Klarinet Archive - Posting 000348.txt from 2000/05

From: LeliaLoban@-----.com
Subj: [kl] Michael Lowenstern (was: [kl] Hi)
Date: Sat, 6 May 2000 13:41:02 -0400

Benjamin Maas wrote,
>If you want an amazing bass clarinet CD that shows exactly what the
>instrument is capable of doing, get Michael Lowenstern's CD titled "Spasm."
>I think it is on the New World Records Label... You *will* be amazed.

Yes, it's New World Records 80468-2. I agree that it's a phenomenal CD, but
the liner notes make clear that it's an astonishing feat by Lowenstern the
recording engineer, along with the other four recording engineers, as much as
by Lowenstern the bass clarinet player. I don't mean to take anything away
from Lowenstern's playing, which is superb and goes way beyond typical bass
clarinet technique. He explores the possibilities of sounds the instrument
can make, instead of sticking with the mundane. However, this is a very
heavily engineered recording of bass clarinet sounds layered onto many tracks
and manipulated electronically. I think the CD is well worth buying, just
for the gosh-wow factor, but IMHO, clarinet students in typical home or
school practice environments (without the studio resources) will find only
limited *practical* inspiration about bass clarinet playing from what
Lowenstern does here.

All of the music is contemporary. According to the liner notes, "Six of the
ten works on this recording were produced by composers associated with the
State University of New York at Stony Brook...." The only standard on the
CD, Gershwin's "Summertime," gets thoroughly Lowensternified. A lot of this
CD is music to climb the walls by: frantic, howling, screeching, thumping,
popping. The title, "Spasm," says it all. I find that I'm not in a
wall-climbing mood (or willing to be put into a wall-climbing mood) often
enough to listen to this CD very frequently.

Several months ago, I liked this recording better than I do now. Now that
I'm no longer goggle-eyed with amazement at the technical feats, the music
hasn't worn well for me, especially the final track, "But Would She Remember
You?" Composed by Lowenstern, it features, "the taped voices of five men
discussing important women in their lives, accompanied by bass clarinet and
electronic tape with manipulated bass clarinet sounds." Heard once, it's
interesting (if somewhat pretentious) performance art. Heard the second
time, it's irritating. The third time, it's unbearable. Although I'm sorry
to criticise something created with such evidently sincere intent, I now stop
the CD before it goes there. Other people may react differently.

Lelia
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Willow: Do you guys have a gig tonight?
Oz: Practice. The band's kind of moving toward this new sound where we
suck. So, practice.
-- Episode "Surprise" on "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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