Klarinet Archive - Posting 000027.txt from 1995/01

From: ELAINE THOMPSON <eethomp@-----.EDU>
Subj: More Stoltzman and Shifrin
Date: Tue, 3 Jan 1995 10:49:07 -0500

Dan,
Thanks for your support of my post. You mentioned that you hold
different opinions about Stoltzman, and I am curious to know what you
think of him. I am writing more details about how I formed my opinions
to allow some room for rebuttal.

My opinions are based mostly on live performances. When I saw Stoltzman
live, I was impressed by his showmanship, but not by his musicianship.
For me, it was sort like someone demonstrating how many neat tricks one
could do with the clarinet. For example, he performed a short
unaccompanied 20th century piece called "Entrada no. 2" (I don't remember
the composer). He started it in the dark right after intermission from
the back of the hall. He walked up the aisle as he played, ran up the
stairs to a quick technical passage, and then danced as he played.
Another selection in the concert was a transcription of a Bach
harpsichord piece. Stoltzman performed it flawlessly, and at a rapid
tempo; however the effect to me was "Gee, look how many notes." He
didn't do much interesting with the phrasing or melodic sequences that
are so important to Bach.

It was in this same concert that I was impressed by Stoltzman's jazz. He
played a series of Monk tunes with Eddie Gomez on bass as his sole
accompaniment. (Hmmm. Maybe Eddie was part of my being impressed...) It
is interesting to me that John complains about Stoltzman's lack of swing.
Monk tunes probably require less swing than say, Parker or Coltrane
charts, so maybe I would be less impressed if I heard him play something
else.

Now, I will mention that Stoltzman does hold my attention when I see him
in concert (I have seen him twice). However, I personally have no desire
to imitate what he does.

When I saw Shifrin live, I left thinking "Wow. I wish I could play so
flexibly and beautifully." He did the Debussey Rhapsody, and his tone
ranged widely from still with just enough change to carry the phrase to
bright, lively, and focused. His Brahms trio was also beautiful, with
that peculiar transparency that skillful players bring to Brahms.

There was nothing unusual about that concert. No dancing, no jazz or
unusual transcriptions. But I went straight home, got my clarinet out,
and tried to capture a little bit of Shifrin's magic for myself.

BTW, I do not mention Sabine Meyer because I have not seen her live. I
personally prefer not to voice opinions about musicians that are based
solely on recordings.

Elaine Thompson "Two roads diverged in a wood and I,
eethomp@-----.edu I took the one less travelled by,
Johns Hopkins Univ. And it has made all the difference."
--Robert Frost