Richard Strauss Conducting

This is a clip from the 1994 documentary "The Art of Conducting: Great Conductors of the Past." Richard Strauss is conducting the Vienna Philharmonic in a performance of Till Eulenspiegel. It's amusing that he could be conducting such great music while looking so extremely bored.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Richard
• Strauss
• conducting
• conductor
• orchestra
• vienna
• philharmonic

[JeeRant]

"This music sure is nice. Oh, right! I wrote it."

[violinscratcher]

You have to see over his little gestrures, moves and gaze: It is all there, every information and emotions but in sublime reservation. When you are the great Richard Strauss you have enough aura to reduce your moves to a minimum.

[hinakomalin]

Reminds me of John Williams conducting. May I should do the same when I conduct my music in the future.

[Allanfearn]

Listening to this is all about exquisite detail. There are details in Strauss scores, particularly in Don Juan, which only he takes the trouble to get right. The sound here is, for 1944, if that's when the footage was made, extraordinarily good. Pity about the TV director's lack of interest in what he was dealing with - talking heads don't help.

[TheChairoplane]

also this footage is two shots, one from behind him, one infront. there is no camera infront of him in the shot from behind, so surely its two separate set ups. Who wouldnt loath conducting with the monster camera where the flutes should be?

[danialeka]

@ViolinPro88 richard its way diferent composer as his father, and this music is from him.

[jhb134]

@violinscratcher - (" ... moves to a minimum.") - I think it's called, concision ... and it works very well, here. George Szell's comments are right, also; often, Strauss was "beating time", and waiting for the card game, after a performance!

[iwanabana]

how simply played. i think most conductors took too much out of the music - this sounds sublime!!!! bravo maestro!

[Altsaemisch]

Strauss: "The audience should "sweat", not the conductor."

[tedly10027]

@violinscratcher 3) i somehow "stopped" beating and gesturing - and simply turned my shoulder to the pianist's solo - who did exactly what I had in mind, by looking at the pianist with a different intensity - an extreme Pianissimo ,..and the teacher stopped all of us - and pointed "did you SEE what he did? THAT"s what we aim for ultimately...when all gestures are no longer necessary"..it was a nice experience actually. and to me personally, it felt more "satisfying" .

[tedly10027]

@violinscratcher 2) I once had an experience in conducting class with one of new york's top choral conductors - and in our class my assignment was Brahm's Requiem with our class as the "choir" plus a fellow pianist. at a certain point - the recap of the opening measures of the first section -

[tedly10027]

@violinscratcher i think you are right in that rehearsal ability. communicating there already sets much of the performance. i think a lot can be said for conducting with the eyes.