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hit ’em where they ain’t

I was talking with a symphony colleague on Sunday afternoon about the death Saturday of Bud Herseth (who was the principal trumpeter of the Chicago Symphony from 1948-2001, then principal trumpet emeritus from 2001-2004), and he made an interesting observation about Herseth’s playing – namely that he wasn’t nearly as flub-proof as legend suggested, but that if it happened, it was always in a place where the concertoer would hardly even notice it. In the big moments, he would never, ever, miss (the high C in Strauss’ Also Sprach Zarathustra being a prime example, or the opening of Maher’s Fifth Symphony). It’s the law of conservation of energy for the orchestral musician, especially one in a exposed solo role – you nail the stuff that everyone will hear, and the other stuff can be sweated just a bit less. It made me think instantly of the old baseball saw about hitting success – just hit ’em (the ball) where they (the fielders) ain’t. Except in this case it’s more like making the clutch play when all eyes are on you, and then scratch your ass when someone else is in the spotlight. It’s a key factor in having a long and successful career in an orchestra for just about anyone. Anyone else who’s in a professional orchestra want to weigh in on this?

6 replies on “hit ’em where they ain’t”

Not orchestra related, but sound advice across the board to put your energy where it counts the most especially if you have limited time.

Yes! It’s a matter of priorities, and “don’t sweat the small stuff,” (although we truly do, don’t we?) and taking care of the big pieces of the puzzle first and the small ones will fall into place.

Even though all of us brass players knew, deep down, that Bud missed on occasion (though of course a little less than we mere mortals), the legend of the man as a perfect machine who never did wrong was always too good to let go of. He was such an inspiration to both myself and others that in a very grand way it was wonderful to think of him as the absolute model of perfection.

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