Klarinet Archive - Posting 000558.txt from 2006/03

From: Adam Michlin <amichlin@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] Let's get real (was Transposed Parts)
Date: Sun, 26 Mar 2006 19:27:31 -0500

Grainger wrote the Hill Song Number 2 in 1907, long before wind band
instrumentation was standardized. Some might say it still isn't
standardized, but it is clear that the A clarinet did not fair well
in large wind band music after Grainger's early contribution. This is
hardly surprising given the community roots of most large wind bands,
"We have to buy *what* for our Fourth of July concert?" There are
plenty of wind chamber ensemble pieces which require A clarinets (the
Stravinsky Octet comes immediately to mind), but I think it is safe
to say that A clarinet parts in large wind bands are rare. As an
example, I'm told that John Paynter's transcription of Debussy's
Orchestral Nocturne "Fetes" uses Bb clarinet throughout, a cruel and
unusual punishment in my mind. The medium sized wind ensemble as
started by Fennell at Eastman in the second half of the 20th century
confuses the issue thoroughly, so let's not go there.

As to what 18th century composers would have preferred, it is just as
possible that they would have preferred the older instruments. We
have clear examples of 19th composers who wrote for antiquated
instruments. Wagner and Brahms wrote for natural horns, for example.
The metal flute wasn't fully accepted until the 20th century and
people are still playing traditional jazz on albert system clarinets
to this day.

We just don't know. We can't know. Most importantly, if we choose to
speculate we have no business doing so in the composer's name.

To wit:

I think K622 played on a baritone saxophone would sound really cool.
- Stupid, but everyone is entitled to their opinion.

vs.

I think, if only a baritone saxophone was available to Mozart, he
would have preferred K622 played on a baritone saxophone. - Stupid,
but more importantly illogical under the premise of:

If A then B

Where A can never be shown to be true.

-Adam

At 06:36 PM 3/26/2006, Roger Hewitt wrote:
>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

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