Quote:
Originally Posted by Tim McGrath
What if you went to hear Rubinstein play your favorite sonata and he played it backwards? Or what if Frost gave a recital and he dispensed with rhyme and meter, rendering all his classics as free verse? I'm a purist in these things, but maybe you're more flexible.
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If Frost gave a reading in which he read us stuff that wasn't in his books, but it was still poetry that he in his judgment wanted to present, then I would absolutely love to hear it. If Rubinstein played a sonata with an interpretation that was different in some way from his recorded version of the same sonata, I would also love to hear it. Any artist whose performance is pretty much identical to their recording of the same piece is offering no more than a better sound system than most of us have at home. Dylan does not play his songs backwards but reminds us that a good song is not a static thing and can be approached from many different directions, with varying subtexts and tempos and keys. That's why singers often cover songs that have been recorded before, or directors direct plays that have been performed before. Surely there's not just one way to sing every song, even though the singer has to choose just one for the album. Being a "purist" doesn't mean that you will forever insist upon a performance that mirrors the one chosen for the record.