Klarinet Archive - Posting 000280.txt from 1998/08

From: Dodgshun family <dodgshun@-----.nz>
Subj: Re: [kl] Orchestral bass clarinet excerpts
Date: Fri, 7 Aug 1998 21:56:42 -0400

At 01:59 AM 7/08/98 -0500, you wrote:
> Hello all. I've been given the opportunity to audition for my
>University's top orchestra on bass clarinet (it's only open to music
>majors, but due to instrumentation problems I can enroll despite my
>status as an electrical engineering major). However, the orchestra
director did
>not anticipate having a dedicated bass clarinetist audition for his
>group. Consequently, I have to prepare four orchestral excerpts of my
>choice to audition with. I've played a good amount of orchestral bass (my
>focus is jazz) and basinet (bassoon parts), but I've never run across any
>major bass solos, etc. Truthfully, the only excerpts that come to mind
>are from Copland's El Salon Mexico and Strauss' Death and
>Transfiguration. I'd appreciate any suggestions as to what to play. I
>want to make a good impression because this will be my first taste of
>university-level playing.
>

Khachaturian piano concerto, 2nd movement, has some wonderful bass solos -
you need a bottom C for one of them, though. Maybe the Sibelius Swan of
Tuonela, Nutcracker excerpts, Rhapsody in Blue (if you're a jazz player,
you'll appreciate some bits of this! Goes pretty high in places), Dvorak
Noon Witch (has a great bass clarinet/bassoon unison solo - but it's b-cl in
A). There's also some good stuff in Elgar's Dream of Gerontius (sp?). If
you can get hold of it (which I doubt), there's a NZ work by Anthony Ritchie
called "Boum". It's a symphony based on the book "Passage to India" - the
echo of the Malabar Caves is the starting point. Great work, with some
wonderful bass parts. But I would doubt you'll ever find a copy of it.

Hope this helps,
Anna

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