Good vs Bad Conductors - Extreme Edition

[@Your-Local-Human724]

You know it's a true twoset video when the camera refuses to focus on anything but the background/shelf.

[@LuckysWorld19]

Yeah but idk why you would want to focus on those two blurry figures instead of the beautiful shelf 😌

[@adryavereschagin6753]

Or the microphone, lol 😂

[@moe3tery]

156 likes and 2 replies? lemme fix that

[@lloydaran]

After these many years, with people helping in production, they are still plagued by this issue

[@ann07ps49]

​@@lloydaran It's their trademark after all 😂

[@kungpaochicken89]

I love the shelf but the two blurred figures in the foreground were kinda distracting

[@cehrise]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@tseritykat404]

i agree

[@macanthony1108]

😂😂hahahahah

[@cadydae]

real

[@ceyx1201]

Make the vid as enhanced as possible, then zooooommmmm.😂😂

[@jamesbell6203]

I have played Rite many times, and the best conductor I experienced for this was an obscure college orchestra conductor who was originally a percussionist. There wasn't a rhythm or time signature he wasn't totally in control of and made playing that last dance easy.

[@mishibird]

Incidentally, Rattle was a percussionist too.

[@pattmahiney]

That makes a lot of sense 😂😂

[@noahtomato3515]

@@mishibirdnominative determinism right there 😂

[@CopShowGuy]

I've played it once before. Soon to play it again with a conductor that was a percussionist. That's reassuring to hear.

[@IngmarRuttens]

@@CopShowGuy Well it certainly helps to have a percussionist as a conductor. Second thing thats important: batontechnique. You should really "beat" time for this as strictly as possible. With measured precise gestures. If you got a conductor that holds his baton loosely and it sweeps al over the place.... everybody's lost. And in that case you should look to the wrist instead of the baton. Because there the beat comes from.

[@chloewu0211]

the out of focus camera will haunt you 😂😂

[@Twosetvioliner]

Yeah, I really like the fine details of the shelf…

[@ryatran7347]

I kept trying to set the vid quality higher, until realise just their camera is out of focus 😂

[@Lukar-e4s]

Omg it was so irritating lol 😂

[@tweepy123]

@@ryatran7347 omg me too I was like danggit my internet! But then I realized oh it's just a usual Twoset video

[@you-know-who2289]

Yes, I gonna be watching two blurry image playing violin, nothing can stop me.

[@cedricpicard297]

6:10 my conductor mentor once said that conducting is the art of controlling space and time. when you bounce up from the downbeat, the speed of your gesture has to be clear so that it is obvious to everyone when the next downbeat will come. it has to bounce naturally. that’s why that conductor was so hard to follow: his downbeats fly up and stay stuck at the top with no gesture to indicate when it will come down next

[@M_SC]

Wish I had your conductor not mine

[@cedricpicard297]

@@M_SC hire me

[@jinheelim9085]

I love the editing of this video. Less sudden cuts, not a lot of sound effect (just classical music) it's good to be able to hear longer dialogues ❤❤❤ thank you editor-san for your amazing conducting of the video Edit : and I love the storytelling bit. Really reminds me of the 2019-21 video about their lives as musicians and music in general

[@ZiaElohka]

Yes this editing style is much more relaxed to watch.

[@zarakoda]

All of this, yes! REALLY appreciated the improved flow

[@mighty_dragon4809]

This type of editing and content brings me back nostalgia and I love it.

[@Chris_Tofu]

14:58 - One conductor who conducts the Rite of Spring from memory is Simon Rattle, who they played along to at 11:26. At that very same filmed concert, Rattle also conducted Stravinsky's Firebird and Petrushka from memory as well.

[@oxoelfoxo]

thanks for the timestamp!

[@nish221100]

Wow!

[@bloodyplebs]

too bad his interpretation is so bad.

[@tatatatartine2588]

For having conducted Rite of spring myself, I can say this: even if you keep the score in front your eyes, you NEED to have learned it by heart if you want to conduct it...

