Klarinet Archive - Posting 000197.txt from 2005/02

From: Tony Pay <tony.p@-----.org>
Subj: [kl] Scaramouche again
Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2005 20:39:07 -0500

On 6 Dec, "David Glenn" <davidglenn@-----.net> wrote:

> Tony Pay wrote:
>
> > On 4 Dec, "davidglenn" <davidglenn@-----.de> wrote:
> >
> > > Tony Pay wrote:
> > >
> > > > The story I have is that it was an arrangement, listed as being for
> > > > two pianos, of some of the incidental music Milhaud had written for a
> > > > children's play by Vildrac (after Moliere) called 'Le Medecin
> > > > Volant'. This play was first performed at the Theatre Scaramouche in
> > > > Paris in 1937 -- hence perhaps the title of the piece.
> > > >
> > > > How the saxophone comes into the story I don't know. Might it have
> > > > been a significant part of the original instrumentation (cf La
> > > > Creation du Monde, 1923)? Perhaps someone else has more details.
> > >
> > > Scaramouche was written for Sigurd Rascher in 1939. Here's what I hear
> > > from Carina Rascher: She tells me that her father Sigurd was forced to
> > > emmigrate from Germany in 1939 and for his protection, an obituary was
> > > published. Otherwise, he was afraid the Nazis would chase him down.
> > > Milhaud had written Scaramouche originally for Mr. Rascher as a
> > > saxophone solo with orchestra but upon seeing the obituary, made a new
> > > version for two pianos. It wasn't until 1952 in Aspen, Colorado that
> > > Rascher met Milhaud again where the composer was conducting at a
> > > festival.
> >
> > Whether this is true awaits final corroboration, but it's not what
> > appears in Grove, and at least one other source has it round the other
> > way.
>
> I'll forward this to Carina Rascher and see what she can tell us about it.
>
> David

What happened about this?

Tony
--
_________ Tony Pay
|ony:-) 79 Southmoor Rd tony.p@-----.org
| |ay Oxford OX2 6RE http://classicalplus.gmn.com/artists
tel/fax 01865 553339

... Pretentious? Kawatashi?

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