I went to a classical concert yesterday, at Berwaldhallen in Stockholm, and made a couple of sketches both before and during the concert. I sat slightly above, to the left of, the orchestra, and saw the solo pianist from behind. He played very vividly, and it was interesting to try to capture his posture while he was moving. The second drawing is of some of the faces in the orchestra. Stage lighting gives an interesting play with shadows on people´s faces, with sometimes extreme contrasts. Hard to draw but very intriguing.
I like how musicians in a big orchestra look at each other and at the conductor all the time, the interaction between all those people up on the stage is fantastic. It seems like they all have total control, they all know where they fit in, they just need to check with the others to make sure that they get it perfectly right… Amazing. Watching symphony orchestras is one of the few things that can actually make me wish I was a musician instead of good at drawing. The experience of playing music together with others – especially with so many others – must be pure happiness.
Both images: 12,5 x 15,5 cm, Staedtler Triplus Fineliners on Fabriano Artistico hot press paper.