I’ve been revisiting the Harry Potter films recently, and after a recent read-aloud of all seven books, it takes just a few of films to notice the differences.
I don’t mean the differences between the films and the movies: those are quickly obvious and entirely predictable because of the differences between the two media.
What I mean is the differences brought about by creative interaction. Chris Columbus, who directed the first two films, brought his own ideas and formed something at the juncture of his viewpoint and J.K. Rowling’s. In the third film, the very different director Alfonso Cuaron brought a new viewpoint, and the interaction between his perspective and Rowling’s story produced results that are strikingly different.
Neither is bad, though. Both illuminate the stories and are lovingly crafted with respect for the original works.
Sometimes as conductors we can focus too much on composer’s intent as a static thing. The World Choir Games includes an adjudicated category titled “Fidelity to the Score” – as if being faithful to the score can have only one right answer and can be scored on a scale of one to ten.
No, creative interpretation must be an act of creative interaction between collaborative equals, each with a distinct viewpoint and bolstered by respect for the other collaborators.