Mozart in the Jungle: Fifth Chair

January 13, 2015 7:49 PM - Season 1, Episode 2

Hailey gets her chance. Practice makes perfect. Rodrigo goes walkabout. Bathroom breaks. Shitting parrot.

Are they making Rodrigo too eccentric? Gloria is a very believable character.
Lisztomania
I'll Make it Worth Your While
Symphony No. 8 in E-Flat Major
Pra Não Parar De Sambar
Hungarian March

posted by unliteral (4 comments total)

Ok, I'm enjoying this so far, however... I can't tell if this was meant to be a joke or if some writer is just totally clueless, but the idea that an orchestra would, at the drop of a hat, decide to do Mahler's 8th is beyond ridiculous. It's just not possible to throw together a performance of Mahler's 8th out of nowhere. It doesn't just expand the orchestra by a "few" extra players, it also requires a full choir, AND a children's choir, AND several soloists who would need to be of the opera-star caliber. (Oh, and there's a pipe organ in there too, and we haven't seen any evidence of one present on the show yet...) Hell, the Chicago Symphony only does it when they perform in locations other than Symphony Hall because they cannot fit the required performers on the Symphony Hall stage!

I just can't quite tell yet if the writers expect us to understand what a joke that is, or if they just don't realize how badly they've broken the plausible realism of this show by even suggesting it.

(Mind you, I'm not really an expert on all things classical music, but Mahler's 8th happens to be a piece that holds a special place in my heart and soul, so the moment it was mentioned I just thought - WTF?)
posted by dnash at 10:51 PM on January 24, 2015 [3 favorites]

the idea that an orchestra would, at the drop of a hat, decide to do Mahler's 8th is beyond ridiculous.

That was my thought too. "Mahler's 8th?" I thought, "The 'Symphony of a Thousand'?" (For those not familiar with it, "a thousand" is hyperbole...but not by much.)
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 9:08 PM on February 6, 2015 [1 favorite]

This episode was worth it for the crabby actions of the first chair oboist.
posted by drezdn at 4:54 AM on March 24, 2015

regarding the 8th, multiple people did double take at the choice, and there was a passing reference to the conductor having "expensive taste" to choose that piece
posted by idiopath at 5:07 AM on January 7, 2017