Klarinet Archive - Posting 000061.txt from 2009/10

From: Oliver Seely <oseely@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: [kl] New A clarinet from Patricola
Date: Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:48:33 -0400

I wouldn't be too quick to reject the concepts of bright and dark as
they refer to sounds. Indeed, for those of us who are synesthesia
challenged, such terms have no meaning, but then those folks may have
a retarded evolutionary development. Take a look at this link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synesthesia

As for the kid who didn't buy the clarinet, that he "couldn't play
anyway," is only one person's opinion but the story itself, as
apocryphal as it might be, leaves open the possibility that the kid
was a synesthetic and said to himself on leaving Manny's Music Store,
"that salesman is full of baloney. The clarinet he gave me had a
bright sound," as was discovered by the second kid, who also was a
synesthetic and perhaps mistakenly thought that so was the salesman.

Oliver

At 08:13 AM 10/5/2009, you wrote:
>In my opinion, we are once again falling into the use of meaningless and
>counterproductive descriptors when speaking about the character of a
>particular clarinet's sound.
>
>I suggest that the terms used by Diego -- "warmer," "darker," and "bright"
>have no universal meaning. Clearly the sound of a clarinet needs to be
>described, but images of color and temperature as used here are not helpful.
>In practice, they are about as unhelpful as terminology can be because there
>is little a student can do to obtain (or to reject) the character of
>clarinet sound the s/he wants to have. And what is "warmer" to one person
>can well be ice cold to another.
>
>I have told my story about Manny's music store on 48th street in NY several
>times, but it is worth telling again.
>
>A young boy came into Manny's with his father to buy a clarinet. He said he
>wanted one that had a "nice dark sound."
>
>The salesman picked one out saying that its sound was like the grave, as
>dark as night. It was like playing while wearing a shroud. Blah, blah, blah.
>
>The kid tried and eventually chose not to buy it. Nothing lost. The kid
>couldn't play anyway. Father and son left the store and went elsewhere.
>
>Within 10 minutes another young student came in asking for a clarinet with a
>bright sound. The same salesman took the same clarinet out and told the
>student that its sound was as bright as the sun at midday. "You need to play
>this instrument with sunglasses on," said the salesman. The student was so
>impressed, that he bought the instrument.
>
>Dan Leeson

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