"You think that bassoons are just kind of ... advanced party-favors until they're not there. Then there's such a hole in the sound and you realize how much they contribute to the orchestra."
— Mark Taddei in Orchestral Repertoire for Winds at Victoria University, one Sunday in the late 1980s ... when the bassoons didn't show up.
One day the conductor of the orchestra called in to report that he was stuck in traffic and would be 20 minutes late. It was arranged that the principal violist would take the baton and lead the rehearsal in that time. After all, the violist had some conducting experience and could at least keep people busy until the Maestro arrived.
All went well and the real conductor showed up only 15 minutes late, relieving the violist of his surrogate duty. The violist then fetched his viola and assumed his position at the head of the viola section. Upon sitting down, the associate principal violist scowled at him and hissed "Where have you been? You're late!"
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On the worth of the viola
One day the conductor of the orchestra called in to report that he was stuck in traffic and would be 20 minutes late. It was arranged that the principal violist would take the baton and lead the rehearsal in that time. After all, the violist had some conducting experience and could at least keep people busy until the Maestro arrived.
All went well and the real conductor showed up only 15 minutes late, relieving the violist of his surrogate duty. The violist then fetched his viola and assumed his position at the head of the viola section. Upon sitting down, the associate principal violist scowled at him and hissed "Where have you been? You're late!"
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