Why Gustavo Dudamel never takes a bow
NewsFrom a Time magazine feature:
When Dudamel is done, the audience leaps to its feet with the kind of reaction you’d expect to see at a Taylor Swift concert. Dudamel doesn’t take a bow—he never bows. Instead, he motions for the orchestra to stand up and share in the acclaim. He gives a big hug to Anne-Sophie Mutter, the virtuoso violinist and tonight’s featured soloist, and another to John Williams as the 90-year-old composer of the scores for Star Wars, Jaws and many other classic movies navigates his way toward center stage. Williams and Mutter keep waving in Dudamel to join them there, but he refuses to make it a trio. Instead, he stays on the sidelines, turning toward them in profile, just one more adoring face in the crowd.
“Music is not only an element of entertainment in the society,” Dudamel tells me, sipping an espresso beneath the soaring ceiling of his Disney Hall office. He’s on break from a day of rehearsals—for which he’s chosen a black T-shirt, black jeans, and suede Nikes the color of mustard. The Steinway at his elbow is piled high with bound scores by Richard Wagner. “It is a power of transformation. You’re sitting there for a symphony that is, like, 30 or 50 minutes, and time is gone. You are on a journey of harmony and beauty to find structure in a metaphysical way. It unites us, even if we come in feeling completely different.”…
“The vibe with Gustavo is ‘We’re just having fun with the music,’” (Yuja) Wang says. “‘I’m here just to encourage and stimulate you and get your creative juices flowing, but I’m not here to interfere.’”
Full article here.
Difficult to imagine Furtwängler or Klemperer in this kind of interview. Times have changed. Alas.
I will make only one complain about Dudamel : He don’t make enough records! It’s very important. For exemple he would be very intelligent to make a cycle of all the Ravel orchastral works with the Opéra de Paris. it’s some works he does very well in concert I have seen him with this orchestra last year. His Turandot last year also was a triumph in the public and in the press I don’t understand why they didn’t make a record for that.
Some artists do not like making records.
Yes the Celibidache’s way…. But imagine if Georg Szell in Cleveland have done the same thing he would be complety forgotten today.
Not every conductor needs to be remembered forever.
That’s not a slight against Dudamel; just that conductors/musicians can be great in their live music making without leaving a legacy of recordings. For instance, Carlos Kleiber left a few recordings, but I daresay his aura comes from the rarity of them as well as from their quality.
Hmm. That’s probably true. On the other hand, Ormandy always maintained that the famous Philadelphia Orchestra sound was his creation, but how many buyers think of Ormandy when seeking a recorded performance.
I love the Dude.
Lol. “I’m ever so ‘umble…” This is next level four dimensional grandstanding for students of the humble brag.
Is it not now standard concert etiquette for conductors to lead the applause for the soloist (if any) and the orchestra and orchestral soloists, and only rhwn bow briefly to the audience themselves? If not, it should be.
I have attended scores of concerts led by Dudumel at Disney, always very good, sometimes great…at the end he does something no other conductor does there… he turns the orchestra around 180 degrees to face the audience in the much cheaper seats behind the orchestra and they go wild…he embraces all with his music and his spirit…we are lucky to have him here in LA pushing the music and repertoire forward!