Friday, January 23, 2009

Fakin' It

Obama quartet admits faking performance at inauguration - Times Online: "It's not exactly Watergate but Barack Obama's inauguration was back in the dock today after it emerged that the quartet of classical musicians who ushered him on to the steps of the Capitol were faking it.

In a report headlined 'The Frigid Fingers Were Live, but the Music Wasn't', The New York Times said that the four, including the violinist Itzhak Perlman, had already recorded their contribution two days earlier and played along just for show."

6 comments:

Todd Mason said...

Yo Yo Ma was just on ALL THINGS CONSIDERED, noting that this is SOP for the military bands which play the inaug gig...you never can tell what winter in DC might do to instruments. He compared what they might well've sounded like to Paris Hilton's album. No, that's a lie...but he did suggest it would be four minutes of out of tune, AMERICAN IDOL-style unpleasantness.

So, among other things, they soap rather than resin the bows (slippery rather than sticky), in hopes of not breaking any strings while synching, etc.

Unknown said...

As a former clarinetist who's played in some really cold weather, I was wondering how it was possible. I don't blame 'em a bit.

Cap'n Bob said...

Where's the outrage? Milli Vanilli were destroyed for doing this.

WV: Conam. A famous barbarium.

Fred Blosser said...

I wonder if I'm the only one here who actually saw Milli Vanilli in concert? In 1990. Because my younger daughter wanted to see them. Also took her to see Vanilla Ice. Don't recall now if they were on the same bill or not.

Unknown said...

Vanilla Ice? I've admitted some terrible things here, but Vanilla Ice?

Peter Rozovsky said...

Perlman can't even read music!!!