> Matty
Mozart apparently picked up the violin like it was nothing, but he was
taught by his father who was a very highly respected violin pedagogue
and had even written a book about how to play the violin properly. The
book was published in the same year in which Mozart was born and is an
invaluable source of information. If more people would actually read
it, that would end a lot of these stupid "I can't stand HIP
discussions". But that belongs in a different thread.
TareeDawg
news:1161128384....@e3g2000cwe.googlegroups.com...
>
> .
>>
>> Are you familiar with the music education for children approach
>> developed by Carl Orff? What do you think about it?
>
> If you are talking about Schulwerk, yes I am. It is brilliant as it
> involves children easily in music making.
>
> Sadly, however, Mr Orff also wrote Carmina Burana which regularly gets
> monstered on account of it being popular or used on TV ads, ignoring
> the fact that quite a lot of it is extremely difficult to perform.
I might add, in the case of myself, that just because a piece is difficult
to perform, doesn't mean I automatically have an obligation to like it,
surely? And sure, I am likely to appreciate the efforts and skills of
performers in performing "difficult to play" pieces, (in fact I am always
grateful for the efforts of performers in playing "less difficult" pieces),
but I am sure there are many more worthwhile candidates (pieces) to admire,
even like, than the absolutely dreadful Orff piece.
The odd thing is, is that I initially liked it, then it wore off, at an
exponential rate of knots.
Ray H
Taree, NSW
jrs...@aol.com
I liked it initially, then forgot about it. At one point in that period
of amnesia, I had an opportunity to perform it and grew to admire it
again, not so much for its difficulty (or lack thereof for most) than
for its ingenuity as a derivative yet unique and funny piece. Then I
forgot about it again and I can't really bother to listen to it.
It's really not dreadful at all, however, and it is interesting to
perform once or twice--perhaps more if you're a percussionist. But it's
not interesting to hear over and over and I can't imagine trying to
perform it over and over the way people do the Nutcracker or the
Messiah every year. Some choristers do, however, and they must be sick
of it.
--Jeff
Heck51
> I liked it initially, then forgot about it.........it is interesting to
> perform once or twice--...........
But it's not interesting to hear over and over and I can't imagine
trying to
> perform it over and over >>>
this sums up my feelings as well. the piece has an immediate
attraction, and it is fun to perform, once or twice...but it wears off
quickly. it becomes scattered periods of interesting, between long
periods of not very interesting...perhaps its the endless repetition of
those "sing-songy" little melodies that wears thin...
Michael Schaffer
On Oct 18, 1:08 am, "TareeDawg" <rayto...@bigpond.com> wrote:
> <alanwatkin...@aol.com> wrote in messagenews:1161128384....@e3g2000cwe.googlegroups.com...
>
>
>
> > .
>
> >> Are you familiar with the music education for children approach
> >> developed by Carl Orff? What do you think about it?
>
> > If you are talking about Schulwerk, yes I am. It is brilliant as it
> > involves children easily in music making.
>
> > Sadly, however, Mr Orff also wrote Carmina Burana which regularly gets
> > monstered on account of it being popular or used on TV ads, ignoring
> > the fact that quite a lot of it is extremely difficult to perform.I might add, in the case of myself, that just because a piece is difficult
> to perform, doesn't mean I automatically have an obligation to like it,
> surely? And sure, I am likely to appreciate the efforts and skills of
> performers in performing "difficult to play" pieces, (in fact I am always
> grateful for the efforts of performers in playing "less difficult" pieces),
> but I am sure there are many more worthwhile candidates (pieces) to admire,
> even like, than the absolutely dreadful Orff piece.
>
> The odd thing is, is that I initially liked it, then it wore off, at an
> exponential rate of knots.
>
> Ray H
> Taree, NSW
Maybe it will come back to you. Apart from the "mass scenes" which so
many people apparently find very exciting, well, they are, but the
effect does wear off, there is a ton of very subtle detail in the
score. Which a lot of performers don't get, I have to admit. What I
like most about the piece are probably more the very differentiated
lyrical parts and all the fine detail that Orff put in there. It is
actually very difficult to get it all right because it is so
transparent.
