A Scientist Listens to the National Orchestra

New Zealand Listener, Volume 18, Issue 462, 30 April 1948, Page 7

A Scientist Listens to the National Orchestra

‘THE actual hall or theatre where an orchestral performance is given has as decisive an effect on what reaches the listener's

ear as any of the players’ responses to the conductor’s baton, says

DR

H. J.

FINLAY

in the accompanyin§ article,

"Our Orchestra has not been properly or adequately heard," he affirms, "until it is heard under the acoustic conditions available in Dunedin’ :

ANY reviews and criticisms have by now been written about the National Symphony Orchestra. Some have been superficial and occasionally biased, but others have made an honest attempt to take into account the conditions under which this orchestra was formed and now functions. It is at times difficult to realise that as a body of players it- has been in existence only about 18 months, especially after the concert on April 3 in the Dunedin Town Hall. Judgments made this. year must necessarily be more stringent and soulsearching than they were last year. In spite of all the vicissitudes the orchestra and its conductor have encountered since the 1947 season, enough time has elapsed, and enough improvement and stability of personnel has come into being to allow of one’s expecting a step forward in sensitivity of playing and refinement of tone. That both are abundantly evident, and have already been commented on by critics in Auckland and Wellington is evidence that Mr. Tyrer has used to advantage the intervening time of preparation, and has wisely selected the various additional members of the orchestra.

This article is not, however, written with a general criticism of the playing in view. Its intention is to deal with an aspect’ ‘of that playing which has been far too little considered, or even passed over entirely, by most music lovers; and yet is such a vital one that the whole effect of the orchestra may depend on it. I.refer. not to the how and when of the playing, but to the where. The actual hall or theatre where the performance ‘is given has as decisive an effect on what reaches the listener’s ear as any of the players’ responses to the conductor’s baton. Audiences seldom realise that an adverse criticism by a professional critic may depend, not necessarily on his personal fancies or bile, but to some extent on his position in the hall, and to an even greater extent on the acoustics of the hall itself. Why Critics Differ The writing of these few notes has_ been prompted solely by a tonsideration of the last faétor. After a National Symphony Orchestra concert in Wellington, even fair-minded critics have differed so much in their statements about dynamics and audibility of phrases and instru- ments, that any person with a knowledge of physics as well as music must come to the conclusion that the acoustics of the Town Hall have more than a little to do with it. Yet apparently no one

who has had the opportunity has so far attempted to note down an accurate comparison between the effects of an orchestral item played in Wellington, and the same thing played in another hall elsewhere. It happens that I have had this opportunity of direct comparison between the Wellington and Dunedin Town Halls, not only at the concert itself, but also at rehearsals when the halls were empty. The results are so instructive that I now record these impressions. The Tchaikovski Theme and Variations from Suite No. 3 in G, a 20-minute-long item, offers an excellent medium of comparison by» way of its variety of tone and orchestration. This was first played in the Wellington Town Hall on the evening of March 10, and repeated in Dunedin on April 3. I had heard several rehearsals in the Waring Taylor Street studio, and in the empty Town Hall, before it was performed to a packed audience at night. In this studio, reverberation. is excessive, and all tone values and dynamics are so altered by the confined space that it is difficult to gain any clear idea at all of how to regulate the playing for an actual performance. In the empty Town Hall the final rehearsal sounds, of course, more in proportion, but it is very noticeable that this hall has pronounced ab-

sorption bands in the treble. Thus, although the orchestra apparently seems then to be a more cohesive unit, and there is a better merging of the separate string, wood, and brass sections than in the studio, this is offset by a lack of clarity due to reverberation periods and suppression of upper partials, A Simple Example The non-scientific listener can most easily realise what this means by the following example. When Miss ‘Baillie went through her songs at the same res hearsal, the words were quite indistinct, although I listened from several. parts of the hall. At one of these same posie tions at night, all her words were pere fectly clear, simply because a capacity audience destroys these absorption bandg and damps out some of the reverberation periods. Since distinction of speech is largely due to the presence of sibi lants, and other sounds which are very high up in the frequency range, it ig obvious that whatever interferes with speech will equally interfere with what gives the-various orchestral instruments their characteristic tone or timbre, i.e. the multiples of the actual notes sounded which we call harmonics or upper partials. The restoration of this vital treble in the Wellington Town Hall when full is (continued on next page)

