Stravinsky's Performance of 'Agon': A Report

Author(s): Hans Keller

Source: Tempo, New Series, No. 100 (1972), pp. 19-22
Published by: Cambridge University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/942522 .
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STRAVINSKY'S PERFORMANCE
of AGON: a report
Hans Keller
is criticismand there is reporting,or at any rate there ought to be. I
do not mean the kind of thingwe read in the newspapers,where writerscriticize
thingstheyhave heard, and report thingstheyhaven't in order to conceal the
fact. Thus, as criticismand reportageare understoodtoday, the formeris the
more responsibletask, but it should really be the other way round whenever
the facts are more importantthan the critic's opinions,which is not seldom.
At the same time, opinions do enjoy greaterpopularitywith both the reader
and the critic himself:theyare easier to get for either. The unpopulartruthis
thatwhile anyfool can opine and indeed perchanceopine rightly,onlya qualified
observercan report,and only a qualifiedreader is interestedin facts,plentyof
themand nothingbut them.
True musical reportage,none the less, is not entirelyunknown. When we
read EduardHanslick'sdescriptionofWagnerconductingBeethoven,forinstance,
we get a fairlyconcreteidea of thefactsof theinterpretations,
despitethe circumstance that Hanslick loathed them; he even offersus a chance to love them
throughhis hate. Hanslick has been much and justly maligned (there is some
danger at the moment of an excessive revaluationat Wagner's and Bruckner's
thanhis opinions.
expense), but he did get his factsfarstraighter
doubtless
a
true artisticsensation,is not of
Beethoven,
Wagner's
though
the same basic interestas Beethoven'sBeethovenor Stravinsky's
Stravinsky.The
master's
recent
of
(a
performances Agon work which a
great contemporary
at
the
Hall has shown to be by no means
Festival
Royal
previous experience
to
the
easy
interpret)impose
duty upon the critic to report such details of
execution as may shed light on performingproblems and thus help the living
futureof the work.
My observationsare based on attendanceat the penultimaterehearsaland
at the firstof the two performances;one or two remarkswill also take the
second performance(which I heardover theradio) intoaccount. At the rehearsal,
froma considerabledistance,I did not always understandwhat Stravinsky
said,
THERE

Firstpublished1959 in TEMPONO.

(editor,DonaldMitchell)

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20

TEMPO

but I did alwayshear (and see) the effectof his instructions;I would thussubmit
my reportas authentic.
Pas-de-Quatre.Owing chieflyto the sustainedC againstwhich the B's clash,
the octaveunisonsbetween cellos and double bassesalwaystendto be out of tune,
bothhere and, of course, at the end (bars 568 f. etc.) In mypresence,Stravinsky
did not attemptto remedythe distonations,presumablybecause too muchtime
would have had to be sacrificed. His zest neverthelesscarriedoffthe passagesin
question,but anylessermusicianwill have to be more pedanticat thesepoints if
the listener'sperceptionis not to be distracted.
In bars 30 f. and 59o f., the clarinetstaccatoscould not have been more
would really be the word. As for the tempo, here as
incisive; staccatissimo
elsewhere Stravinskyseemed to adhere to his own metronomemarks pretty
strictly,with the result that the presentmovement(quaver= I 56) took I' 39"
The cautiouslyserial DoublePas-de-Quatre
lasted I' 28".
In the ensuingcoda (TriplePas-de-Quatre),
which played I' 3", the second
violins will probablyalways be inclined to overdo bars I 3 ff. Stravinskyrestrainedthem; the line makesitselfheardwithoutanyspecial exertions.
The tempo of the Pre-or Interlude
varied imperceptiblyand logicallyin its
threeoccurrences,despitethe identicalmetronomemarks(crotchet I 26.) The
modificationswere sufficiently
infinitesimalto be attributableto unconscious
ratherthanconscious intention. The firsttime round was the slowest,plausibly
so: the firsttime is the newest. An immediatewarning: such minute tempo
shadingsare inevitablyexaggeratedas soon as theyare materializedrather than
inwardlyrealized.
All trainedheartswent out to the leader in his violin solos; he faced his
difficulttask with heroic calm and determination. It should not be necessary
to point out thatcriticismsI may seem to implyin thefollowingremarksare no
reflectionon his abilities; my sole concern is the future.
First,the beginningof the saraband(FirstPas-de-Trois).Very tentativelytoo much so in my opinion-Stravinsky suggested two downbows for the
basic motif:
vigoroso
Ex.1

rj
The leader did not seem to consider this approach advisable, and the project
was abandoned-to the detrimentof the motif's character. It is a pity that
Stravinskydoes not play the violin: he would speak with greater apparent
authorityin instancesof this kind. (Needless to add, he knew what he was
talkingabout, and his cautiousmannerwas sheer modesty.) In manycases, the
musicallyreal differencebetween up- and downbows is exaggerated,but Ex. I
is certainlynot one of them. On the otherhand, one can understand,and indeed
sympathizewith, the leader's preference,at any rate on the psychologicallevel:
especially in modern music, it does not happen all too often that two closely
can be linked so smoothly,with no leftsuccessive double- or triple-stoppings
hand labours intervening,so why not make the most of the occasion when it
comes? But here precisely lies the danger for futureinterpretations. The
point of view, thusmaking
passageis reallytoo wellwrittenfromthe instrumental

