Klarinet Archive - Posting 000426.txt from 2004/02

From: "Forest Aten" <forestaten@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] Bravo Dan, Keith and Forest!
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 23:50:31 -0500

Monday night, Dan Leeson, Forest Aten, and Keith Bowen played an excellent
recital at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (with the help of some local
UNLV-based musicians).
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Ben...

What a treat to be traveling and playing clarinet ....on the road for two
weeks. Keith Bowen and Dan Leeson had kindly invited me to participate in
the Mozart recitals at both St. John's University and at UNLV.

I started the first week by traveling to Santa Fe, NM. This to participate
in the Kammermusik Workshop (directed by Keith Bowen). The winter workshop
was a very ambitious effort. The players worked very hard for three days on
the Strauss Serenade #2, The Happy Workshop under the direction of Jerry
Fried. The final concert went extremely well. For more information on the
Kammermusik Chamber Music programs...see: www.kammermusikworkshops.org
The workshops are wonderful chamber music opportunities for adult amateur
performers. Patrick Berry founded Kammermusik and Keith Bowen is determined
to keep it flourishing! The real stars are the players!

I had several days off before the basset horn and Mozart recital at St.
John's University (in Santa Fe). I had the opportunity to play duets with
Keith and Marvin Belveal on these days off and spent a lovely evening
playing chamber music and coaching a little at one of the participants homes
just outside of Santa Fe. The chamber music community in Santa Fe is alive
and well! Thanks to Debbie Poulan and her husband Andy for a wonderful
evening....and Keith for a fantastic dinner. Santa Fe is still a fun place
to be. The town has grown considerably since I was there in
1980....performing the Peter Maxwell Davies ballet, Salome. It was a very
nice to meet the charming wife of Marvin Belveal, Virginia Benade.
Virginia's first husband, Arthur Benade, was the great music acoustician
from Case Western University. After talking to Virginia during the course of
a week...I'll assure you that I have a lot of history to catch up on.
Homework....

The Mozart works performed at St. John's and at UNLV were a very fun mix. We
used Kammermusik players to fill out the ensembles at St. John's and
students to complete the ensembles at UNLV. All of the performers did a
fantastic job and what fun we had! Dan Leeson is a force. The music Dan
selected for this concert could be divided into four general sections....
1 clarinet/basset horn ensembles (a treat to play and listen to)
2 voice and clarinet/basset horn ensembles (Dan...."kind of like the story
lines in country western songs")
3 fragments (Dan liked to call this section the "heartbreak" section)
4 and completions (an original work and then three modern efforts, by noted
composers, at completion, with discussion)

At UNLV, the recital added Keith Bowen performing the basset horn obbligato
with a piano/voice reduction of the great La Clemenza di Tito aria, "non piu
di fiori". The student soprano and the piano accompanist did a wonderful
job...as did the student clarinetists and bassoonist. (full names soon to
come)

www.unlv.edu/news_bureau/news_releases/2004/jan04/jv125.html

The afternoon before the concert.....Dan, Keith and I spent an hour with
students and professors in what they called a repertory class. We played our
basset horns and answered any questions (that we knew the answers to). A few
brave souls gave Dan's and Keith's basset horn a test play. My poor old
Selmer didn't get much attention.

I had a great time and look forward to participating again with the
Kammermusik players. Dan, Keith and I are going to try to find funding for
this Mozart recital in the Dallas area. (and anywhere else that has interest
and funding) What a treat. It was great to meet several of the members of
the list at the UNLV recital!!! Many thanks to everyone involved. I had fun!

Forest Aten
Clarinet/bass clarinet
Dallas Opera
www.dallasopera.org

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