Klarinet Archive - Posting 000555.txt from 2006/03

From: Roger Hewitt <rogerclarinet@-----.uk>
Subj: RE: [kl] Let's get real (was Transposed Parts)
Date: Sun, 26 Mar 2006 18:38:16 -0500

Well, Dan, I stand corrected - I suppose I guessed that such a definite
and positive assertion would be proved wrong, so thanks for that. I
have played for over 20 years in concert/military/wind bands and never
seen A parts, so I took a view. I am very pleased to know that there
are precedents for Clarinet in A in the genre. I know that there are
many non-professional (but extremely good amateur) musicians who have
never played anything but bands and so don't own anything but Bb (if
they do it may be Eb or Bass or possibly alto, but not A). They are
missing out on so much!

The percentage is tiny, so my point is not trivial, although not as
strong as I first thought.

I would say one further thing: my first email was dashed off quickly as
I had to go out, so I forgot to make my main point! Which is that
often (definitely not always) a composer does the easy or most usual
thing because of time or practicality reasons and that the tone colour
variations between C/Bb/A are much less important than dynamics, tempi,
legato/staccato, etc., so let's not get too stressed about everything,
unless a totally professional result is the aim.

Someone else pointed to the fact that a C clarinet part is usually for
a period instrument anyway and this will have much more influence on
tone colour than a modern Boehm system "standard" C clarinet. And most
18th century composer would much preferred to use Modern violins,
pianos, valve horns, if only they could have!

Again I duck in anticipations of the missiles.

Thanks again for the authoratative correction - I love learning from
this list.
Roger H

--- dnleeson <dnleeson@-----.net> wrote:

> Roger Hewitt's very much technically incorrect comment is quoted
> below.
>
> See Percy Grainger's Hill Song number 2 which contains parts for
> both clarinets in B-flat and clarinet in A. There are other
> works for band using A clarinets. Because one may not have seen
> such parts does not mean there are none.
>
> Dan Leeson
> DNLeeson@-----.net
>
>
> Quotation from Roger Hewitt's posting:
>
> "Let's get real here - In a concert band, for instance, the A
> clariinet
> is never used - modern composers may want to use it for the
> sound, but
> it just isn't done, so tough."
>
>
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