Baton Basics: Communicating Music through Gestures PDF
Preview Baton Basics: Communicating Music through Gestures
Baton Basics Baton Basics Communicating Music through Gestures DIANE WITTRY 1 1 Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offices in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press in the UK and certain other countries. Published in the United States of America by Oxford University Press 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 © Oxford University Press 2014 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, by license, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reproduction rights organization. Inquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above. You must not circulate this work in any other form and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Wittry, Diane, author. Baton basics : communicating music through gestures / Diane Wittry. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978–0–19–935415–3 (hardcover : alk. paper) — ISBN 978–0–19–935416–0 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Conducting—Instruction and study. I. Title. MT85.W66 2014 781.45—dc23 2014003344 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper CONTENTS About the Companion Website xiii Introduction 1 1. The Body 4 Getting Started 5 The Conducting Space 6 Body Posture 7 The Feet 8 Grounding the Lower Body 11 The Waist and the Back 13 Lifting the Rib Cage and Opening the Chest 18 The Head 22 The Shoulders 23 The Arms 26 The Wrist and Fingers 30 The Face and Eyes 33 Overall Presence 37 2. Motion and Gestures 39 Direction 40 Size 42 vi CONTENTS Weight and Resistance 42 Speed 43 Energy 43 Impact and Release 46 Gestures You Already Know 48 The Downward Gesture 49 The Upward Gesture 50 Sideways Gestures 52 Motions Outward 55 Motions Inward 56 Circles, Arcs, and Free Motions 57 Preparatory Beats, Contact, and Release 60 Developing the Left Hand 63 3. Connecting to the Sound 64 The Conducting Strike Zone 64 The Table of Sound 67 Placement of the Arm and Hand 69 Conducting with the Hand 71 Conveying Pulse 72 The Baton 76 Basic Conducting Patterns 84 Baton Exercises 94 Right- and Left-Hand Independence 97 4. Applying and Combining Gestures 103 Starting the Ensemble 103 Controlling the Sound 113 Instrument Characteristics 113 The Left Hand 118 Accents and Syncopations 119 Cues and Cutoffs 124 Lifts, Holds, Rests, and Releases 135 CONTENTS vii 5. Controlling Tempo and Volume 144 Going Faster and Slower 144 Selecting the Tempo 144 Showing the Right Tempo 145 Changing Your Tempo 148 Shaping Dynamics 159 Showing Dynamics 160 Changing Dynamics 162 6. Becoming Centered 168 The Breath 169 Finding Stillness 174 Live in the Moment 177 Tuning into Universal Energy 181 7. Making Music 183 Communicating the Music 183 Conveying Emotions 183 Communicating Character 185 Guiding with a Light Touch 186 Conducting Considerations 187 Score Study 187 Rehearsal and Concert Preparation 190 Do’s and Don’ts 194 Inspired Leadership 198 Building Trust 198 Establishing the Right Environment 200 Flexibility—the Secret of Success 202 Career Development 203 Putting It All Together 205 Appendix 207 Conducting Relaxation Exercises 208 Conducting Diagram Charts 209 viii CONTENTS Video List 212 Useful Links and Resources 214 Baton Makers 214 Book Recommendations 215 Music Organizations 218 Other Websites 220 Credits 221 Index 223 I would like to dedicate this book to all the students who have taken my Beyond the Baton Conducting Workshops and Seminars. I have learned so much from working with all of you! Special thanks to Joseph Gifford for opening my eyes to a new way of looking at body movement and the communication of energy, and to Rick Peckham for creating all the illustrations, conducting diagrams, and the companion videos for this book.
The list of books you might like
