View RSS Feed

davewerden

Part 3 of Arthur Lehman's Article on Harold Brasch Online

Rate this Entry
The third article about Harold Brasch (written by another euphonium legend, Arthur Lehman) is now online. It offers some interesting and fun stories about life in the best bands in America.


Here is an excerpt:


There is one funny story about Harold which every Navy Band member 'way back in the 1950's knows all about. I did mention earlier about how Harold would have the music memorized pretty early on a tour and then he was usually playing it all from memory which sometimes created a problem. However, this was another problem from that one mentioned above. And it all stems from the normal desire by U.S. service band leaders back then to do it the easy way. That is, use the same music on this tour that was used on the last tour. In that way the leader wouldn't need to learn anything new and it was be easier all around. Easier, yes. More boring, however. Especially for the band members. And Harold Brasch protested in the only way he knew to protest. He just wouldn't put up a music stand and therefore he wasn't using his folio of music. This was for the first rehearsals of the music for a new tour. New tour, same old music. Boring! This was noticed soon by the Navy Band leader who complained that it didn't look good for an audience to see him without a music stand or music, and playing from memory. He ordered Brasch to put up his music stand and put the music folio on it. Harold did. However, he left the folio closed and still played from memory. Upon seeing this, the leader ordered him to not only put up the music stand and place the folio on it but also to open it up and to, at least, look as though he were playing as he read the music. Harold did this but reluctantly complained all along about playing the same music on several tours, it being very boring, and so on. The leader was not fazed. He just ordered brash to do what he said he should do and let it go at that, rather than punish him for insubordination. Harold knew, obviously, just how far he could push the Commander and he did as ordered but with some grumbling. All of this was immensely amusing for the rest of the Navy Band; not for the leader, however.


Read the whole article here:

Harold Brasch Remembered, part 3 (by Arthur Lehman)


See more of Arthur Lehman's writings here:

Arthur Lehman Articles

Comments