Klarinet Archive - Posting 000333.txt from 1996/07

From: thehat@-----.ORG
Subj: Marcellus
Date: Wed, 17 Jul 1996 02:36:06 -0400

In a message dated 07-16-96 INTERNET: BAKERG01=TIGGER wrote to ** ALL **:
IB> Anyway, enough tooting my own horn (no pun intended). I wonder if
IB> anyone knows, in light of Robert Marcellus's recent passing, if the
IB> Cleveland Orchestra is planning to release any of Marcellus's other
IB> solo or enesmble performances with the orchestra. Kent Nygren's
IB> interview from a few years ago mentions the Copland concerto,
IB> Schubert octet, and the Shepherd on the Rock, among others.

IB> Also, if anyone knows of any recordings from late in RM's career that
IB> have not been mentioned, please post them. So far, I know only of the
IB> Romeo and Juliet under Pierre Boulez, and a Sibelius 4/En Saga that
IB> was on the list last weekend.

The Schubert Octet broadcast (with a small string section) should certainly
be a candidate for a future release from the Cleveland Orchestra. I have a
tape of it somewhere (unless someone "borrowed" it) and it is wonderful
playing all around. The Shepherd was a live performance during a "Radiothon"
fundraiser with Benita Valente and Erich Leinsdorf. I doubt that will ever be
released but there are many people who have copies. There is also a broadcast
tape of the Debussy which was rebroadcast a few years back, much to RM's
displeasure. He hated that broadcast, for good reason.

As for the Copland, it was done in the late 50s. The Cleveland Orchestra
didn't have regular broadcasts until 1965. Some live recordings were made
before this, obviously, but many, if not most concerts were not recorded. The
Copland was, according to the old man, recorded on some kind of experimental
machine. The recording and its owner then vanished, and as far as anyone
knows, there is no extant copy. Marcellus certainly didn't have a copy.
That's all he ever told me about the Copland.

Several Post-1965 live tapes have been reissued by the CO as part of its 75th
anniversary package. THe set isn't cheap, but it allows you to hear Marcellus
in several things he didn't do commercially, including Siegfried Idyll and Le
Tombeau. In addition, you get to hear Bonade play Scheherezhade and
Shostakovich 1 (from commercial recordings).

By the way, the interviewer to whom you refer is DENNIS Nygren. Also, the
Romeo on London/Decca is with Maazel, not Boulez.

As far as "late" recordings, which feature RM in a more mellow sound
generally than the earliest recordings, try to check the dates on the
recordings. Since the only recording he made with Maazel is the Romeo, we're
pretty much talking about Szell recordings. The few he made with Boulez are
>from this late period you speak of.

If you have specific questions on who plays what on which recordings, or when
they were made, just upload them to the list and I'll answer your questions.
I know most of this stuff, as a long time record collector. This extends
beyond Cleveland Orchestra stuff, btw, for anyone who is wondering whom they
are hearing on some old record. Recordings are important, they are our only
connection to so many great players! Happy listening.

David Hattner
clarinetist-at-large, NYC
-> Alice4Mac 2.4.4 E QWK Eval:04Feb96
Origin: hat's nut house