[@TomKilworth]

@@tatatatartine2588 I came here to say exactly this! The score is just a comfort blanket by the time you're ready to perform it

[@itsme-ly6yk]

Damn that shelf in the back is so pretty I cant even focus on twoset because its so beautiful

[@analovessibelius]

neither can the camera lmao

[@moonbeam_2578]

@@analovessibelius dangit i was gonna comment that 💀

[@Twosetvioliner]

@@analovessibeliusJust like how I look at my crush 🫠

[@jemangerrit1747]

In the netherlands there is a show called "maestro" where semi famous dutch people learn to conduct in a short period of time. Maybe you could see how well you can play along to some of the finalists without sound? I like this series but I think we are really missing the "bad" conductors, I think thats where the content is. Btw, maybe there are similar shows for UK and US? Idk

[@M_SC]

There is a UK one. Parts of it are on KZbin but it’s hard to find

[@sabrinai]

12:58 Please do more story time with Brett and Eddy, guys 😭😭😭😭! It's so wholesome and homey and educational!

[@abqcleve]

As a flute player, I think you actually hit on how orchestras deal with various conducting styles on a piece like "Rite" in your story about von Karajan: everyone watches the concertmaster! Very entertaining and incredibly difficult given the editing between shots of the conductor/orchestra in each of those openings. Bravi!

[@thejoeklingler]

If you can conduct slowly, you can conduct quickly.

[@2SetBubbleTea]

I'm telling y'all twoset and out of focus camera is never ending saga...😂❤️

[@sandrasmusicstudio3487]

And the moral of the story is all the violins actually just watch the concertmaster. haha

[@sabrinai]

It's very intetesting not only to see you guys trying to follow the conductor without sound, but also hearing your comments about how the different conductors cue, how much delay there is and how you analyze their technique. One can learn so much! Twoset academy for the win!

[@RichardGreen422]

You explained why Bernstein was such a great conductor (bringing dance to dance!)--and why his NYPO Rite is still my favorite.

[@LinhChi93]

The storytelling part of this vid is as precious as the playing part.

[@stellaluna92]

agreed, I wish some twoset talks episodes were just them casually doing story time

[@howimettheopera]

As conductors, often times with passages like this one the advice we get when we're learning is "don't disturb the musicians" 🙃, i.e keep it simple and clear, because in a way it's easier to play (by correctly counting the rhythm and silences) than to conduct by showing all the insane time signature changes and subdivisions.

[@oxoelfoxo]

YOU gotta be early for this video, hehe!

[@howimettheopera]

@@oxoelfoxo haha, would have been earlier but I was *actually* in the middle of studying a very rhythmically tricky piece so this felt very on topic. Back to practising, gotta make twoset proud.

[@Jojofloete]

When I studied flute in Germany, we played the rite of spring several times in our uni orchestra with maestro Eiji Oue. It was his „signature piece“ and of course he would conduct it by heart. At first a bit scary but he knew exactly where everything had to be and overall it was a great experience. Later in my professional career when I played this in many pro orchestras I would always think about this Performance at uni because it was somehow Special 🤷🏻‍♀️🙂 nice to hear you explaining what a special constellation we orchestral players are in with all the weird Signals in between…its a whole other world and especially in this peace it shows if it works 😉🎶🎵

[@Casutama]

I love it when you have videos like this. I was never an orchestra musician, so I get a lot of insight into something I know little about, and I just really like your nerdier videos

[@IngmarRuttens]

Something Bernstein pointed out in an intervieuw. What is the most important and what does a musician needs most? To keep tempo or for a tempochange. One , thats the downbeat has to be clear but even more important is the gesture before. Because as a conductor you have to anticipate and show where the ONE is going to be. So the space in between the beats is more important then the beats itself. Any orchestra can play togheter in time without a conductor. But the "and" of the beat before the barline is where it happens and all the neccesary information is shown. Actueally there is more information in the last upbeat then any other gesture.

[@jons_z]

I'm so happy rn, these are the type of twoset videos I love most, where we get to see them play, learn something new, twoset are just casually sharing stories from their experience etc ❤❤

[@MayFongJosephineLoh]

Eddy is very analytical and best story teller, Brett is top tier comedy, twosetviolin is the best package. Look forward to their video each time and hurray - announcement of twoset academy.

