Klarinet Archive - Posting 000160.txt from 2002/09

From: Bear Woodson <bearwoodson@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] a few facts that you didn't know
Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 20:53:48 -0400

Hello, Klarinet List.

I find the angry responses of some of you to be
a mystery. I wonder if you would still feel this way,
if you knew all the facts.

The Soloists who arranged our September 6,
2002, Concert, began the planning in March 2002.
They knew that I have already written many Contra-
puntal Works that respected Composers, Soloists,
and Professors of Late 20th Century Music Theory
and Counterpoint have all said will go down in
history. I've had my works performed and/ or
studied in conservatories in the US (Peabody),
China, Spain, Estonia, Germany, etc.

Proof of this fact is that normally, a person has
to be a college professor for 30 years, die, and then
10 years later, someone finally mentions their name
in a Dissertation. I have never taught one day as a
college professor, and never will. And yet there has
already been an entire Dissertation written on just
4 of my works for Horn. How do you explain that
my music got past a 6-professor Doctoral Com-
mittee, who were looking to tear my music apart, if
it were mediocre?

http://catalog.lib.asu.edu/search/a?SEARCH=McGale

For the last 5 years I have been in failing health
from Diabetes. As of March 2002, the doctors only
expected me to live another few years, because of
having had 30 Diabetic Black-Outs in 4 years. I'm
waiting to go on Full Disability. Likewise, one of
the Soloists for our concert, is also battling a serious
illness.

The point here being, if I die tonight, my place
in history among music scholars is guaranteed. That
Soloist has also earned a number of honors. There-
fore the Soloists of our September 6, 2002, Concert
asked me in March 2002, to write something that the
News Media would NOT likely ignore, because by
September 11, 2002, there would be MANY similar
concerts across the world.

The whole idea of having me write TWO Double
Fugues for the 9-11 Victims, was not only show our
patriotism, but to launch the careers of the Other
Soloists and Musicians on our concert, who will
out-live the two of us for many years! This was to
be our gift to them. The fact that a few of you can
slam this seems very wrong to me, but then maybe
you only did this, because you didn't have all the
facts.

Again, if the News Media had just said they won't
cover a "Classical Music" concert, that would have
at least have been honest. But I got Solid Promises
from Several Newsmen, but NONE showed up. It is
being LIED TO that I find to be offensive! Since the
performances by the Choirs involved Copyrighted
works, their performances can NOT be legally be
sold! The only things that CAN be sold, are my 5
works, to help promote our Soloists. Why should
that offend anyone?

We've done several Internet Searches, and have
contacted several Counterpoint Professors. All of
them have agreed, they can find NO other pre-
cedent in US or European History, where TWO
Double Fugues were written to commemorate any
historic event.

For those of you who feel that I am exaggerating
or lying, I'd imagine that many people on the Klarinet
List would love for you to set the record straight, by
showing us the tons of Double Fugues written for
the 9-11 Concert. If that's too hard, show us all the
Double Fugues written in the last 10 years, or even
100. Or why not show us all the Double Fugues
that You have written? If you can judge, you should
be able to teach and do, right?

Be careful about being judgmental. If you don't
know all the facts, or don't have the expertise, you
will not look too believable to others.

Meanwhile I'm having fun working on the Third
Movement of my "Sonata No. 1 for (Bb) Clarinet
and Piano". Bartok learned his style from the Ethnic
people throughout Eastern Europe. So to honor the
Dedicatee, Professor Joze Kotar of Slovenia, I am
making the Scherzo-Trio-Scherzo Form to honor
Kotar - Benny Goodman - Kotar, in the styles of
(Semi-Ethnic-Slovenian) Bartok - Swing - Bartok.
It uses Changing Meters in the Bartoky Sections.
Then I have to write the Triple Fugue 4th Move-
ment, for which I sketched the 3 Fugue Subjects
a few months ago.

I gotta get back to work.

Bear Woodson
Composer in Tucson, Arizona, USA
"Bear Woodson" <bearwoodson@-----.net>

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