Klarinet Archive - Posting 000624.txt from 2003/06

From: "Brash, Alexander" <BrashA@-----.org>
Subj: RE: [kl] Vibrato on the Clarinet
Date: Fri, 20 Jun 2003 12:54:10 -0400

Oh, one more thing, about your "playing tradition being a different
instrument." What a load of crap. How arrogant and self important can =
you
be? Wait, you know what, you said we're good at renaming things over =
here,
freedom horn etc...so let's have a name contest for the "German playing
tradition." Though I think we already have a word for it: bad.=20

Alexander Michael Brash
Education Dept, New York Philharmonic
10 Lincoln Center Plaza, 5th Floor
=20
phone (212) 875 - 5735
cell (646) 284 - 0439
email brasha@-----.org
=20
=20

-----Original Message-----
From: Brash, Alexander [mailto:BrashA@-----.org]=20
Subject: RE: [kl] Vibrato on the Clarinet

We handle the problem like this: playing in an AMERICAN "tradition." As
Stravinsky said in his Charles Eliot Norton lectures at Harvard:

'A real tradition is not the relic of a past irretrievably gone; it is =
a
living force that animates and informs the present. (...) Far from =
implying
the repetition of what has been, tradition presupposes the reality of =
what
endures. (...) Tradition ensures the continuity of creation. (...) A =
renewal
is fruitful only when it goes hand in hand with tradition.'=20

I think this quote outlines very well (among other things) the spirit =
of the
American clarinet. We take established schools and traditions and let =
them
inform us as we continuously evolve. This is why the principal players =
in
our orchestras are not deadly boring musicians, ie Leister. And =
speaking of
"relics of the past irretrievably gone"...ummm where are the women in =
your
orchestras? I know they're trickling in, but I wonder how female German
clarinetists feel about the male dominated German school. Oh wait! I =
know
what they do! They become soloists instead and then come over here and =
play!

You wrote:
Seriously, I think we are missing something, historically speaking. =
Over
here it would be totally unthinkable to use vibrato (at least in
Austro/German chamber music) and I must say that it DOES sound FAR =
better
than the less restrictive performance practice...

Please prove to me it sounds far better. See Mr. Cohler's article for =
some
discussion of his own experiments with non musicians, and asking them =
which
tone quality they prefer. Let me see something similar from you.

By the way, I can think of several great places to shove my freedom =
horn.

Alexander Michael Brash
Education Dept, New York Philharmonic
10 Lincoln Center Plaza, 5th Floor
=20
phone (212) 875 - 5735
cell (646) 284 - 0439
email brasha@-----.org
=20
=20

-----Original Message-----
From: ferengiz=E2de dani=EAl shawqy [mailto:rab@-----.de]=20
Subject: Re: [kl] Vibrato on the Clarinet

No!
Clarinet and vibrato! How could a civilized Conductor tolerate such a =
gross
abuse of the noblest of all wind instruments? I think in Germany you'd =
get
lynched if you'd dare to try even the most subtle vibrato.
Yet,
the great Muehlfeld (for whom Brahms wrote his late parts) was reported =
to
have played with more vibrato than the cellist of the Joachim =
quartet....

Seriously, I think we are missing something, historically speaking. =
Over
here it would be totally unthinkable to use vibrato (at least in
Austro/German chamber music) and I must say that it DOES sound FAR =
better
than the less restrictive performance practice... maybe one day we'll =
have
to acknowledge that the modern Austrogerman Clarinet and it's playing
tradition is in fact a different instrument and should be given a =
different
name or rather the French/Italian instrument should be called "claroe",
"clarott", "claroon" "clareek" or something like that...
BTW, may I ask how US players handle the problem of playing an =
instrument
that is either French or German in tradition (i.e. evil in any case) -- =
Did
you have to rename it "freedom horn" or did someone come up with a new
"redneck"-system?
Regards,
danyel

----- Original Message -----
From: Deidre Calarco
Subject: Re: [kl] Vibrato on the Clarinet

On 6/18/03 1:48 PM, "Jimmy Lee" <jrlaudio@-----.net> wrote:

> a conductor that does not want clarinets to use vibrator is a
> loser

ROFL

I agree. It's none of the conductor's business if the clarinetists =
like to
use vibrators. That's personal!

(back to lurking)

-Deidre

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