Klarinet Archive - Posting 000015.txt from 2004/05

From: RichChPlay@-----.com
Subj: RE: [kl] Eb part in Symphonie Fantastique
Date: Sat, 1 May 2004 22:50:19 -0400

on 4/28/04 2:34 PM, Benjamin Maas wrote:

>This is something that has always annoyed me... Conductors that bring in a
>separate person to play that E-flat part. The E-flat is contained in the
>principal part. The last movement of the piece is for E-flat, the first 4
>are for different clarinets- A, B-flat and C. The second part is just A,
>B-flat and C.
>
In most professional orchestras, the Eb player is a contracted position,
so they play all the Eb parts. That means in Symphonie Fantastique that
the principal player plays the first four movements, and the contracted
Eb player plays the last movement from that part. In orchestras like
Richmond, where the position is 2nd/Eb, it simply means that the two
players switch parts for the last movement.

>FWIW, this is the perfect piece to make sure that you have a C clarinet as
>well... The tonal difference of that instrument was chosen for
>orchestrational reasons, not just key signatures (like in earlier classical
>era music). When you hear the solo in the 4th movement played on C or the
>blend of the E-flat and C in the last movement, it makes a HUGE difference
>in the sound of the section. Berlioz was a smart person orchestrationally
>when he wrote this piece.

Amen. The solo at the end of the 4th movement has a lot more of the right
character on C clarinet than it does if you transpose it to Bb clarinet.
On Bb, those two highest notes (C# & D) have entirely the wrong color for
the solo, and are much better on C clarinet.

David

David Niethamer
dnietham@-----.edu
http://members.aol.com/dbnclar1/

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