Acoustics and the National Orchestra

(continued from previous page) unfortunately accompanied by other distortions. Reflection of the sound from hard surfaces produces waves travelling in the opposite way, and these can either reinforce the original sound for some listeners, or almost cancel it‘ out for others. What:‘are called damping effects in improperly built halls can also so weaken certain frequencies that tone colours can be substantially altered. In the Wellington Town Hall, certain notes throughout the musical scale become too prominent due to acoustical reinforcement, and produce what’ are called resonances; these can utterly mar ag total effect and eventually become most distressing. They result, in many positions in the Wellington Town Hall, in considerable loss of the cohesive or welded effect, and the orchestra sounds like a number of quite separate instruments, with the brass and percussion tending, when loud, to obliterate the rest by stridency and booming. I would call particular attention to this, as it is of course the reason why some Critics there haye complained of the brass section, the over-emphasis yet deadness of the tympani, and the peakiness of some of the woodwind. What they are hearing is not just the natural tones as the play- ers are producing them but also, in certain positions, uncomfortable additions made by the Wellington Town Hall itself. These are strong statements to make, but they become obvious to anyone who listens at Dunedin after coming straight from Wellington. Tchaikovski in the South During the rehearsal of the Tchaikovski Theme and Variations on the morning of the Dunedin concert, all this made such an immediate impression that I went round the auditorium looking for bad listening places. I found none. Even in the draught of the side exit door, as far under the overhanging gallery as possible, there was no noticeable treble cut-off or reverberation resonance, At night, with every seat occupied, there was still no perceptible difference in total effect. In Wellington, I heard one concert from a seat at the junction of two of the main aisles; the orchestra there sounded thin, and the double-basses, though frequently \ observed to be bowing for their lives, had no weight at all. I heard another from halfway down the centre aisle; the brass appeared out of proportion in loud passages, trumpet and oboe notes were edgy, tympani sounded dead, and fortissimo cymbal clashes completely drowned the orchestra. I heard a third from just under the gallery inside the entrance door; anyone who has listened to the National Symphony Orchestra/ only from that position has my sympathy. It is so easy to quote particular passages where the difference in Dunedin is marked, that one is tempted to say "Just listen for five minutes to any bit at all." Yet it is necessary to point out some specific cases for those who have not had the chance of comparison, or who have listened only casually, ‘ In the item selected for discussion, Theme and Variations, a difference is apparent immediately. In the first state-

