Word: tubas
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...Braumeister on tuba: He is young, puffy, crewcut, a graduate of the college marching band. In keeping with the Germanic tradition of his horn, he is a dedicated beer drinker...
...careful continental accent that slips unexpectedly into stage British-but the mannerisms never add up to the man Poirot. Anita Ekberg as a bosomy psychopath and Robert Morley as a bungling secret service man offer no noticeable help as they spout reams of witless dialogue set to tuba music. By the time the corpse count reaches the letter D, moviegoers hooked on murder-for-fun will find themselves wishing that the blobby Miss Marple had stayed on the case a bit longer...
...down the field toward us. It seemed only logical at the time that they would break ranks right before they reached the goalposts, but one of the two groups obviously needs a lesson in logic. Almost before I realized what had happened, I found myself staring deep into a tuba as its owner relentlessly marched onward. Somewhat dazed, I looked for the other cheerleader, but all I could see was trumpets and clarinets...
Aside from excessive volume, the orchestra handled the complex score amazingly well. Especially delightful was the clarinets' witty opening of the Allegretto, the tuba's blustering fifths in the first trio, and the fine horn ensemble at the end of the first movemnt. The Bach chorale and its successive variations were somewhat less than serene; but the transition to Baroque harmony and sublime peace ("My Jesus comes--farewell world"), from twelve-tone sufferings does demand incredible skill...
First the tympani's unbelievable crescendo at the start of the March to the Scaffold, then the mock-serious strings, followed by all that nonsense for the bassoons. Finally the inevitable tuba, and a great off-beat joke by the percussion utensils. The Dream of a Witches' Sabbath flaunted its own goodies, notably the raucous way the clarinets, flutes, and bassoons treat the witches' dance tune (a perversion of the Beloved's theme). The brasses' evil parody of the dies Irae plainchant seemed to have more downright nastiness to it than ever before...