I also got tired of it after a while because in Germany, it's played
*all the time*. The piece is quite tricky, but it doesn't require great
virtuosity from most of the participants, except for some of the solo
voices, wind soli, and some really tricky percussion stuff, as Alan
noted. So it is very playable and singable and choirs and orchestras
beginning with youth orchestras play it all the time, so you literally
grow up with the piece. At one point, I actually could play the entire
bass part from memory. It is always fun to play, but one can get tired
of it, as I did around that time. Then when I stopped playing
professionally, I didn't play it nor ever put it on for many years
until last year when I "rediscovered" the piece because it was
performed by the orchestra and choir I play in as a hobby, and I
rediscovered what a marvelous score, full of rich and interesting
detail it actually is.
But the devil is really in the detail here. A good performance has to
be text driven because that's what Orff built his music around, and
that is where a lot of performers fail. Recommended listening above all
here is the Jochum/DOB recording on DG which really gets it "right", or
the Thielemann recording with the same forces who does very well, too.
Michael Schaffer
On Oct 18, 6:38 am, "Heck51" <dgallagh...@comcast.net> wrote:
And then of course the "roasted swan" bassoon solo pushes players on
your level beyond their limits. Orff's revenge. He did that on purpose,
of course, the old Nazi...
JR
Any stories,
> annecdotes or tales out of school?
During a seemingly endless Mahler 9 I attended, led by a Japanese
conductor (can't remember his name) subbing for Kubilek, Koss checked
his watch more than once.
Heck51
Michael Schaffer wrote:
> And then of course the "roasted swan" bassoon solo>>
that's one of the best parts!! I easily handle the moderately high
range without difficulty. it always amazes the conductors how easy it
sounds...piece of cake for a pro...:-) [tho I understand the Germans
have trouble with it. ;-)]
Michael Schaffer
No, they don't. Because all Germans are Nazis, and this is Nazi music,
so it comes easily to them. Plus the modern bassoon is a German
development anyway, and most of the good ones are made there, so that
makes it a Nazi instrument and that makes it even easier. And it makes
sense. After all, most of the music that will be played on it is
German, too.
Feast your eyes on this:
http://www.heckel.de/de/produktpalette.htm
You will probably never be able to afford one of these with your meagre
income, but that's what the pros play. Everywhere. In the US, too.
Heck51
Michael Schaffer wrote:
<<Plus the modern bassoon is a German development anyway, and most of
http://www.heckel.de/de/produktpalette.htm
You will probably never be able to afford one of these with your
meagre
HaHaHaHa!! Oh this is rich!!
that's right - the "pros" do play on Heckel bassoons. I HAVE PLAYED ONE
FOR the last 30+ YEARS!! <vbseg>
I paid it off quickly too, IIRC, after a year or so of gigging.
ROFLMAO!! in your face, you raving idiot.....Hahahaha!!
I'll send you a picture of it, along with a substantial helping of
"crow" for you to munch on.....gawd, <chortling merrily> what a chump
you are, schaffer....you'll never live this down, you hopeless loser.
[still LMAO]
Michael Schaffer
On Oct 18, 7:37 pm, "Heck51" <dgallagh...@comcast.net> wrote:
> Michael Schaffer wrote:<<Plus the modern bassoon is a German development anyway, and most of
> the good ones are made there, > Feast your eyes on this:
> http://www.heckel.de/de/produktpalette.htm
> You will probably never be able to afford one of these with your
> meagre
> income,but that's what the pros play. Everywhere. In the US, too.>>
>
> HaHaHaHa!! Oh this is rich!!
>
> that's right - the "pros" do play on Heckel bassoons. I HAVE PLAYED ONE
> FOR the last 30+ YEARS!! <vbseg>
> I paid it off quickly too, IIRC, after a year or so of gigging.
But it was probably used, right? The new ones are really expensive I
hear.
But then apparently, with a little care, they last a very long time.
Which is easy to believe. After all, they are Made In Germany.