[@georgeholloway3981]

As a conductor, this is so useful for me! Could you do the same format video, but with a rhythically simple piece, where the focus is on the expressive nuance/rubato that the conductor is giving? For example, Mahler 5 Adagietto, or some last movement of Ravel Mother Goose?

[@dgauper]

This is great for any conductor. You speak to us from the players view. Love it!!!

[@CarolBrobst]

When I auditioned for a US regional orchestra job, for the final round I had to play this excerpt solo, with the conductor conducting me. Scary af but I got the gig and put in 13 years with that orchestra. I had the pleasure of performing RoS twice with this conductor. He actually made it so easy and I played with no fear !

[@k1necorporationmedia]

If you can conduct good, you can conduct bad.

[@batman5383]

Love Super Auto Pets! 😀

[@sabrinai]

12:31 Can't wait for Two Set Academy!!!! 🎉🎉🎉 Yang and Chen Sensei let's gooo!!! It's amazing how you always find new ways to bring classical music and PRACTICE 40 hours closer to all of us!

[@lozzawazhere]

Please do a TwoSet Talks on conductor experiences and stories!!! Good and bad!!! I mean, this whole video is great, but we love a good story time 😃

[@e2pii213]

While waiting for it, some videos from the past: 'This Famous Conductor DESTROYED the poor musicians' 'Why Being a Conductor is The Hardest Job Ever'

[@IngmarRuttens]

Well I was a percussionist and did a lots of last minute replacements and then you gotta read lots of conductors. So what is the secret? Try to figure out as fast as possible what the conductors technique is. Does he has really a beat and does he wants you to play on it. Or is he doing more sweeping gestures and you have to be after the beat. Also very important: how does he/she holds the baton. is there a firm grip and so everything is well measured and has a beat: then you can watch the stick. But if the grip is loose: the baton will probably move more freely. THEN: you gotta watch the wrist or the arm because thats where the movement hence the beat comes from. And yes in the batontechnique you can see a difference in what the conductors instrument was: most percussionists: great batontechnique. very clear rythm, a good downbeat and you can clearly see the patern. Brassplayers: almost the same as percussionists. Windplayers are fine to. A bit less rythmical and more free movement but still clear. Now stringplayers and pianist: the baton sometimes even hangs loosely in there hand and they will make broad wavy gestures. And that also make sense why a lot of conductors that were percussionist are specialised and good in contemporary music. They litteraly strictly "beat" time.

[@evercuriousmichelle]

I wondered what the point of a conductor was when (in my mind) the percussionists set the pace, so the conductor seemed pointless. Now I can see how they are a visual percussionist since normally the other musicians can’t see the percussionists. Clearly I am still biased but I feel like all conductors should first train as percussionists!

[@jehmarxx]

Very extreme edition is when the conductor only appears for one second.

[@jordanmiller42]

tbh if the rest of the time the camera's focused on the other strings that might be easier

[@saracheng9890]

The clear high resolution part and the blurry part really makes a big contrast .. plus the Rite ..😂😂 stimulating

[@ianheller8209]

In between the Good and Bad conductors you have the Semi-conductors

[@phatdoohg4967]

Everyone's talking about how in focus the background is but nobody talks about how decorated the background is ^^

[@qien6046]

this video style is great!! we’re really back on track with the nerdier classical music videos that we’ve been missing for so long. the longer and less fast paced video editing also added a lot to the experience! it’s not too overstimulating and i get to listen to brett and eddy’s stories a lot more engagingly as well. we really do notice what you do editor-san! keep it up 😆

[@AndreCbrito]

I loved the storytelling at the end

[@ZiaElohka]

Great video, I love the little unexpected storytelling in the end.

[@IOSARBX]

TwoSetViolin, awesome content you deserve more views

[@manavagrawal720]

Whoever made the twoset academy logo is insanely talented. If the same person also makes the merch bro you are killing it!!!!!!!

[@toramenor]

Yes, I also noticed how pretty the Academy logo is 👍

[@anna.l]

In my experience, sometimes or some conductors conduct a little bit different from rehearsals. During the actual performance, they stop and let the orchestra run themselves at some moments since everyone’s already very familiar with the music and what the conductor wanted. So it’s naturally not easy to just follow the actual performances.

[@Little_Duck_]

I was looking for this comment. Thank you.

