The conducting scene was shot on-site on the Ely Cathedral, initially with 5 completely different cameras; Bernstein is standing within the middle of the orchestra so protection from many angles is smart. As Cooper recounts to Stone (and Selection), the remainder of the film used solely two cameras and the turnaround time on scenes was slightly fast, however this was a special animal.
The actors showing as Bernstein’s orchestra have been all skilled musicians (Cooper says, “They’re the perfect at what they do. The concertmaster confirmed me a nonetheless of him at 4 years previous with two wood spoons like, ‘That is after I began.'”).
So now, for the scene’s sake, Cooper needed to conduct this A-Crew orchestra within the craft they’d excelled in. The eyes of the digital camera have been all on him, so there was no getting across the efficiency, and the ensuing music needed to sound good to not break the scene’s immersion.
Cooper was, as Stone put it, “within the finals” like an athlete earlier than a giant sport, and feeling all of the stress that brings. He additionally admits that conducting is “the toughest factor.” That he was doing it in entrance of pros, whereas enjoying a legendary conductor, solely added to his embarrassment as he struggled to maintain up. As Cooper tells it:
“[As a conductor], you are retaining tempo a bit of bit forward to ensure, and also you’re additionally reminding everyone of this stuff that you simply’d labored on in rehearsal. Fortunately they’re the best orchestra on this planet. However nonetheless, I needed to conduct them as a result of the shot is seeing everyone. So I tousled the entire first day. I stored messing up. And the minute I used to be behind tempo, it is over. Like, I am misplaced.”