Klarinet Archive - Posting 000023.txt from 1997/08

From: rteitelbaum@-----.com (Rob Teitelbaum)
Subj: RE: Copland Concerto
Date: Fri, 1 Aug 1997 23:16:20 -0400

>I have already checked the archives of Klarinet, and gotten a lot of
>useful information, but I have noticed many new members on Klarinet
>lately, so if anyone has anything at all to say about the piece I would
>love to hear it!!

If you've checked the Klarinet archives, Craig, then you know that there
have been many insightful postings on the Copland. I would only add that
my favorite part of the piece has always been the section starting at
measure 296, marked "With humor, relaxed". Not only is it very playful
and pleasant, but it's the one part of the whole concerto that makes me
feel as though it really were a work of symphonic jazz. (Of course, the
Copland is much more than that and can't really be categorized as
classical, jazz, Latin, or anything else, which is part of its genius.)

The problem with this charming section is that most of the performers
I've heard haven't made me feel the "humor" and "relaxation" Copland asks
for. Shifrin does it best, I think, but some clarinetists (Benny Goodman
in particular) turn the passage into a "rikki-tikki" (is there an
accepted spelling of this term?) abomination that sounds more like a
method book exercise than a masterpiece.

Anyway, the Copland is a favorite of mine, and I hope you enjoy playing
it. Best of luck, especially on the very difficult slow section!

Rob Teitelbaum
rteitelbaum@-----.com