[@mariavidineeva2524]

I love the editing in this video and the overall vibe a lot. The "storytime" is always welcomed!

[@JonBecker81]

I’d love to hear these orchestras play this in the driest rooms with zero reverb to see just how together they actually sound. These halls can be really forgiving.

[@ElizaSocha]

Love the storytelling with B&E! ❤

[@ColinWrubleski-eq5sh]

In regards to the Karajan story... NYOC (National Youth Orchestra of Canada) 1991 season, first concert and first program of the summer, w/ Daniel Lipton on the podium, after the obligatory Canadian piece (actually, far better music than most of its type), the remainder of the first half involved the two orchestral items from the Debussy Nocturnes, then the R. Strauss Death and Transcendental Meditation opus 24. Second half, two Russian pieces, namely Prokofieff Lieutenant Kijè Suite (opus 60) and Rimsky-Korsakoff Capriccio Espagnol (opus 34). Well, after the Debussy, Lipton who was conducting from memory got stuck and simply could not remember if the next piece was the Strauss or the Prokofieff (Treacherously, both begin slowly and softly...) As an inside string player, i was internally panicking and agonizing whether i might have to get the music for Kijè ready a.s.a.p.->> Fortunately, after a pause that seemed to last forever, the maestro collected himself, realized that indeed the Strauss was next, and the rest of the night's proceedings went off relatively unscathed...

[@traceyedson9652]

Death and Transfiguration, perhaps? 😁

[@djjeny87]

classic twoset video with camera focused on the shelves - I for one do appreciate they are beautifully dusted and spotlessly clean :D

[@TheSparshofMusic-wn7de]

I think you should make a video looking at conductors who are conducting along with soloists playing concertos to see whether they are conducting in time with the soloist or not.

[@lienlee7654]

As a adult violin beginner who has no previous orchestra experience, this video really is very insightful. Thank you!

[@wesara9724]

I saw the Aurora Orchestra with Nicholas Collon perform Rite of Spring from memory last year and it was amazing. The entire orchestra was playing by heart, conductor leading from memory and the first half of the concert was a theatrical breakdown of the history of the piece and all of its themes and rhythms. For the encore the players spread out into the audience. Absolutely magical experience.

[@MusicalScreaming]

twosetblur really did well with this one

[@viviankwan1101]

Super fun to watch 😂 That conductor (Valery Gergiev) with the funny hand gesture… I would have asked him if he had visualised himself playing the tambourine 😆

[@Bizo-Net]

Babe wake up!!! Two set just posted.

[@BearWitch_Project]

I'm busy practicing!!

[@AmgineIX]

The aurora orchestra from Britain played the rite of spring entirely from memory last year. Recording available

[@katharinabecker752]

After rehearsing the Rite of Spring with our Youth Symphony, we too had it from memory--particularly the last part. Our conductor made a show of it by starting it and then leaving the stage...The conductor was Eiji Oue.

[@chenchris3281]

I love how when eddy is speaking Brett is just listening like he doesn’t know😂

[@wakanda4ever611]

Love the video and the idea! Can’t wait to see what twoset Academy brings

[@AKoribut]

I used to be addicted to this piece (I knew the differences between versions of the score. Very nerdy I know) and fortunately managed to get over but then this video and KZbin is like "Wanna hear another recording?"

[@sampolinad]

Lovely episode! Been a long time no listening to "Rite of Spring", a good reminder to do so! Don't know, do not really get the hype around Karajan, he is great, remarkable, nothing that speaks to me, speaks right now, I guess, it changes too. Have a soft spot for Gergiev, since childhood. Some conductors look scary doing the thing but do not make the piece sound scary, or like sharp and powerful haha Haven't heard the one with Bernstein, interesting, he really did try to put his soul into his work, or to try to push the orchestra to put their souls into the piece.

[@thatviewer-4142]

Classic out-of-focus camera. They went back to the old days :)

[@AnotherRandomChannel13]

Oh my gosh, I'm so excited for TwoSet Academy!! ☺️ I began playing the violin 3 weeks ago, and I've been a fan of TwoSetViolin for 9 years. I've always thought it would be cool for them to make more educational style content, so I'm excited to see what they have for this new project. Thank you Brett and Eddy and everyone else on the team for making these projects come true! 🩵

[@aaronsanchez499]

As a pianist and conductor I have a CHALLENGE for you. Try to follow different versions of the same piece with the same conductor. You'll see that there're orchestras with which they conduct "better". There are at least 3 different versions of Beethoven's 9th conducted by Bernstein on KZbin. You can also find other works and other conductor. Greetings!

