What Makes a Good Performance?

What makes a good performance? Undoubtedly, within an academic environment, a certain level of technical accuracy is required, with the right notes and the right rhythms seen as an essential part of achieving a good mark.  Additionally, stylistic concerns are expected to have been given due consideration by the performer, demonstrating the ability to distinguish between the appropriate interpretational differences between JS Bach, Debussy and Maxwell Davies.

Add to this good instrumental control, such as range of dynamics, accurate intonation and some evidence of expression, and you have the recipe for a good performance.  But is that really enough to make a good performance?
Accuracy is one thing, and it is clear that any institution responsible for judging performance has to demand an appropriate level of accuracy and good technique. In the outside world, however, the criteria may be very different, depending on the context of the performance.
Take, for example, the realm of the concert hall, with audiences paying good money to hear their artist of choice. At that level, accuracy is important, but the performing artists generally already possess a level of technical expertise where the mechanics of the performance take second place to a deeper artistic experience. In this context, the emotional impact of the performances undoubtedly has a greater importance than technical accuracy. When the music performed is completely within the technical mastery of the performer, it becomes an almost forgotten part of the process. A wrong note here and there does not damage the performance, and in some ways can even enhance it.
On the opposite extreme, certain performances by less accomplished performers can be equally moving. Consider, for example, the performance by a young child who is playing his or her instrument in front of family for the first time. While this is unlikely to be as polished as the professional performance, it may be more moving for those listening. An untrained audience may not know the difference between a competent instrumentalist and an expert one, as long as both are able to meet the minimum requirements for the context of the performance. I suspect if a leading professional player were to play the same music as the child mentioned above, the child’s performance would actually have the emotional edge over the professional’s.

At a certain level, it is easy to become bogged down with the concept of ‘perfection’ in performance. I have heard, however, numerous so-called ‘perfect’ performances which have left me cold.  There is a big difference between an accomplished instrumentalist and an accomplished musician.
Some of the most memorable performances I have heard have contained inaccuracies, and while I would never advocate deliberately performing music which is beyond the capability of the player, it is useful to remember that we listen to music for its emotional impact and for its ability to express more than words.
For me, without that expression, a performance cannot be truly good.

---