Klarinet Archive - Posting 000620.txt from 1997/10

From: Richard Lahrson <tripspud@-----.net>
Subj: Technique
Date: Wed, 15 Oct 1997 02:11:25 -0400

I'll quote something from "The Art of Clarinet Playing" by Keith
Stein about phrase driving:
"Players too often place a continual blind stress upon primary
downbeats and their secondary or half-beats, causing the intervening
music within these stress points to become sterile, mechanical, cut
up and rhythmically uneven. Tones which fall on these stressed moments
naturally should receive more attention, but the notes on either side
will be decidedly weaker unless special provision is made to counter-
act the overbalancing influence. As often as not, important notes
within a phrase do NOT occur on beat points. A continual accenting of
the beat obscures the real stress points (consistent with the phrasing),
and consequently the musical meaning is distorted. Ability to provide
for and to produce equality or evenness of intensity on any desired
tone as well as to control the intensity gradations of any sound are
vital. It is important at first to be able to control tones evenly,
regarding beat points as guide posts rather than accent spots. Later,
stressing and shading can be inserted where the phrasing demands them."
A comparison to reading poetry is apt here. Most people who
can read can get the words right. The person who can drive the
phrase correctly understands the meaning of the poem and can translate
his understanding to the listener.
Rich Lahrson
tripspud@-----.net