The Case for One Person Calling the Shots in a Chamber Group
I have been in chamber groups with one person calling the shots artistically. I’ve also been in chamber groups where everyone had an equal say in what was played and how it was played.
It’s seems to be a common belief that a true artistic democracy is the more desirable of these two models. That everyone putting their vision forward will always end up with a richer artistic product.
But in my experience, each model has benefits.
Jeff Curnow, former member of the legendary Empire Brass and current member of the Philadelphia Orchestra, talks in the clip from TBJ182 below about the benefits of playing in a group where one or two people are calling the shots.
It’s just food for thought if you’re ever considering starting a group.
Artistic democracies are good! But so are groups that are formed to realize the vision of just one or two people!
For episode 182 of The Brass Junkies, come for thoughts on how to set up a chamber group artistically and stay for the Empire Brass road stories. This interview was one of my favorite hours in quite some time.
