Matt Garson wrote:

>I was fairly removed from the Orchestra, but still close enough to
>notice that Guy seemed to be playing entirely from memory without any
>sheet music.  I've never seen a performer play from memory before under
>such circumstances and I was wondering if anyone knew if this practice is
>typical of Guy? More generally, is this a practice that is common among
>performers that I've simply never noticed?

Almost all concerto soloists play by memory.  The amount of practicing they
do to prepare a piece for performance with orchestra is enourmous and many
performers memorize easily just from sheer repetition.  Others have great
trouble playing by memory, despite all the repetition.  Personlly, I'm one
of those who memorizes fairly easily, and I find that playing a piece by
memory improves the performance, IF I am confident enough with it not to
worry about memory slips.  That's a very important qualification, because
if you have the least doubt it will create a disproportionate obstacle to
playing at your best.  Playing without the music in front of you frees one
to be more creative, somehow, more intimate and at ease with the music.
It seems more sponteneous.  Also, you can look around as you play without
worrying about losing your place.

Many conductors also perform without the part in front of them, which
definitly can improve the performance, freeing them to be more involved in
the music, in addition to making more eye contact and direct communication
with the orchestra.  Seiji Ozawa is particularly known for conducting
almost everything by heart.  I know one conductor, however, where this is
a disadvantage, at least for the musicians.  In rehearsals he is buried
in the score, sitting on his stool, and barely looks up at the musicians.
Come the performance, though, he is all over the podium, jumping about,
closing his eyes in passion, and making many gestures that the orchestra is
seeing for the first time.  Some of the audience likes his animation, but
in the band it can be very distracting when all of a sudden the conductor
comes to life in the performance.

In chamber music the performers rarely play by memory.  In fact I was once
told that it is disrespectful to the composer to play sonatas or trios by
memory, because the performer is somehow putting his or her own "show"
ahead of the music.  So many times playing sonatas I have the music in
front of me even if in reality I am playing most of it by memory.

David Runnion
http://www.mp3.com/serafinotrio