[@noobgamer1O9909]

Hii Twoset, you guys were touring around the world, and my country's capital, Oslo! Sadly I couldn't come since I live in another city, Stavanger, but I hope I can come next time! Keep up the good work! - Love, average Twoset fan!

[@michaelwright2986]

Hugely informative for a non-musician. And nice to see the appreciation for what Bernstein was doing.

[@fantasia_avnii]

man that shelf be looking lowkey fine ngl 👀

[@EElgar1857]

You gave Gergiev more help than he deserves. He's completely unclear, and is so full of himself, he sends an assistant to do most of the rehearsals.

[@painted_melody]

I love the storytelling so much!

[@sabrinalauenstein]

I love constants in my life - such as TwoSets out of focus cam

[@jankirsten1614]

Can we PLEASE do another fan compositions. Maybe something like concertos, cadenzas, studies or something like that if you want variation.

[@Fantasia_Tea]

The story-telling warmed my heart too much 🥹🥹

[@obsidianmusic303]

“I’m not playing out of time, I was playing a canon, I swear” - Someone, probably

[@Rivellya_AVEN]

XD when we played rite of spring we had a sub conductor on the second week we played it, and he was jumping up and down on the podium to show us how the ballet dancers danced 🤣

[@fallofdreams5179]

Krzysztof Urbański also conducts it by memory, I saw him in concert, really good! There is also a very good recording with him conducting!

[@HannahdeKlerk]

You guys crack me up every video (and now I have to go practice)

[@rmsr1005]

What do you say about doing a 3rd edition with female conductors? As always.. great work guys!

[@zvonimirtosic6171]

Valery Gergiev was intimidated because he lost his toothpick and had to conduct with bare hands …

[@evanvarns4785]

That F'ing toothpick of his has to be one of the dumbest things I've ever seen from a supposedly "professional" conductor. It's useless anyway, because the fingers of his right hand wiggle and flop around so much it's incredibly distracting; I don't know how any orchestra "follows" him.

[@e2pii213]

Recommended video: Twoset performing the DANCE for Rite of Spring: 'When Rite of Spring Takes Over You'

[@ankurage]

I think I'm a good conductor... especially when my hands are wet and I touch the light switch

[@ChanyeolsHaneul]

Even i don't play any instrument I love your videos. Thank you for your hard work 😊

[@landsgevaer]

As long as you practice not playing an instrument 40 hours a day like Ling Ling would.

[@Lord_Baphomet_]

This was painful to listen when you compared the two… brought back memories

[@tonyabrown7796]

I once played in a band for a conductors workshop. It's incredible the difference it made to how we played. I've always struggled with orchestral conductors.

[@toramenor]

Thanks for another great video, you never disappoint. I loved the storytelling time at the end too

[@dimasgirl2749]

You know, when it's just the two of you playing by yourselves with no other sound, this piece is actually bearable to listen to.

[@TomKilworth]

Esa-Pekka Salonen's interpretation is my favourite of all. He always gets a crisp, clear sound from the orchestra

[@lynnaround]

Really enjoyed this video!!

[@karapoko6496]

Those two blurry figures in the front move so much, I couldn't see the beautiful cupboard😢

[@krystal62591]

It's funny how often you see comments asking TS to incorporate more 'challenging' music into their videos, and then on a video like this there are people saying "this isn't music." Folks, this is exactly why a vast majority of TS vids feature the same dozen popular, easy to listen to pieces, and it's why that will never change.

[@stephernoodle]

TwoSet Academy… does anyone else remember the olden days when Eddy had a second channel and practice guide for learning violin 🤔 Those videos were so good though

[@Hannah-CatLady]

Ooo I wasn't a TwoSetter back then but I like hearing some TwoSet history😊

[@josephineraeburn5809]

Such a pity those videos are no longer available. Heard they were very good.

