Klarinet Archive - Posting 000579.txt from 1996/03

From: Donald Yungkurth <DYungkurth@-----.COM>
Subj: Re: What type of sound carries?
Date: Fri, 22 Mar 1996 15:01:35 -0500

Benjamin Maas has written:

>I am just a students, but in my experiences, it isn't so >much dark or
bright, but focus. If you have a focused >sound that is in tune, it has a
tendency to cary much >better. For example, my teacher, Mr. Grant (principal
>clarinet of the Rochester Phil) has a rather dark sound, >yet it still
projects. On the flip side, Mitchell Lurie has a >much brighter sound but it
projects too. The common >thread here is a focused sound

I find Ben's comments interesting for reasons other than his purpose in
writing, but I agree with him about the importance of intonation and focus
tone for projection. Being in the Rochester area, I've heard Ken Grant play
many times, with the RPO in large halls and in gymnasiums, as well as in
chamber music in a variety of smaller halls. I like Grant's playing very
much. He blends well with the other woodwinds but can project to the balcony
at any dynamic. My only criticism is visual - too much distracting motion
when he plays!

My point in writing is that I never thought of Grant's tone as "dark". This
is clearly subjective and has been thumped at on Klarinet many times and I
have have nothing else to add to help define it. I just wonder if Ben,
taking lessons from Grant, is used to hearing him up close and forms an
impression of dark or light from that perspective?

I studied for a time with one of Grant's colleagues in the RPO, Stan Gaulke,
who is now retired. He was very well regarded among local clarinetists for
his tone and projection with the RPO.

Gaulke helped me in purchasing my "A" clarinet. When I was trying the
instrument, I felt certain notes were muffled. He said to be concerned about
the intonation, and that the muffled quality I was hearing would not carry.
For my next lesson he set up a demo to help me understand some of these
things.

First, we both played my clarinet, mouthpiece and reed in his office/studio,
so that I could hear that he got the same sort of sound (up close) from my
instrument as I did. Secondly, we went into the auditorium and took turns
playing from the stage and listening from the middle of the seating area. I
could hear none of the muffled sound when he played and he said the same of
my playing in the auditorium.

We then repeated the whole exercise using his clarinet, reed and mouthpiece,
to help me understand that this was not just my instrument. His clarinet had
different anomalies than mine up close, but again, they were not obvious in
the auditorium.

I have no major conclusion to add as a zinger to end this note. I just find
the difference in impressions of "light" and "dark" interesting and thought
it worth while to point out that what you hear when playing and what the
audience hears can be quite different.

Don Yungkurth (DYungkurth@-----.com)