Klarinet Archive - Posting 000332.txt from 2000/10

From: Daniel Leeson <leeson0@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] All keys are not the same
Date: Sat, 7 Oct 2000 12:27:00 -0400

Bill, despite your request, I can't elaborate on this interesting
anecdote for two reasons: (1) I don't understand some of it, and (2) I
am in disagreement with that part of it which I do understand.

It seems to me that you characterize one clarinet type as having the
ability to play more "sweetly" than another. I think you may mean that
you prefer one over the other (which is perfectly fine with me) but I
cannot even comprehend what you mean by "sweet," a word used to describe
the activity of a different and quite unrelated sense organ.

Further, allowing that you have the absolute right to prefer one
clarinet over the other, I disagree completely with your expressed
notion that one clarinet is selected over the other by a comoposer
because of the character of its sound, no matter by what words you chose
to describe that sound ("sweet" for example).

There are probably thought to many reasons why a composer will select a
clarinet of one pitch over another, but what would allow you to conclude
that underlying all of these reasons is the issue of overall
pleasantness of sound character of one such instrument over the other,
and that this sound character is based on key selection, or (as you
suggested) major/minor mode usage?

And so that I am not accused of wickedness, this is not a flame. This
is a technical discussion.

William Wright wrote:
>
> I attended a musical theater production last weekend, and a
> clarinet solo sounded particularly sweet to me. So I commented to my
> instructor that the clarinetist must have been playing an A clarinet.
> To make a long conversation short, she replied, "No, it was a Bb
> clarinet. But it was playing in the key of <I've forgotten now>, which
> sounds much sweeter than some of the other keys."
> I said, "Because it was a major key, you mean? I think I'd
> recognize the difference between major and minor...."
> "No, there's more difference between keys than just the starting
> pitch. Some major keys sound *much* sweeter others. I can't give you a
> technical explanation, but it's true."
>
> Would anyone care to elaborate on this?
>
> Thank you,
> Bill
>
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--
***************************
** Dan Leeson **
** leeson0@-----.net **
***************************

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