Klarinet Archive - Posting 000013.txt from 2011/02

From: "Dan Leeson" <dnleeson@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] Death of a great artist
Date: Tue, 01 Feb 2011 19:51:47 -0500

Today (2/1/11) in the obituary section of the New York Times, the death of oboist Leonard Arner is reported.

I knew and played with Leonard in New York on a number of occasions. He was with the NY City Opera, the Lincoln Center Chamber Players, and had previously been with the St. Louis Symphony and a number of other major orchestras. His wife Leah Arner, was an orchestral violinist, and a good one, too.

His playing was spotty. Sometimes he was ill prepared, but when he was on his game, there were not many oboists who could top him.

Following his retirement from the NY scene, he moved to California and I took up my friendship with him again. He was almost immediately hired to play shows in Reno, but after a month of that he gave it up. He told me that he and the other musicians were four floors below the show and everything was done with cameras, which was not for the players but for the conductor.

I worked with him a few more times, including the Nutcracker ballet, but his playing was not at the level of his work as a younger man. But that is true for all of us. He was smart enough to stop before the matter got very serious.

On the recording of Bernstein's Mass, Leonard's performance was said by Bernstein to be "the voice of God." The quote is on the record jacket.

Sorry to see him go. He was a fabulous player. The last piece I worked with him was the Mozart Masonic Funeral Music. It was quite a performance.

Did anyone else on this list know him?

Dan Leeson
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