Klarinet Archive - Posting 000393.txt from 2000/01

From: Roger Shilcock <roger.shilcock@-----.uk>
Subj: RE: [kl] Old Style Clarinets (was Beethoven Symphonies (was: Von
Date: Thu, 13 Jan 2000 04:11:38 -0500

IMTHO, classical clarinets in present-day performances sound much less
unlike their modern counterparts than any of the other instruments. Is
this because the players' physical conformations are more important for
clarinet tone quality? After all, the players all play the modern
instruments as
well, and presumably learned them first.
Roger S.

On Wed, 12 Jan 2000, Kevin Fay (LCA) wrote:

> Date: Wed, 12 Jan 2000 09:48:32 -0800
> From: "Kevin Fay (LCA)" <kevinfay@-----.com>
> Reply-To: klarinet@-----.org
> To: "'klarinet@-----.org>
> Subject: RE: [kl] Old Style Clarinets (was Beethoven Symphonies (was: Von
> Karajan/Berlin Philharmonic...)
>
> David B. Niethamer noted re Beethoven 4:
>
> <<<<You might want to give the Academy of Ancient Music/Hogwood recordings a
> listen. They're played by forces similar to what Beethoven would have used,
> and IIRC are based on the newly edited version of the Beethoven symphonies -
> the one with all the i's dotted and t's crossed by eminent musicologists
> ;-) Anyway, the playing is very nice, on period instruments - I think Tony
> Pay plays on some (all?) of them - too lazy to
> go hunt them up and look. Gives one a new view of old chestnuts.>>>>
>
> This has the makings of an interesting new string.
>
> I can understand the desire to cut down your late-romantic sized orchestra
> to play Beethoven. I even get playing the string parts on gut-stringed
> instruments; they do indeed sound different. I don't get playing the wind
> parts on the old horns, though.
>
> Now, don't get me wrong -- I get why Charlie Neidich, Tony Pay et. al. use
> the old horns -- it's the same set of reasons that the vile-ins use their
> older setup. Historical accuracy, correct sound, all of that. When *I*
> play Beethoven 4, though, *I* need every one of the little keys on my horn
> -- I need all the help I can get! (If I could get a mouthpiece with a
> little electric motor to help the articulation, I'd buy that too!)
>
> I've played a couple of William McColl's old, old horns when I studied from
> him in college. Not a great deal -- just enough to get the impression that
> it's pretty darn hard. I'd be interested to hear from those that play the
> historical instruments on a regular basis their thoughts on a few
> questions:
>
> -- obviously, the fingering is quite different -- lots of cross-fingering
> etc. There's also a difference in tone quality. Is that primarily due to
> the change in instrument, or a conscious decision to blow differently? How
> does one know what tone to aim for?
>
> -- what changes in embouchure are used, if any?
>
> -- do you find it difficult to "switch back" to modern instruments, or is
> it like doubling on saxophone (which I find to cause few or no problems)?
>
> -- do the limitations of the instrument lead to any insights on the pieces
> themselves? Said another way, do some of the quirks of key selection that
> seem random to today's players "make sense" given the old horns?
>
> -- finally, how on Earth do the bassoonists survive with no/fewer keys?
>
> kjf
>
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