Klarinet Archive - Posting 000021.txt from 2010/08
From: Jordan Selburn <jselburn@-----.net> Subj: Re: [kl] Bass in A Date: Mon, 09 Aug 2010 19:41:54 -0400
Dan -
Regardless of the intrinsic desirability of playing on the "right" =
instrument=A0(philosophically, I agree, which is one of the reasons why I o=
wn a C =
clarinet), I think you are minimizing the practical issues of owning a Bass=
in A =
compared to a C soprano to the extent of making such an analogy almost =
irrelevant.=A0 =
=A0
Compounding=A0the base cost disparity between the two instruments (probably =
5-10:1, assuming an A bass could even be found in the first place), there's =
simply much, much less usage of the A bass in the literature. An orchestral =
player will encounter parts for C clarinet on a regular basis; likely multi=
ple =
times per year for a full-time pro. That same full-time pro could easily go =
years without seeing a single=A0A bass part. I might be wrong, but it would=
n't =
surprise me if a major symphony bass clarinetist had call for an A bass few=
er =
than, say, 20 times=A0over the course of=A0their career. This disparity mak=
es the =
"cost per set" for the A bass perhaps 50-100 times that of the C soprano =
(ignoring resale, which I think is not unreasonable over a 40+ year usable =
life), and difficult to economically justify for all but a few very serious=
, or =
very wealthy, players.
It would be fun, desirable and perhaps even admirable to=A0own a bass clari=
net in =
A; it would have even saved me some huge headaches a few months back - but =
unfortunately I did not have the foresight to win the lottery the necessary=
=A0year =
(or more) before my gig and have one custom built.
Cheers,
Jordan
________________________________
From: Dan Leeson <dnleeson@-----.net>
To: Klarinet <klarinet@-----.com>
Sent: Mon, August 9, 2010 10:10:04 AM
Subject: [kl] Bass in A
Because of Keith Bowen's research work on the A bass clarinet, and also bec=
ause =
I owned and played an A bass in both the Rach 2 and anything else I could l=
ay my =
hands on (included Nutcracker ballet), I mention that the use of the C clar=
inet =
has an argument that is analogous to the use of the bass in A. =
While I am unable to state the reasons why many composers wrote for A bass =
(with =
Mahler being a special case, because he did so when there was no an obvious =
reasons for him to have done so; i.e., the Mahler 4th symphony), the fact i=
s =
that an A bass has a markedly and distinctly different timbre than the B-fl=
at =
bass.=A0 If the character of the two instruments were indistinguishable, th=
ere =
would be no reason for my suggestion, and transposition at sight would be t=
he =
normal method of operation.=A0 But I am beginning to think more and more th=
at any =
serious orchestral bass clarinetist should have both an A bass and a B-flat =
bass, just as many serious orchestral clarinetists have both an A and a B-f=
lat C =
clarinet (plus a C every now and then). =
After all, for the serious professional player, there is no need for an A o=
r a C =
clarinet.=A0 They would have only one instrument, the one in B-flat on whic=
h all =
parts would be played. Alternatively, an A clarinet might even be a better =
choice to have as the only instrument needed for performance. Many Italian =
players own only an A, due to the fact that, as you students, they could no=
t =
afford two instruments.=A0 So they bought only one, and it had to have the =
extended range (specifically for Peter and the Wolf, the original of which =
has =
the cat playing down to low written E-flat, the sixth note of the cat solo).
So why should the logic be different for the bass clarinet? And the answer =
to =
that question is cost, and the need to avoid shlepping two bass clarinets =
around.
If one were to seriously suggest that the Mozart concerto be played on a B-=
flat =
clarinet with the part transposed to the concert key of A major (or written=
B =
major for B-flat clarinet), there would probably be a variety of arguments =
against the practice, not the least of which is that the timbre of the B-fl=
at =
clarinet is not suitable for a performance of K. 622 (or K. 581, or the Bra=
hms =
quintet while we are at it).
And if that argument were acceptable, then it can also be put forward if on=
e =
were to use a B-flat bass clarinet for the Rach 2.
Cost could also be put forward along with difficulty of execution as reason=
s for =
having multiple clarinets, But I'll stick with timbre for the moment.
In effect, it defies logic to suggest that only a B-flat bass clarinet will=
do =
for orchestral playing.
Dan Leeson
_______________________________________________
Klarinet mailing list
Klarinet@-----.com
To do darn near anything to your subscription, go to:
http://klarinet-list.serve-music.com
_______________________________________________
Klarinet mailing list
Klarinet@-----.com
To do darn near anything to your subscription, go to:
http://klarinet-list.serve-music.com
|
|
|