Klarinet Archive - Posting 000171.txt from 2011/05

From: K S <krsmav@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Seeking CD that demonstrates suggested embellishments
Date: Thu, 26 May 2011 17:53:12 -0400

Vann Joe Turner says:

> Some months back a respected contributor to this list wrote the following:<

>When Mozart writes a line you have to look for repeated material. Look at
>the third measure of the first clarinet entrance. "F-D, F-D C-B-natural."
>That repeated F-D is an invitation for you to do it differently on the
>repetition."<

Vann Joe -

I would definitely would NOT embellish the second F-D phrase.

The Mozart Concerto is built on a pattern of Short + Short + Long -- a
short phrase, a second short phrase repeating the pattern of the first
phrase, and a third phrase twice as long, repeating the pattern at
half speed. Thus, in the first movement, F-D, F-D, C-B.

The second movement begins C-F-A-A-G-C. The pattern is repeated.
Then it's elaborated at double the length. Then it's done again:
G-C-A-C, G-C-D-A, C-E-D-C-C.

In the third movement, after the opening bars, it's C-B-A-A, A-G-F,
F-E-D-C-B-C-C#-D, which is not an exact repetition but uses the same
mechanism.

The first two iterations set up the expectation that the third will be
the same, and listeners are surprised to hear something different.
Composers do this all the time. One of my favorites comes from a
World War I song:

[And then we'll] [E-F-F#]
Bury the hatchet, [G-G-F-E-G]
Bury the hatchet, [E-E-D-C-A]
Bury the hatchet in the Kaiser's head! [G-G-F-E-G-C-D-E-C-D]

Mozart does this frequently, and part of learning the Clarinet
Concerto is recognizing where he "buries the hatchet."

Any ornamentation in the second F-D phrase keeps the pattern from
being set up and spoils the device.

In the recap of the first movement, Mozart adds a small ornament:
C-D-C-B. There's no prohibition on making this more elaborate -- say
C-D-C-B-C-E-D-C-B, but I think Mozart's own subtle decoration works
fine.

Ornamentation isn't done at random. You need a harmonic and
structural reason to use it, and you must be careful not to mess up
something else that's going on.

Ken Shaw
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