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STRAVINSKY'SPERFORMANCE

21

for too uninhibiteda progressfromthe snap to the long note. (It could even be
slurredwithoutthe slightestdifficulty.)Thus dies character. Let us stress,then,
of the motifis uppermostin our minds,thereis no
thatonce the characterization
conceivableviolinisticobjection to Stravinsky's
originalsuggestion.It oughtto be
executed on everyfutureoccasion; beautyof sound must take second place.
At the end of the movement,the leader playedEx. 2 a' la Ex. 3,
E~x.2

Ex.3

ff1,?
thoughhere the veryopposite characterizationfromthat of the openingwould
seem to be intended. If your hands are not too small, it is possible to tie the
f' without breakingthe snap downwards (which would be musicallywrong),
thoughit must be admittedthat as it standsthe motifis unplayableunless you
break downwardsand thusplay the slur. It is true, too, thatif you bow in the
way suggested,you will tend to findyourselfwith a fractionof a lonelyf" on
your hands before the a ensues, but this can be made to implythe diminuendo,
whereas in Ex. 3 there is no chance of any diminuendo,
implied or expressedI
remind
must
the
reader
that
I
am
not
only affp. Again
reproachingthe leader,
who played Ex. 3 itselfsplendidly. He may merelyhave been carryingout the
which, in thatcase, would appear to have been based on
composer's instructions
considerationstoo considerate. In any event,I would suggestthatthe last bar be
re-notatedin order to exclude any misunderstandings
produced by the strictly
I'
The
movement
took
2.
12".
Ex.
unplayable
In the galliard(i' I g"), afterthe firstdouble-barwith its changeof canonic
roles, a trickytextureis reachedin bar 17E, wherethemandolineeasilyfindsitself
at loggerheadswith the firstflute. Once again,no doubt, forreasonsof temporal
economy, Stravinskydid not do anythingabout the problem, which remained
evidentboth at the firstperformanceand, to a lesser extent,at the second; and
of less thangiganticstaturewill have to concern
again, anyfutureinterpretation
itselfwiththisdangerspot. (The flute'sparallelentryin bar 173 is easierbecause
the mandolinegivesa quaver's warning,whereasin bar I7S the flutehas to jump
in afterthe mandoline'stie.)
In the violin solo of the subsequent twelve-tonalcoda (A-G-G#-F#-F-EbD-C-C#-B-E-Bb), the leader gave an impressive performanceof consistent
bowing , but I am not sure whethera less consistentand in factless
on-the-string
tone-consciousapproachmightnotbe preferable;thegeneralswingand particular
cross-accents(bars 196-7!) mightbecome more audible if the bow were allowed
to leave the string. Stravinsky
emphasizedthe need for articulationin the first
wanted
bar
he
229;
really
trumpet's
slightaccents (cf. the staccatosin the mandoline's precedingbar). This movementlasted I' 39", theSecondPas-de-Trois
(halfrow: D-E-F-G-F#-B)52". In BransleGay, for sensitiveor possiblyover-sensitive
ears, the castanetssounded like a pedal on a slightlysharp B, which was most
disturbing.I have no doubt theywere abetted-physicallyso-by the actual B's,
but somethingmust have been wrong with the constructionof the instrument;
its pitch was certainlynot sufficiently
indeterminate,

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TEMPO

22

In Branslede Poitou (I' 38"), which completesand transposesthe last-quoted

row (see the violins' first4 bars), thereis a tendencytowardsan earlyviolin entry
on the last crotchetofbar 342 ; I thinkit is enoughfortheplayersto be conscious
of the dangerto avoid it.
In the coda of the Pas-de-Deux(row: F-Gb-A-Ab-G-Bb-Cb-D-Db-E-Eb-C),
seems to have made a definitechangein the score: in bar
Ex. 4
Stravinsky
5go,
is not slurred(see Ex. g).

Ex.4

-0-.1-'

Ex.5IV]
A/ 0.-0"

In the fugatothatopens the concludingFourTrios,the accents are supposed

to help towardsproducinga sound 'like trumpets'; the contextualreasonsare
obvious.
Agonwas writtenbetween 1954 and I957.

ZSOLT

I'

DURKO

ALTAMIRA
and mixedchorus
For orchestra
DARTMOUTH CONCERTO
and
A settingofJohnMasefield's'The Lemmings'formezzo-soprano
chamberorchestra
FIORITURE
withaltoand bass choir
For orchestra
FIRE MUSIC
For six players;commissioned
by PeterMaxwellDavies forThe Fires
at the Queen ElizabethHall on 14th
of London and firstperformed
December1971
ORGANISMI
Forviolinsoloand orchestra.
STRING QUARTET No.1
STRING QUARTET No.2
EDITIO MUSICA BUDAPEST
Sole U.K. agents:
& HAWKES
BOOSEY
Music PublishersLimited

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