Downtown Tucsonan - January 2008 - (Page 18)

Arts Inside the Studio by Diane Daly Artist: George Hanson, conductor and Music driector, tucson symphony Studio Location: tso symphony center on 6th ave.; tucson Music Hall on church street. A question: what does an orchestra conductor really do, and why should you care? ell, in tucson a conductor does three things and two of these ain’t pretty. First, he publicly hustles for money so his orchestra can keep playing. second, he defends his hustle against armies of hecklers who call him “Mr. Fancypants” and say real artists earn their own money by ticket sales alone. the hecklers include other artists. (sad, isn’t it, how a formerly softhearted breed has been rendered so Mad Max by the scarcity of support for the arts.) the hecklers also include the jelly-skinned creatures who lurk in basements and post comments after stories on azstarnet.com, but whose sentiments sometimes reflect human feeling. Forget about the first two things the conductor does, however. If you’re like me—if you only spend your dearly-earned money on entertainment that makes you howl and feel alive—then the third thing a conductor does is the one that involves you the most. Hear this, drunks, breathless lovers, and sports fans: a good conductor shapes the music to make the drama become your drama, no matter how whacked out your drama may be. Many composers didn’t succeed in leading balanced lives nearly as well as they did in marking down their roller coasters of emotion. unled, eightyplus musicians could not convey the intentions of these brilliant nutcase composers clearly, any more than a film with this size cast could direct itself. But when the performance of the conductor becomes, for the orchestra, a clear conduit of that composer’s intentions, the music they make can spellbind an arena of thousands into heartstruck silence. then, you might as well get w on stage, because your own longings and memories join the composer’s and become the show. George Hanson has been conducting the tucson symphony orchestra for twelve years, and he acknowledges that, as “the guy on the podium telling the musicians what to do,” a conductor must have “a special relationship” with his orchestra. “what I do is about establishing the atmosphere of the music-making. demanding—well, hopefully demanding in a friendly sense. cajoling. Explaining. Insisting.” His tools are his baton, his body and an arsenal of movements, one called the Bouncing Ball, another the Pendulum. sometimes he conducts on beat, american style; other times he follows the beat in the European style. with fluid motion he give the notes melodic shape, cues sections, marks tempo and changes dynamics. when possible he uses his movements to help the musicians predict the beat. and during performances he faces his defining task, which is to ignite the “spark of inspiration,” as he calls it. “a higher level of intensity. It’s in concert that a conductor does his work.” Hanson disarms the crowd when he first appears on stage, to interview featured guests before the show. He makes jokes, asking his guest, “so, is this your first Korngold? well this is my first Korngold. aren’t we looking forward to our first Korngold together!” But then he retreats backstage and transforms. when he re-emerges, metallicsilver hair in perfect order, you may notice that his clothing has changed to a more monochromatic ensemble, shoes included. “He’s so distinguished!” a woman in the audience might whisper nearby. He nods for- 18 downtown tucsonan.january.08 http://www.vikaspawagroup.net

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Downtown Tucsonan - January 2008 Contents From the Editor Downtown Lowdown Vital Signs Downtown Restaurants & Cafes Downtown Live Arts Galleries Performance Film Events Museums Historic Downtown Billboard Classifieds

Downtown Tucsonan - January 2008

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