Klarinet Archive - Posting 000425.txt from 1994/02
From: "Dan Leeson: LEESON@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Garrett Fitzgerald and Mozart
Date: Mon, 28 Feb 1994 18:53:49 -0500
Garrett, there is still one point that I promised I would get back
to with respect to the Mozart concerto. And it is a significant
textual change from the traditional version. I quote your comment
below with respect to measures 108 and 109 of the first movement,
with emphasis placed on the 6th note of the second of these two measures
in both cases.
"Well, if I'm transposing right, in m. 108, the clarinet's A leads to
a G-sharp in the orchestral part. In m. 109, the clarinet's F-sharp
leads to an E-sharp in the orchestral part. I don't see any reason to
change it there"
It is astonishing that grown people like us enjoy this music so much
that we focus on a single note of it.
If we are not using the same editions in talking about these measures,
there is going to be some communication problem. Since you say thatyour
6th note of m. 109 is an f-sharp, it is clear to me that we
do not have the same editions. And I must tell you that the f-sharp
is absolutely, guaranteed incorrect. It is f-natural. And I have as
my authority none other than Mozart himself. Let me explain:
1) The passage that we are referring to occurs 5 times in the first
movement of the concerto,three times for violins and twice for the
solo instrument.
The occurrences are (1) m. 20-21 (violin 1), (2) m. 108-109 (solo
clarinet), (3) m. 158-159 (violin 1), (4) m. 243-244 (violin 1),
and (5) m. 296-297 (solo clarinet). The passages sound the
same but they are not absolutely parallel. It is the first two
on which we have to focus.
For 2 centuries these passages were played with the sixth note of
the second measure as a written f sharp for the clarinet (m. 109)
as a written G sharp for the violin (m. 21). Both notes are wrong.
The clarinet should play an f natural and the violin g natural.
If you will get hold of the New Mozart Edition (Neue Mozart Ausgabe)
of the Mozart concerto (Barenreiter of Kassel) and look in the
back of the volume (pp. 165-176) you will see the autograph in
Mozart's own hand of the original version of this concerto before
he decided to change it from a basset horn in G to a basset
clarinet in A. This is the only source material known to exist
of music which eventually became the clarinet concerto. It's
authority is pretty strong. Now find these passages about which I
have been speaking and you will see what Mozart has written for
these spots.
So it is not me who says do thus and so at this or that spot. It is
Mozart in his own handwriting that tells us this. I admit that it
is a very shocking change, but the fact that he does it twice (before
the manuscript breaks off) nails it.
One could put forward the argument that "this is the basset clarinet
version and he could have changed his mind when he did the clarinet
version" but that would be ignoring the facts. Up to where the
manuscript breaks off, it is the clarinet concerto in every respect. So
one cannot accept all of it but the one note that is unusual simply
because it is untraditional.
This fragmentary
autograph in his own hand has much greater authority than the printed
edition of 1803 (which is what you are quoting from even though you
may be using a later version). Nothing in the world is as authoritative
as this autograph and it simply cannot be dismissed.
There should not be a clarinet player in the world unfamiliar with this
entire problem, but there are. There was a young chap from California
who I coached in the Mozart concerto for a master class with someone
whose name I would rather not mention. I told the kid what the issues
were, what my recommendation was, and what to say if asked why he was
making this rather dramatic change to the text.
The clarinetist who was reponsible for the master class
caught the change at once and was merciless in his criticism.
He told the kid that he had played the Mozart concerto
for 30 years and that note was not f-natural and whoever told him so
was simply stupid. So the kid changed it back to f-sharp and what's-
his-name was pleased.
Well on p. 171, m109 (fourth measure from the left side of the page)
and in Mozart's own hand, it is f-natural. One has no argument with
me. The argument is with Mozart himself.
So you may want to consider rethinking this issue. It certainly is
non-trivial (though it does go by fast in all five place in the
concerto).
The published Barenreiter edition has it as I have suggested both in
the orchestral accompaniment and in the solo clarinet line.
====================================
Dan Leeson, Los Altos, California
(leeson@-----.edu)
====================================
