I came across a quote about baking yesterday in The New York Times Dessert Cookbook, and I'm having difficulty relating to this quote.
"I learn a recipe like I learn a score, and then proceed from memory. You just have to know how much room you have to interpret." Richard Stolzman, concert clarinetist and baker
Maybe it is the strong reference to musical interpretation that throws me off in understanding this quote. I am not at the point in playing the piano where I can improvise. As for baking, I may leave out an ingredient, or not fully follow the recipe....but that is not improvisation, that is just being willful.
I know that professionals in any realm are able to take a theme, or idea, and just run with it, and in so doing, they create something new and magical. I'm not there yet. In all of my sewing, knitting, piano, and baking, I still follow the pattern, music, or recipe as closely as I can. I hope Julia Child isn't too disappointed in me.
"I learn a recipe like I learn a score, and then proceed from memory. You just have to know how much room you have to interpret." Richard Stolzman, concert clarinetist and baker
Maybe it is the strong reference to musical interpretation that throws me off in understanding this quote. I am not at the point in playing the piano where I can improvise. As for baking, I may leave out an ingredient, or not fully follow the recipe....but that is not improvisation, that is just being willful.
I know that professionals in any realm are able to take a theme, or idea, and just run with it, and in so doing, they create something new and magical. I'm not there yet. In all of my sewing, knitting, piano, and baking, I still follow the pattern, music, or recipe as closely as I can. I hope Julia Child isn't too disappointed in me.
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