Klarinet Archive - Posting 000048.txt from 2008/12

From: "Dan Leeson" <dnleeson@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] Some tantalizing or sickening
Date: Mon, 15 Dec 2008 21:35:12 -0500

The English publishing firm of Edition HH, has a few interesting pieces.
(That's not true. They have a lot of interesting pieces) However one of
them comes with the following description.

"The two most tantalizing losses for classical clarinettists are the
autograph scores of Mozart's Concerto and Quintet, both supposedly lent by
the composer to his friend Anton Stadler and subsequently lost. All
surviving sources for clarinet misrepresent these pieces by adapting the
solo part to the smaller ranger of the modern clarinet (Stadler's instrument
had a basset extension to low C).

"One advantage of an adaptation of such works where the piano takes over the
majority of the clarinet part is that there is no restriction on range, and
in the present transcriptions we can detect possible remnants of the
original basset version. This arrangement by Christian Friedrich Gottlieb
Schwencke also serve to enhance a side of chamber music that Mozart himself
neglected, and offer players an additional piano quintet to add to their
repertoire; in addition it proves a valuable source of new readings and
interpretative suggestions for clarinet players performing the "original"
versions."

The form of the work that is for sale (at £28) is described only as a piano
quintet, which is not clear without some additional description, but it
appears that one has to buy the work to find out what the instrumentation.
But a piano quintet, generally means a piano and a string quartet. But it
could also mean a piano and some other miscellaneous instruments.

The remark about the present transcription can show us some possible
remnants of the original basset version. Now that might be worth listening
to.

The editor is Christopher Hogwood.

Dan Leeson

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