Klarinet Archive - Posting 000238.txt from 2006/09

From: "dnleeson" <dnleeson@-----.net>
Subj: RE: [kl] Clemenza di Tito obligatto
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2006 13:28:28 -0400

An excellent question Wayne.

The basset clarinet part exists in Mozart's hand in the
autograph. I have seen it. And it goes way down to low C on a
B-flat basset clarinet, though that name did not appear in
Mozart's autograph, only the call for a B-flat clarinet.

But this gave rise to an historic fistfight about that
manuscript. In the late 1800s and early 1900s and all the way up
to 1948, there was absolutely no knowledge of the thing that we
call "The Basset Clarinet." So when clarinetists and scholars
looked at the mansuscript of Titus's Parto! Parto! the universal
agreement was that Mozart had made a mistake about the extreme
lower end of the clarinet. (Choke!! Gag!!! Upchuck!!!!) So
whenever that aria was done, the part was altered from the
original under the supposition that those lowest notes were in
error.

Beginning in 1948 with Dazeley's famous paper on the original
version of the Mozart clarinet concerto, he argued, with no
evidence other than his brain, that the way we were playing the
Mozart concerto was wrong. He stated that the clarinet for which
Mozart wrote the concerto had to have gone lower than
contemporary clarinets. And he gave very good examples from
contemporary editions of K622 that made much more musical sense
with a low C in place.

But his paper was not evidence, just his opinion, and lots of
people said that he was full of hooey. I remember having a
discussion with a musicologist in Tucson along with John Denman.
The three of us were having dinner. And I was battling both the
musicologist and John about the extent of the clarinet in
Mozart's day. I damn near threw a very good enchillada at him,
so hot had the discussion become.

Not until some 10 years ago was there finally found an image of
Stadler's clarinet which absolutely proved the existence of the
instrument. I forget the woman's who found the image in
Lithuania or Latva. She teaches at Oberlin, I think.

On the other hand, the basset horn and its descent to low C was
never in question because instruments of that period existed in
museums, so no one could say that the Mozart basset horn did not
descend to low C.

Best question on the clarinet list in the last year, Wayne!

Dan Leeson
DNLeeson@-----.net

-----Original Message-----
From: Wayne Thompson [mailto:wthompson222@-----.net]
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 9:38 AM
To: klarinet@-----.org
Subject: [kl] Clemenza di Tito obligatto

List,
This discussion prompted me to get out my Cecelia
Bartoli "Mozart Arias" CD. Three arias from Tito are
there, 'Parto, Parto', 'Deh, per questo', and 'Non piu
di fiori'. Peter Schmidl plays the basset clarinet
and basset horn on the two pieces discussed here,
respectively. (Ah, to be able to play music with
Cecilia!) The program notes say that the two
obbligatos were written for Anton Stadler.

All of this leads me to this question. Does the
basset clarinet part exist in Mozart's hand for the
Parto, Parto'? I had thought that existence of
Statler's basset clarinet was not confirmed until the
researches of the 20th century. Is the basset
clarinet part I hear on this recording of 'Parto,
Parto' a reconstruction like that of K. 622? Is the
statement in these program notes, hypothesis?

Wayne Thompson

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