Klarinet Archive - Posting 000229.txt from 2004/12

From: "Don Hatfield" <dhatfield@-----.org>
Subj: Re: [kl] Re: humidity
Date: Tue, 14 Dec 2004 11:03:27 -0500

Hi, Patricia -

> 1. FWIW, Vandoren, about 10 years ago, made a reed holder that held a
> desiccant inside of it (made of charcoal of some sort). It held four
> reeds. I don't know if they still make it.

They DO still make these, and I was pleased the couple of times I used them.
I still have a couple for sax and may buy some desiccant to use them again.

> 2. Do you know, Don, anyone, what recordings Al Ascersion has made?
> I'd be interested to hear him some time. He was quite a legend in the
> U.S. Navy music program (for good reason, if every thing told is true)

I can't find any info about recordings by AL. A shame if there isn't
something out there he has recorded. I'm a little out of the loop on service
bands like I once was, but I remember several years ago that any recordings
I found by service bands were on private/independent labels and those may be
hard to locate now. I have a few from my college days because our wind band
made a half-dozen recordings for Bob Hoe's "Heritage of the March" series,.
Some of the smaller service groups recorded for Bob, I have the Naval
Academy on a couple of albums.

The times I heard Al, he was an incredible performer. I know that the
double-tonguing and cyclic breathing can be shticks in the hands of some
performers, but Al was very tasteful in his use of them. He put on quite a
lecture/demonstration here during his first visit for a master class at my
college with a couple hundred people attending, and did probably the best
job of working as a guest conductor/artist with our local high school
All-County group the following spring I have seen in forty years.

I'll ask around about recordings, and be sure to post anything I may find.
If they recorded the All-County group that year, I'll try to locate it by
asking around, because he did the Tchaikovsky that trip.

Don Hatfield

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