Klarinet Archive - Posting 000667.txt from 1997/02

From: Scott Lipcon <slipcon@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Challenging Bass Clarinet Parts
Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 12:36:45 -0500

On Tue, 18 Feb 1997, Don Gross wrote:

> challenging, but so are the contrabass clarinet parts. One recent example
> that comes to mind is Vaclav Nelhybel's "Prelude and Fugue" which the
> Caltech/Occidental College (California) Concert Band just performed last
> Friday night. I saw more than just a few beads of perspiration from the two

I've never heard that one, but about a year ago I played Nelhybel's
Chorale and Danza with a clarinet choir at the UMass Lowell Clarinet
festival. My high school band director suggested to a friend and I that
we go, and he mentioned that he thought anyone could join this choir. So,
we arrive and go to the rehearsal and ask if we can play. I think they
were a little amused, but agreed to let us sit in and play the 3rd part.
It turns out that the rest of the choir was made up up of professional
musicians and teachers, and had had the music for 3 weeks. My friend and
I sight read the music in the rehearsal, spent our lunch hour practising
it, and managed to perform it half decently that afternoon. It was quite
an experience, but I'm way off topic - the point was that the bass and
contrabass parts were absolutely as challenging as the soprano parts.
I've never heard bass and contrabass clarinets play so lightly and quickly
(16th notes, the part is marked "Allegretto", I think we played it around
140, but I don't remember)

Scott