Klarinet Archive - Posting 001260.txt from 2003/04

From: "Keith" <100012.1302@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] My short Love Affair with the Fox Basset Horn
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 2003 07:32:38 -0400

It was a pleasure to meet you too, Annie. You did sound very good on the
basset horn as well as the clarinet. And thanks for introducing me to
the Galper study books.

Yes I noticed you were worried about the fingers/thumb problem and your
fingers are quite a bit shorter than mine. I'd just make two points.
One, as a custom maker, Steve is very willing to modify keywork to be
suitable for your own hands. Indeed the basset horn layout was somewhat
customised for mine; even so, I may yet get him to alter the layout a
little after I've played it for a while. Second, yes it does take a
while to get used to using the thumb as an active ingredient in playing.
Another very good clarinettist who tried my horn last week complained
"There isn't any intelligence in this thumb!". I also play the bass
clarinet with low C extension so have got used to this, but it doesn't
come in the first hour of playing. There is a dreadful feeling of losing
your anchor as you take the thumb off its secure rest to hit the basset
notes! So though your decision may be right for you, I wouldn't want
others to think that the issues are insurmountable.

I have to admit that I don't run the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival (a
very grand affair indeed), but the Kammermusik Woodwind Workshop
(www.kammermusikwww.org), a music camp for adult amateurs (full up for
clarinets this year, I'm afraid). But yes, we're looking forward to Dan
coming and doing a master class on the Mozart K361, and I can't wait for
the combined dazzle and sound of our Fox basset hounds!

Look forward to doing the Mendelssohn with you. They are wonderful
pieces, and though I have played them on transcriptions for regular
clarinets before, the contrast between the sounds of the clarinet and
basset horn is marvellous.

Keith

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Date: Sun, 27 Apr 2003 20:46:06 -0600 (MDT)
From: AnneLenoir@-----.net (Anne Lenoir)
Subject: My short Love Affair with the Fox Basset Horn
Message-ID: <18954-3EAC95EE-1511@-----.net>

Last night I got an email from one of our list members, Keith Bowen, a
very kind gentleman from the UK, who owns a gorgeous Fox basset horn
just like Dan's. He invited me up to Denver to try out his basset horns
and read through the Mendelssohn Concert Piece for Bb clarinet and
basset horn. I had a wonderful day, and only wish that I had met Keith
much sooner. He will be back to Colorado often, and will attend the
Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival in July, where Dan Leeson will be
teaching.
I was so certain that I would fall passionately in love with the
basset horn. I had no problems at all hitting all of the notes and
playing in tune and with a good tone, even up to high C (altissimo) but
it hurt my right hand very badly, I could not use my right pinkies with
ease, and I do not have the type of intelligence that it takes to move
my right thumb around in so many ways. I'm glad that I found out before
I got too "involved". It was like a very sad and brief love affair that
was over before it ever got started. However, I did enjoy playing the
Mendelssohn with Keith, and I hope that we can find a pianist and
perform it together in the future. He is on his way back to the UK now.
ANNIE

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