HCB Appreciation

koraks · Thursday at 6:38 AM

nikos79 said:
I know you want me to find my own path koraks

Probably the most influential composer in the tango genre, and one of the most important composers of the 20th century to begin with, was Astor Piazzolla, who studied with Nadia Boulanger in Paris. One of his crucial contributions has been to register the tango on the map of 'serious' music, through his originality and the depth of his compositions. Prior to Piazzolla, the tango wasn't considered 'serious' music, and the bandoneon was not considered a relevant instrument in the classical repertoire. He changed all that, single-handedly.

Of the period when he studied with Boulanger, who trained many contemporary classical composers, Piazzolla writes the following:

“…When I met her, I showed her my kilos of symphonies and sonatas. She started to read them and suddenly came out with a horrible sentence: “It’s very well written” … After a long while she said: “Here you are like Stravinsky, like Bartók, like Ravel, but you know what happens? I can’t find Piazzolla in this.”

And she began to investigate my private life: what I did, what I did and did not play, if I was single, married or living with someone, she was like an FBI agent! And I was very ashamed to tell her I was a tango musician. She kept asking: “You say you are not a pianist. What instrument do you play then?” And I didn’t want to tell her that I was a bandoneón player…
Finally, I confessed and she asked me to play some bars of a tango of my own. She suddenly opened her eyes, took my hand and told me: “You idiot, that’s Piazzolla!” And I took all the music I composed, ten years of my life, and sent it to hell in two seconds…”

There's a (probably apocryphal) shorter quote that goes something like: "You can choose: you can either become a mediocre Bartók - or you could be the best Piazzolla the world has ever seen."

Alex Benjamin · Thursday at 7:08 AM

koraks said:
Probably the most influential composer in the tango genre, and one of the most important composers of the 20th century to begin with, was Astor Piazzolla, who studied with Nadia Boulanger in Paris. One of his crucial contributions has been to register the tango on the map of 'serious' music, through his originality and the depth of his compositions. Prior to Piazzolla, the tango wasn't considered 'serious' music, and the bandoneon was not considered a relevant instrument in the classical repertoire. He changed all that, single-handedly.

Of the period when he studied with Boulanger, who trained many contemporary classical composers, Piazzolla writes the following:

There's a (probably apocryphal) shorter quote that goes something like: "You can choose: you can either become a mediocre Bartók - or you could be the best Piazzolla the world has ever seen."

Tango: Zero Hour is one of the most cherished albums in my collection

MattKing · Thursday at 1:39 PM

koraks said:
The "x% of my shots are keepers" is more about bragging rights than anything else.

It may matter more if 8x10 film is your medium of choice.
Yousuf Karsh comes to mind.
But it is always important to remember that most of Karsh's work was as a busy portrait photographer, working mostly with clients who weren't famous, and whose portraits aren't well known.

GregY · Thursday at 1:44 PM

MattKing said:
It may matter more if 8x10 film is your medium of choice.
Yousuf Karsh comes to mind.
But it is always important to remember that most of Karsh's work was as a busy portrait photographer, working mostly with clients who weren't famous, and whose portraits aren't well known.

While that is true, I was amazed when the Y Karsh show was exhibited in Calgary, the array of famous people that he did photograph...
Also I always wondered about the backstory to his photograph of Georgie Okeefe at her house in Abiquiu.

MattKing · Thursday at 2:16 PM

GregY said:
While that is true, I was amazed when the Y Karsh show was exhibited in Calgary, the array of famous people that he did photograph...
Also I always wondered about the backstory to his photograph of Georgie Okeefe at her house in Abiquiu.

If you had had the chance to talk to him, he probably would have been happy to tell you .
I met him once - in a large group session. I was tasked with photographing a presentation he did to a really large group, in a lecture hall with ~~excretable~~ execrable light!
As a result, my negatives were of little use.
I really wish the one I took of him winking at me had turned out!
What was clear though was that perhaps Karsh's greatest ability was his ability to engage with people - which he clearly enjoyed.
One on one, in small groups, speaking to a large hall full of hundreds of people, he could make you feel as if you were the person who mattered to him.
I expect that at least some of the reason for him becoming the photographer who you wanted to have your portrait taken by - to be "Karshed" - was that people found the experience so memorable and positive.

snusmumriken · Thursday at 2:58 PM

MattKing said:
I was tasked with photographing a presentation he did to a really large group, in a lecture hall with ~~excretable~~ execrable light!

