Klarinet Archive - Posting 000288.txt from 2009/01

From: "Lelia Loban" <lelialoban@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] Inauguration clarinet
Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2009 09:03:20 -0500

[Cross-posted on the bulleting board.]
I watched on CNN, where the announcer started jabbering right in the middle
of the music! GRRRR! I'm sorry McGill didn't have a more prominent role in
the music. On this occasion, it seemed fitting that the performers embodied
three different races, at least three different countries of origin and at
least two different religions.

That was one of the few musical performances of the day that sounded mostly
in tune, thanks to a heated space. I felt sorry for the people in the parade
bands. They waited and waited for the parade to start more than an hour late
and then they played in an icy wind. Even some of the service bands,
professionals accustomed to playing outdoors in all weather, sounded a tad
sour -- and meanwhile, most of the crowd only wanted to see President Obama
and his family, then began drifting away. At a distance from the White House
viewing enclosure, the parade route looked nearly empty by the time the last
bands passed. The press didn't seem to care about the music, either --
talked right through almost all of it.

One of the announcers said that a band had used antifreeze on the
instruments. Really? Wouldn't be a good thing to put on a mouthpiece -- the
stuff is toxic. I can't imagine using it on clarinet or saxophone pads to
keep them from freezing shut, either -- wouldn't antifreeze cause the pads
to leak, the same way excessive condensation does? Might be a good lubricant
for screws, I guess. Maybe brass players use antifreeze on valves and
slides, to keep them from freezing stuck after they get damp.

Lelia Loban
http://members.sibeliusmusic.com/Lelia_Loban

------------------------------------------------------------------
The 2009 Woodwind.Org Donation Drive is going on right now - see
https://secure.donax-us.com/donation/ for more information.
------------------------------------------------------------------