Posted by John Rasmussen on September 06, 19102 at 09:19:17:

In Reply to: Wagner's orchestration posted by Michael Chapman on September 01, 19102 at 04:47:55:

Unfortunately I can't help you with scholarly articles. However, one of my high school band directors, about 30 years ago, had been a horn player in the Minneapolis area. He says that, when you finish playing horn for a Wagner opera, you're TIRED! It's constant, high-energy playing, from what he said.

A string player said to me once that Wagner's string parts were also very difficult, because Wagner was "an idealist" and would make strings do things regardless of how difficult they were. Mahler, on the other hand, understood instruments; even though his things look difficult, they aren't as bad as you might think.

As an oboist, I have to say that when I've played Wagner, I never feel he really understood woodwinds either. But then, few composers were oboists, with the notable exception of Beethoven, who played oboe briefly for the Bonn court. You can tell in LvB's orchestral works that he really understood woodwinds.

Hope this helps!

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