Seattle, WA: Porter Recording project; 1 of 4

June 15, 2008: Preparation for Porter Concerto Recording

I love to record. This is a new discovery of mine, being that as of yet I have no discography. What I love is the exploration of what I can do in a given moment to make music to the highest level. Mistakes are to be learned from, not chastised or used to define how good I am. There’s such a freedom in that mentality.

But I am still nervous and wanting to be perfect, so on the plane ride from Cleveland to Seattle I decide to reread Aaron Copland’s What to Listen for in Music to see if there’s anything that will inspire me. Nothing does until I get towards the end where Copland discusses listening to contemporary music and the general public reaction towards it. On page 199 of my copy he says, “Contemporary music, especially, is created to wake you up, not put you to sleep. It is meant to stir and excite you, to move you – it may even exhaust you. But isn’t that the kind of stimulation you go to the theater for or read a book for? Why make an exception for music?” What I try to do (and often fail) when I play is to say something interesting. It is my nature to want it to be clear, clean and right, but if it can also have intention and heart when I play, that is the goal. It isn’t great music, one without the other. I don’t believe playing out of tune or with bad ensemble can always be trumped by so-called musical playing. If you are not sensitive enough to play in tune and listen, how can one possibly be musical while insensitive to the sound that comes out? One should have it all!

I’m in Seattle to record the Quincy Porter Viola Concerto with the Northwest Sinfonia to complete my recording of Quincy Porter Viola works. It will be the first recording of the concerto since 1951. I meet Marina and Victor Ledin, the producers, and John McLaughlin Williams, conductor, at the airport around 4. We rent a car, go to our fabulous hotel Willows Lodge, eat at the Barking Frog and discuss the rehearsal strategy for tomorrow’s session.

Victor Ledin, Eliesha G. Nelson, John M. Williams in the lobby of Willows Lodge.