Klarinet Archive - Posting 000543.txt from 2003/09

From: ormondtoby@-----.net (Ormondtoby Montoya)
Subj: Re: [kl] 20 oboes + 10 bassoons (was: Is Paris Burning?)
Date: Thu, 18 Sep 2003 14:46:41 -0400

....with a grain of salt.....

In my desire to find a recording, it was interesting to see how greatly
the various 'authoritative histories' differ from each other. Most of
them talk about the original performance being "hundreds of woodwinds
without strings", but some of them say that it was King George (not
Handel) who wanted woodwinds only. Since King George was paying the
bills, he received the hundreds of woodwinds alone for the first
performance, but thereafter, Handel rewrote it to include strings.

Heh! Considering how some people gripe about substituting a clarinet
in Bb for one in C, can you imagine if your sponsor says "Get rid of the
strings! I want at least 200 oboes, bassoons, and other horns!" ???

Similarly, the various 'authoritative histories' don't agree on what
burned down or how the fire started. Most of them agree, however, that
the performance with the largest audience was given the day before King
George showed up for his ceremony (while the stage or pavilion or
scaffolding, or whatever it was that burned, was still standing).

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