Klarinet Archive - Posting 000750.txt from 1996/03

From: "Dan Leeson: LEESON@-----.EDU>
Subj: Symphonic contrabass
Date: Wed, 27 Mar 1996 20:17:27 -0500

I did the first performance of Henry Brant's "The Old Italians Dying"
and it opens up with a contrabass solo that I had to play in the
balcony. The opening tune is "O Solo Mio." This is not a joke.

There is also an extensive part for contrabass in the concerto for
contrabassoon written by the head of the Boston Conservatory. I forget
his name. He was a horn player with the Metropolitan Opera and a
good one too.

The concerto has an extended section for contrabassoon and contrabass
clarinet and when I played it I felt it to be the ugliest piece of
music I had ever performed.

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Dan Leeson, Los Altos, California
(leeson@-----.edu)
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