Directions

[Innocent_Bystander]

No, musical directions. Aren’t you glad you learned them chunes by ear?

@Futility Closet

Misterioso [sic]

Expression markings used by Australian composer Percy Grainger:

“Louden lots”
“Soften bit by bit”
“Lower notes of woggle well to the fore”
“Glassily”
“Sipplingly”
“Bumpingly”
“Hammeringly”
“Bundling”
“Clatteringly”
“Like a shriek”
“Very rhythmic and jimp”
“Rollikingly”
“Hold until blown”
“Jogtrottingly”
“Easygoingly but very clingingly”
Musical directions in Erik Satie’s piano works:

“Wonder about yourself”
“Provide yourself with shrewdness”
“Alone, for one moment”
“Open the head”
“Superstitiously”
“In a very particular way”
“Light as an egg”
“Like a nightingale with a toothache”
“Moderately, I insist”
“A little bit warm”
“Very Turkish”
One of Satie’s directions — “Very lost” — might have been unnecessary.

[mutepointe]

I only pay attention to musical directions when they’re written in Italian.

[Nanohedron]

“Open the head”

I don’t know whether I’m supposed to air out the bathroom or grab an axe.

[Caroluna]

Wow, those are wild and crazy!

Our choir would have a really hard time with those. We have trouble keeping a straight face with “sforzando”.

A recent piece was marked “broadening gradually towards the end”. Most of us are middle-aged and could relate to that one.

Unintended hilarity when the choir director was walking us through a piece of music and said “and I want p suddenly, right here”

[benhall.1]

@Caroluna

Unintended hilarity when the choir director was walking us through a piece of music and said “and I want p suddenly, right here”

Could have been worse. Could have been pp.

[Caroluna]

May have been posted to C & F before?

http://lostinthecloudblog.com/2010/03/13/john-stump-composer-of-faeries-aire-and-death-waltz/

[I.D.10-t]

@Nanohedron

“Open the head”

I don’t know whether I’m supposed to air out the bathroom or grab an axe.

You use a can opener.

[Nanohedron]

I think Satie was a zombie.