[@ceticobr]

I actually discovered twoset as a suggestion on one of Eddy's videos.

[@Hannah-CatLady]

@@ceticobr Noo way really😂..also props on being an OG TwoSetter

[@enya4742]

wait what. (i joined last year) i need elaboration

[@jherlenecargill4081]

Loved to see all the “muñequitos” in the back. May have seen Brett flail his arms a couple times… couldn’t tell with the camera being so outta focus 😅

[@Hannah-CatLady]

I love the way they said "GO PRACTICE" on this one just like the old videos😁anyone agree?

[@Skelpyyyysaurrr]

That helicopter movement did not help the orchestra, it made things more confusing

[@danielbeach7177]

Love these videos….well done…keep them coming

[@Ozymandi_as]

A regional orchestra is about to set off on a short tour when the conductor falls ill, and is confined to bed by his doctor. The orchestral manager breaks the news to the orchestra, and asks if anyone would be willing to step up to the dais to take the baton for the tour. Much to everyone's surprise, the only hand to go up is from one of the viola players, so he is given the gig. Whatever reservations the other musicians may have had, the emergency maestro proves to be not only competent, but to have great style and panache, and the tour goes from strength to strength. By the time the band returns to their home venue, after a very successful tour, the stricken conductor has regained his health, and returns to the dais for the last night of the season. His temporary stand-in modestly goes back to his customary chair in the strings, looking forward to getting back to playing his beloved viola, but as he takes his seat, his desk partner turns to him, his face red with anger, and demands "where the fuck have you been"?

[@kj62431]

So many conducting styles. Love seeing what is clear. With a piece like this, the conductor can't go off on any creative tangent.

[@kimlindseyOH]

Love these videos! Such great insights from you two! What about stick (baton) vs. no stick? Next time you do one of these conduct-a-long videos, maybe add that factor. I'd be interested to hear your comments. Over the years, I ushered soooo many concerts and saw many top conductors, including some you've analyzed. I remember one conductor whose beat was always, always after his arm started an upward motion ... and the orchestra consistently followed him - IDK how they did it, but they did, and not by following the concertmaster (after 10+ years, I knew how to tell). And hey - if that's FWM @4:01, he does not count/conduct a waltz in a straight 1-2-3. Years ago I was at an open rehearsal here in Cleveland when he described what he wants - there's a kind of swirl to it, and the 3 beats are not even. Hard to describe, but when I hear a waltz I can always, always tell if it's our Franz conducting.😊 Headed off to practice now! Thanks TwoSet!

[@marvinkluberman7789]

Fun fact about that Bernstein performance: he is actually using an alternative barring of the score by Nicolas Slonimsky that turns the meter essentially regular (mostly 3/8 and 2/8), so the rhythms become sort of syncopations. So this is probably the main reason why it's hard to play along with him! You can see his marked-up score with the alternative barlines online in the NYPhil digital archives.

[@kitchen-knife-1]

What if Twoset turned off autofocus on their camera? Manual focus it so that it cannot change its focus to the background... just an idea! With turning off autofocus, there are also ways to change the settings to have a greater depth of field so that if Twoset moves closer/farther on camera, it will still be relatively in focus, if not completely.

[@royoser9956]

Funny -- van Zweeden is a Bernstein protege. But they sure have different conducting styles!

[@paulwagner688]

When playing with videos, watch the bowings. Maybe. There might always be lag. The fact they got as close as they did speaks for their musicianship

[@bassplayer2011ify]

I can't remember the exact quote but Kleiber said something to the effect of; Conducting an orchestra is like trying to control a mob.

[@raystan15]

I don't know why noone talks about the new project. As a musician who adores music more than anything in live I find it awesome. Hope I'll be able to do something with it. Unfortunatelly, I don't have a violin yet. I have a guitar and finally will be taking piano lessons this school-year. I hope I'll buy a viloin when I'll be able to.. And finally I'll be practising even more! :D

[@Jeanperry84]

If you do again a conductor video, please add female conductors as well. I'd like to hear/see your opinion if female or male conductors are more clear in their conducting movements - I've seen some outstanding female conductors live who left me in awe like Alondra de la Parra or Joana Mallwitz - just brilliant

[@M_SC]

Maybe conductors are individuals?