Re: GG listeners

[Jan Littrell <littrell@interwork.sdsu.edu>]

Dear Anne and f_minors,

I am fascinated by the discussion below, and find it a lot more in keeping
with what draws me to Gould than the highly technical discussions about
"orthodoxy" and "nonorthodoxy" that I have been plowing through lately.  I
realize that there are many of us who love to explore musical detail and
that there is a place in this f_minor "salon" for those who are so
inclined.  But it is also refreshing to realize that many of us
unapologetically are fascinated by the man himself.  I am an amateur
pianist and would give my life for my Steinway B.  But I must confess that
my fascination lies clearly with the man at least equally with the music.
I love what he did with the Well Tempered Clavier and I do have many of his
recordings.  I have read all his biographies (including some fictional
works featuring him, such as THE LOSER.)  I also have most of the videos
from the Sony Glenn Gould series.  I can't seem to get enough of Glenn
Gould.  And it's the anecdotal stuff I love the most.

So the fascination with Gould runs deep and wide and takes many forms.  So
let's get Sony to print posters.  Heck, let's have t-shirts and canvas bags
made.  Let's just face it -- we're a cult!

See you in Toronto in September, Jan Littrell

At 10:58 PM -0500 1/25/99, Anne M. Marble wrote:
>I definitely qualify as a non-musician in the extreme sense. I blame
>that on a nasty first-grade music teacher who used to yell at me because
>I didn't sing loudly enough during the sing-alongs. (It might have
>helped if she had taught us the musical scale first so I knew what I was
>doing!) Despite this, I might have some latent "musical genes" -- my
>grandfather was a musician who played in bistros in France. (Not exactly
>a classical musician, but obviously, he had some sort of innate
>ability.)
>
>I don't listen to Glenn Gould simply because of his personality. If that
>were true, I'd be a huge Helfgott fan. Yes, I bought the Shine
>soundtrack and one other Helfgott CD -- and I felt "snookered"
>afterwards. I enjoyed the movie, and I feel sorry for Helfgott himself,
>but that's about it. Sure, I find Glenn Gould fascinating as a person.
>Who wouldn't? Yet when I listen to his music, I'm usually not thinking
>about his famous eccentricities. For one thing, I'm usually too busy
>driving the car or typing a document to worry about those things. Most
>of the time, it's only the music that's there. (Yes, I can listen to
>most Gould recordings and write or edit at the same time.)
>
>Before I listened to Glenn Gould, I did listen to other classical
>musicians. Even when I was a teenager. (Admitting that can get you in
>trouble in high school!) For the most part, I listened to Romantic
>music -- loud Romantic music, like Tchiakovsky. For years after college,
>my favorite piece was Berlioz's "Symphonie Fantasique," of all things!
>The reason I liked this type of music was because these pieces sounded
>like they would make great soundtracks. I'm a writer, so I liked the
>idea of listening to music that made me think of an exciting story
>unfolding in my head. (On a similar note, I also liked the plot behind
>"Symphonie Fantasique.") Before long, I grew bored with this sort of
>thing. After all, you should listen to music because you like the music,
>not because you like the plot. (My writing got better at that time, too.
>Coincidence? Maybe not.)
>
>When I started listening to Glenn Gould, I realized I was listening to
>the music itself instead of loud, "action-packed" songs. What a
>difference it makes! OK, I don't have the "musical" vocabulary to
>explain what I can hear, but I know I'm enjoying it. I have also learned
>that I can tell the difference between mediocre budget recordings and
>great recordings. Even though I am a non-musician, I can appreciate the
>music. Also, listening to Glenn Gould has made me a better listener. (Of
>course, reading the discussions on this list has helped, too.)
>
>When I first listened to Glenn Gould, I didn't appreciate everything
>right away. I listened to the second movement of his Hoyden Sonata in C
>Major, which was on the "Images" CD. And I wasn't sure if I liked it --
>I almost preferred the Ax recording I'd heard on a Sony collection.
>After listening to the Gould version enough times, though, I grew to
>love the piece. Recently, I heard the Ax version, and I was bored by it.
>So what was different about the Gould version? I'm not sure. Maybe
>somebody can tell me!
>
>Sorry if this has run on too long. Hope it helps!
>
>Anne M. Marble
>
>-----Original Message-----
>
>>Dear f_minor.
>>
>>I want to ask if anyone on the list is a non musician (I mean in the
>extreme
>>sense: barely able or unable to read music etc. not in the profesional
>>sense).
>>I would be interested to hear what it is that attracts you to the
>recordings
>>of Glenn Gould, and why you like listening to him, as opposed to
>another
>>famous pianist in the same work. From what I have heard many
>non-musicians
>>have large collections of Gould recordings and have been wondering what
>>exactly draws them to his playing. Most musicians presumably like his
>>playing for the sheer originality of interpretation (or at least I do,
>>perhaps some will disagree) and the difference from accepted styles of
>>playing. Surely this does not come across to a non-musician, so what is
>it
>>that draws them into it?
>> After the film Shine, many bought the recordings of Helfgott, purely
>>down to the publicity of his madness and the film 'Shine'. Although I
>don't
>>like to compare Gould (undoubtedly a genius) to such a, frankly, poor
>>pianist as Helfgott I was wondering whether Gould's eccentricities and
>the
>>resulting publicity had/have a similar influence on the non-musicians
>and
>>caused his popularity among them. I hope someone will tell me I am
>wrong to
>>suggest so, but I find it curious that other geniuses such as Claudio
>Arrau
>>(to name but one example) has never acheived a similar 'cult'
>following,
>>despite great respect from musicians.
>>
>>I would be intersted to know what people think,
>>
>>Andrew Thayer.
>>


Janet L. Littrell, Ed.D.
Administrator, Special Academic Programs
Administration, Rehabilitation and Postsecondary Education
College of Education
San Diego State University
5500 Campanile Drive
San Diego, CA  92128-1127
phone:  619/594-0743
fax:  619/594-3825
e-mail:  littrell@interwork.sdsu.edu