Good old spell-checker - gave me a laugh!

nikos79 · Thursday at 5:38 PM

koraks said:
Probably the most influential composer in the tango genre, and one of the most important composers of the 20th century to begin with, was Astor Piazzolla, who studied with Nadia Boulanger in Paris. One of his crucial contributions has been to register the tango on the map of 'serious' music, through his originality and the depth of his compositions. Prior to Piazzolla, the tango wasn't considered 'serious' music, and the bandoneon was not considered a relevant instrument in the classical repertoire. He changed all that, single-handedly.

Of the period when he studied with Boulanger, who trained many contemporary classical composers, Piazzolla writes the following:

There's a (probably apocryphal) shorter quote that goes something like: "You can choose: you can either become a mediocre Bartók - or you could be the best Piazzolla the world has ever seen."

This was very inspirational.
It is difficult sometimes to find your own self. I think in the beginning it is absolutely normal (and even healthy) to try and mimic the photographers you admire and listen to your mentors. Perhaps along the process when the photographers you admire and like become more and more they will converge and be absorbed to something that you can use to mold and become your own self.
In that process I think is very important to try and keep your honesty and try to do stuff that reflect you and your inner world and do not become entrapped in what others tend to like and tell you to do, unless you work for a client.
I strongly believe that if the photography you do resonates strongly with yourself, if it is something that moves you, then it can also move others too. If not, you can still be an amazing photographer but you will lose that personality that your photographs might have.

cliveh · Thursday at 6:03 PM

When I first saw this image, I thought he waited for some time for this composition to evolve. However, on reading a text about someone who was with him at the time, he said Henri and I were walking down a street and suddenly Henri turned to one side and took this picture. I thought only Messi playing football can do this sort of thing. True Zen.

snusmumriken · Thursday at 6:36 PM

cliveh said:
View attachment 405849

When I first saw this image, I thought he waited for some time for this composition to evolve. However, on reading a text about someone who was with him at the time, he said Henri and I were walking down a street and suddenly Henri turned to one side and took this picture. I thought only Messi playing football can do this sort of thing. True Zen.

I too recall reading the account you mention, but I also think I have seen at least one other version of this scene (ie another frame). It might be in the Magnum Contacts book, but I no longer have a copy to check.

Alex Benjamin · Thursday at 7:15 PM

cliveh said:
View attachment 405849

When I first saw this image, I thought he waited for some time for this composition to evolve. However, on reading a text about someone who was with him at the time, he said Henri and I were walking down a street and suddenly Henri turned to one side and took this picture. I thought only Messi playing football can do this sort of thing. True Zen.

In many interviews he mentions that one of the most important element you need in order to make good photographs is just plain luck.

But luck isn't enough if you haven't learned to be in full awareness, to see it when it's there. True Zen indeed.

nikos79 · Thursday at 7:50 PM

Alex Benjamin said:
In many interviews he mentions that one of the most important element you need in order to make good photographs is just plain luck.

But luck isn't enough if you haven't learned to be in full awareness, to see it when it's there. True Zen indeed.

Luck brings the subject, geometry brings the order
When the two meet he gets his ecstasy of his "decisive moment"

MattKing · Thursday at 9:20 PM

snusmumriken said:
Good old spell-checker - gave me a laugh!

Me too - but I decided to take unfair advantage of my Moderator powers and show the correction - thanks for the heads up.

koraks · 2025-08-22T02:34:49-0400

nikos79 said:
I think in the beginning it is absolutely normal (and even healthy) to try and mimic the photographers you admire and listen to your mentors.

Not necessarily just in the beginning. In the West we have a strained relationship with the concept of replication in the arts. It's a cultural thing. Regardless, it can be very educational to try and replicate someone else's concept. To take the parallel of music a little further, some composers would manually copy scores of their illustrious colleagues, just to try and understand the kind of 'flow' the master would have been in while writing their music.

gary mulder · 2025-08-22T03:24:32-0400

After decades photographing with 4x5 and 8x10 I found my self mostly copying my one work. A bit boring. A few years ago I purchased a 35mm camera. I disciplined my self to shoot a full rol, 36 exposures, at one location I found interesting to take a picture. On such a location with large format I would only take 1-3 exposures. By making 36 exposures I compelled my self to find “new” possibilities.
My latest transition to digital beholds a hole new can of worms.

Alex Benjamin · 2025-08-22T13:27:02-0400

Henri Cartier-Bresson was born August 22, 1908. Today marks his 117th birthday .

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