Klarinet Archive - Posting 000063.txt from 2004/10
From: Haschengeliebter@-----.com
Subj: Re: [kl] Clarinet popularity was: [kl] Re: Another Clarinet Faculty Vacancy
Date: Mon, 4 Oct 2004 13:54:37 -0400
when I started my band director let kids play what they wanted if they had
there own horn...if not...he would say that they "ran out" of what they wanted
if he wanted something else...in the end after people quit because they didn't
want to march and what not we had a lot of flutes and trumpets (5 or more)
...some other odds like an oboe, bassoon, 2 tenors, 2 altos 2 or 3 Tubas, 3 or 4
trombones...he had it evened out a lot compared to some I have seen...so there
are still some out there :) he is still working...our percussion was good too
the instructor was OSUs line leader...the marching band has maybe 5 woodwinds
he hates woodwinds in marching band...and I have to admit I like it better
that way too...oh and about Squidword...he is cool but I don't think he is going
to make anyone play the Clarinet...but ya never know...lol...also I really
hope it doesn't go out all the way...I would not mind not being able to play for
a living but I wouldn't mind teaching...my old school considered it like a
fun class and as if it were not something you could do for the rest of your
life...I knew it was...I am the only clarinet in years that has wanted to go on
to do something with it...
~Krista~
In a message dated 10/4/2004 7:08:42 AM Pacific Standard Time,
amichlin@-----.com writes:
As a popular instrument the clarinet went out of style right around 1945
(May 16th at 2:15PM to be exact. Honest!) You can blame Charlie Parker and
John Coltrane (and, later, rock bands... guitar/bass/drums, oh my!).
As a band instrument, I think it went out of style right around the time
that band directors decided to let kids play anything they wanted. Thus was
born the "band" of 15 saxophones, 15 flutes, 10 drummers (0
percussionists), 5 clarinets, 2 trumpets, and one trombone player. If you
think the clarinet is out of style, try talking to some professional
trombone players!
Note that I don't necessarily advocate forcing kids to play instruments
they aren't interested in, but I do feel that if band directors are relying
simply on their students immediate preference (typically based on what they
have seen on TV... when was the last time you saw a clarinet player on a
broadcast network or MTV?) we're going to have a serious shortage of
educated players in the coming years. I would hazard to propose we already
have such a shortage (although certainly not on this list).
Play the kids some Eddie Daniels, some Robert Marcellus, some Andy Firth,
some <insert your favorite artist here>. The clarinet might just be a bit
more interesting.
Then again, most band directors don't know of these artists. They don't
even play Mozart and Bach for the kids. And we wonder why our symphony
halls are half empty...
-Adam
(Who owes whatever success as a musician he has had to literally stumbling
on a Sony budget recording of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto in the cut out
bins of a pop music store by none other than Robert Marcellus. Little did
Adam understand at the time.)
At 07:34 AM 10/4/2004 -0400, ThomasEpix wrote:
>I don't know that clarinet is going "out" per se - I think it's more that
>with the evolution of "Kenny G" and all those lite sax players, sax is
>"cool" and more kids want to play it, that's all. I think they see it on TV
>a lot more than they do clarinet, and that's another reason.
>
>The shame of it is, you really don't need more than 4-5 sax players in your
>high school band (one on a part, an extra for jazz band) because they play
>louder than the whole band....let alone the clarinet section........
Adam Michlin wrote:
> when was the last time you saw a clarinet
> player on a broadcast network or MTV?)
Squidward in youngsters' cartoons, and Monk with Willie Nelson. :-)
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