Klarinet Archive - Posting 000137.txt from 1998/07

From: avrahm galper <agalper@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] MOZART AND VIBRATO
Date: Mon, 6 Jul 1998 22:00:11 -0400

These are the word of Carl Czerny, a pupil of Beethoven:
"Then he (Beethoven) went through the practice pieces in Emanuel
Bach's treatise with me, making me particularly aware of the Legato, of
which he such unrivalled command, and which all other pianists of that
time considered unfeasible at the pianoforte;

Choppy and smartly detached playing was still in favor then ( as it had
been in Mozart's time)

Beethoven told me in later years that he had heard Mozart play several
times. Since the pianoforte was in its infancy then, Mozart had acquired
a manner of playing on the spinet, which was more common, that in no way
suited the pianoforte.

Later I met several people who had studied with Mozart, and I found that
their style of playing confirmed Beethoven's remarks".

Does anyone play in the style of Mozart so described in these words?

But Pianists play and try to do their best according to the later taste.
No one plays Mozart choppy these days.
Beethoven loved one of Mozart's concertos, the one in D minor. Even
wrote a cadenza which is real Beethoven in style.

A lot different from the Mozart piano renditions by Chick Corea with
his cadenzas.

What I'm trying to bring out is: play the concerto well,smoothly, with
good taste.
If vibrato adds something, then add it. But don't think that vibrato
will make it sound better.

Good taste should be the motto and, of course, clean playing.

I remember the first time I heard the Mozart concerto on a record was
with Kell. I liked it, although he had some touches of vibrato to
enhance the feeling. His subsequent recordings of this, done in the USA
were not as good as the first one. The vibrato was already too
pronounced.

--
Avrahm Galper
THE UPBEAT BAERMANN MELODIC SCALES AND ARPEGGIOS
http://www.sneezy.org/avrahm_galper/index.html

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