Klarinet Archive - Posting 000455.txt from 2003/12

From: "Lelia Loban" <lelialoban@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] C-Clarinet Alert
Date: Tue, 23 Dec 2003 23:23:57 -0500

Re. conductors asking clarinet players not to use the clarinet in C, even
when the composer specifically calls for it, Dan Leeson wrote,
>Tony, many years ago when I was living in New Jersey,
>I got called to play 2nd clarinet on a strange gig. A woman
>named Charlotte Bergen, fabulously wealthy, had hired an
>orchestra to rehearse the Beethoven Missa Solemnis.

[Snip of delightful anecdote about La Bergen convincing Dan to use only the
clarinets Beethoven *didn't* want, throughout.]

>It certainly does no good to argue the matter, particularly with
>a conductor since they don't know anything anyway. I certainly
>did not intend to get fired from the gig (which payed double scale)
>because of the C clarinet. Do you think that Miss Bergen was
>prepared to understand any of the historical, musicological, and
>theoretical arguments involved? She was still trying to learn how
>to beat three without falling on her ass.

Shades of Florence Foster Jenkins! The men may have been wetting themselves
with glee, but I'll bet the women in the orchestra wanted to stomp that
silly broad into cork grease, as the dubious reputation of American female
conductors took another big fat whack!
<;-)

Lelia Loban
E-mail: lelialoban@-----.net
http://members.sibeliusmusic.com/LeliaLoban

P. S. I'm making my stupid pet human type this. Hoo-hah, Loban, speaking
of silly broads, you should see yourself marching around the room and
"conducting" that garbage you write for the computer to pretend to play! I
thought there was nothing worse than a real screech-stick until I heard a
MIDI screech-stick. And the only thing a screecher in C is good for is
torturing your cat. Your *hungry* cat. Hint, hint.

All right, I know we don't celebrate Christmas here, but why don't we trade
Winter Solstice presents? I'll give you a nice dead mouse and you can give
me some Clarinet Repellant. Do they sell *that* at Foxes?

Ssst!
Shadow Cat

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