> ROFLMAO!! in your face, you raving idiot.....Hahahaha!!
> I'll send you a picture of it, along with a substantial helping of
> "crow" for you to munch on.....gawd, <chortling merrily> what a chump
> you are, schaffer....you'll never live this down, you hopeless loser.
> [still LMAO]
Not much to live down here. I am not surprised either. Good for you you
could find one for yourself that you could afford. Or did your parents
help out?
Apparently everyone wants to play them, everywhere. Which makes sense.
Because they are Made In Germany and so is most of the music they are
made for. The right tool for the right job. Good choice.
Do they even make usable bassoons in the US? Probably not.
Heck51
> But it was probably used, right? The new ones are really expensive I
> hear.>>
actually, you have it backwards. I got it new..at the time, I could
have then sold it for 4-5 times the price I paid for it...some guys
were doing this, ordering a new bassoon every year; but the Heckel
factory protested under some fair trade agreement, and this pretty much
stopped.
> But then apparently, with a little care, they last a very long time.
Which is easy to believe. After all, they are Made In Germany.>>
yes, magnificent instruments. great artistry in instrument making, no
doubt.
> Apparently everyone wants to play them, everywhere. Which makes sense.....
Do they even make usable bassoons in the US?...>>
Heckels have been generally accepted as the best, except they are very
expensive. the prices really escalated over the last couple of decades,
esp the 80s..many, including myself, think they are still superior to
any other brand, but many players are choosing Fox Bassoons, which are
made in America....I've played on some very good Fox instruments. they
are considerably cheaper and offer a reasonable alternative to Heckels
[but they don't have the sound, the projection, IMO, and many others'].
Michael Schaffer
On Oct 18, 8:15 pm, "Heck51" <dgallagh...@comcast.net> wrote:
> Michael Schaffer wrote:
> > But it was probably used, right? The new ones are really expensive I
> > hear.>>actually, you have it backwards. I got it new..at the time, I could
> have then sold it for 4-5 times the price I paid for it...some guys
> were doing this, ordering a new bassoon every year; but the Heckel
> factory protested under some fair trade agreement, and this pretty much
> stopped.> But then apparently, with a little care, they last a very long time.Which is easy to believe. After all, they are Made In Germany.>>
>
> yes, magnificent instruments. great artistry in instrument making, no
> doubt.
>
> > Apparently everyone wants to play them, everywhere. Which makes sense..... Do they even make usable bassoons in the US?...>>
>
> Heckels have been generally accepted as the best, except they are very
> expensive. the prices really escalated over the last couple of decades,
> esp the 80s..many, including myself, think they are still superior to
> any other brand, but many players are choosing Fox Bassoons, which are
> made in America....I've played on some very good Fox instruments. they
> are considerably cheaper and offer a reasonable alternative to Heckels
> [but they don't have the sound, the projection, IMO, and many others'].
Do you also have the bassoon watch? A must have for bassoon players:
http://cgi.ebay.com/BASSOON-Watch-Quartz-Leather-Band-TWO-TONE-Music_W0QQitemZ300038685439QQihZ020QQcategoryZ16227QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Very stylish.
Or the bassoon angel watch:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Bassoon-Watch-Angels-Play-Bassoon_W0QQitemZ260042810997QQihZ016QQcategoryZ16227QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
That is how I picture you.
Or the bassoon gecko:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Bassoon-Watch-Bassoon-Gecko_W0QQitemZ260042811012QQihZ016QQcategoryZ16227QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
15 minutes could save you hundreds in bassoon insurance.
Heck51
Michael Schaffer wrote:
> Or the bassoon angel watch:
> http://cgi.ebay.com/Bassoon-Watch-Angels-Play-Bassoon
the euphonious and "heavenly" tones I produce do generate angelic
images, for sure...:-)
Michael Schaffer
Or maybe you should wear this watch:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Bassoon-Watch-Beware-of-Bassoonist_W0QQitemZ260042811023QQihZ016QQcategoryZ16227QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
I think there is a law in MA which dictates that.