ment of the Theme, the close lying notes of the second violins and violas in their lowest register sound like an obscure accompaniment to the first violin melody-in Wellington, but not in Dunedin, where the E, G, and A are clearly separated. The flute duet (with clarinet dotbling) of Variation 1 can easily overtide the pizzicato theme on the strings, because of its much higher pitch and greater dynamic power; it entirely does so in Wellington, but the plucked strings sing out clearly in Dunedin. In Variation 2, every note of the Ist Violin spiccato is distinct, though played at great speed. The bassoon and clarinet counterpoint of Variation 3, and the triplets of the second flute against the first flute melody, do not merge into a general woodwind mass of tone as in Wellington, but stand out in cameo relief, with the later solo second clarinet theme easily heard through six other woodwinds, The minor mood ’cello theme of Variation 4 is about equally prominent in both halls, by reason partly of the orchestration employed, partly of the bass resonance in Wellington, but there is a most noticeable difference when the cymbals and tympani enter, and in Dunedin, form (as they should) an integral tone-colour part of the orchestral canvas, instead of introducing merely martial noises. The subsequent run-down on the strings from top G to bass G sharp is beautifully clear down to the last notes of the double-basses. The fugal treatment in, Variation 5 really sounds fugal, not just a medley of strings. In the fine woodwind Variation 7, all the inner parts can easily be followed, and the oboes and flutes actually do die away imperceptibly into the upper string tremolos. The violin solo of Variation 10 appears to come from within the heart of the orchestra, and not as violin solos in Wellington sound, from someone sitting away in front of the other players. Welter of Sound It is in the final polacca which tends to become a welter of sound in Wellington, that probably the greatest differences are heard, due to the timbres and dynamics employed. The dramatic effect of the opening F sharp on tympani and bassoon gains enormously by the enhanced clarity; in Wellington it is not much better than a loud thud. And ‘as the orchestral power builds up, how marvellous is the entry of the brass! The Valkyrie-like calling to each other of the trumpets and trombones against the tonic and dominant cries of the four horns, and the 36-bar pedal of the double-basses-what a magnificent finale! It has to be heard in Dunedin to be believed. Perhaps the most outstanding featurés-are the clatity of the percussion, and the absolute lack of harshness in the brass section. The loudest cymbal crashes never dominate the orchestra, but three fortissimo trombones finally do dominate (as they should), though they never overwhelm, And through it all the actual notes of the double-basses can be easily heard as well as felt, and the trumpets have that beautiful pure tone an orchestral trumpet should have. (continued on next page)

(continued from previous page) In Wellington, the closing brass chords simply wipe out everything else, but in Dunedin the rest of the orchestra still has its correctly proportioned voice right to the end. This difference in the percussion is one of the most &tartling features of the Dunedin hall. In Wellington, a "piatti" player in a forte passage momentarily obliterates the rest of the orchestra, and it takes a second or two for a sensitive ear to readjust itself after the excessive overtones from the cymbals. The piccolo similarly tends to split away from its fellows in Wellington, and becomes acutely dominating. But in the Dunedin Town Hall both these troublegivers can be let out without the slightest fear, for in the loudest passages they still only form part of what the whole orchestra is saying. Although the Tchaikovski composition has been selected to deal with in detail, any item could have been chosen, for all show the same thing-the effect of a totally different ensemble from what we hear in Wellington. Never does the music sound disagreeable from introduced resonances, peaks or réverberations, and from the most delicate pianissimos (e.g., in the Walk to the Paradise Garden) to the loudest climaxes there is a feeling not only of perfect distinctness and rightness of tone-colour of all the instruments, but also of cohesion and balance. The sound swells up and floats out into the hall in a way most satisfying to the musician’s ear, I had thought the Brahms No. 1, given in Auckland, was the orchestra’s finest playing to date, but then the Borodin in Wellington seemed to top it; whether the Dvorak No. 4 in Dunedin was actually played better than these I would not like to say, but there is no question that aurally it was easily the most rewarding, due to the wonderful hall. Luck and Judgment One is tempted to speculate on why the acoustics are so much better in the Dunedin Town Hall; it may be the much higher ceiling or it may be largely luck, but the fact temains that Dunedin, through the foresight of a. previous City Council, and the generosity of some of its public-minded citizens has something of which it can be very proud... If only Wellington had a building like this to rehearse and play in, what a wonderful National Symphony Orchestra and Conservatorium of Music New Zealand could build up! It is to be hoped that some day an attempt will be made to improve the present hall acoustically, as has been done in the Royal Albert Hall in London. That leads to my final remark. It must be obvious from what has been written that I believe our orchestra has not been properly or adequately heard at all until it is heard under the acoustic conditions available in Dunedin, And therefore it follows that some of the fairest and most constructive criticism of this orchestra’s capabilities at the present time is likely to come from musicians in Otago. Statements made by those who have heard the orchestra only under poorer conditions shoulg be accepted with some reserve; those who really have the interests and advancement of the orchestra at heart would do well to make every effort to hear as its best-in the Dunedin Town