Gilbert Chang wrote:
>I think tragic music is easy to find, but farcical music (and mixture of
>the two)? The only one that comes to my mind now is Prokofiev's 1st violin
>concerto, 2nd movement. Though this piece is rich in irony, humor, satire,
>acerbic bite, and probably sounds a bit farcical, I find it hard to apply
>it to the play. ...
No doubt there are others on this list with more experience, but I will
offer my perspective, based upon some limited experience.
In short, I will offer only a few suggestions. Unless there is some
specific reference to music in the scenario of the work, try and keep the
musical style consistant. Avoid using any frequently used music like the
Pachelbel Canon. One producer I worked with wanted to use the Adagietto
from the Mahler 5th. I had him take a look at the Visconti Death in
Venice. I never had trouble with him again over such things.
If at all possible, sit through the entire play with no music before
spotting where you want to place music. Examine why you want to use music.
If it is a background to a dramatic dialog, keep the music relatively
non-descript. If it is to fill in during action, the music can, and should
have more obvious thematic material (not to be confused with more familiar
thematic material).
In general, consistent harmonic style, more defined thematic material under
action, less defined under dialog and avoid the familiar unless you want to
elicit a specific reference (understanding that the reference might be lost
on some of your audience).
From my own perspective, using classical music as a background is risky
since the music will often be too distinctive to be subordinate to the
drama. For me the mark of good incidental music is the sort which you
don't remember after the show, but when you listen to it outside the
theater you find it has value on its own.
Karl
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