[Harp-L] cutting contests



I don't think musical competitions are a bad idea categorically, but playing music with a motive of competitiveness usually is. There are fiddle contests in many states, and in Winfield Kansas, there are annual contests for both fingerstyle and flatpicking guitar.
There is long history of such contests, too. Regrading Handel and Scarlatti, there is this quote, "After all, live competition was a crucial part of musical life of the [Baroque] period. It was in 1708 or 1709 that Handel and Scarlatti, then in their early twenties, were involved in a celebrated keyboard contest in Rome. According to the surviving (and not always reliable) account, Handel was declared to be superior on the organ, while Scarlatti matched or perhaps even surpassed Handel's skill at the harpsichord. Scarlatti is said to have realized the musical possibilities of the organ only after hearing Handel play; regardless of the reliability of such a statement, it certainly confirms Scarlatti's love for the instrument. In any case, the two became good friends and Scarlatti followed Handel throughout Italy in order to listen to him and learn from his mastery of the organ."
Maybe it could be just plain fun if the contestants don't stake all their pride on it.
Somthing to think about.


Glenn Weiser






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