Klarinet Archive - Posting 000054.txt from 2011/08

From: "Dan Leeson" <dnleeson@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] Mozart quintet repeat
Date: Thu, 11 Aug 2011 20:30:51 -0400

There are two reasons why composers (particularly in Mozart's era) used
repeats, and not only in slow movements as you have noticed, but in many
movements as you can see by looking at the parts for the quintet. There are
repeats in all four movements, and the third, the minuet, has a special case
that must be dealt with on the two Da Capo sections; i.e., does one repeat a
minuet at either, both, or none of the Da Capo directions?

The first reason is to be able to write a little music and get a lot of it.
Effectively, it doubles the performance time without have to write
additional material.

The second reason is the much more important one. Players of the 18th
century were not simply automatons who played only what was written, which
is far too often the case today. They were performer/composers and ample
opportunity was given to them to show their skill at instantaneous
composition while performing. They were expected to improvise based on the
written text provided by the composer, which was generally full of hints (if
you were able to recognize them) that told the performer where to improvise
and in many senses what the improvisation should consist of. For example, a
low note of some duration followed by a high note of some duration often
mean that the performer was expected to fill in the blank area between the
low and the high note, perhaps a scale, an arpeggio, or even nothing if that
was what the performer preferred. But in that case, he ran the risk of
demonstrating that he could not improvise, and that was often a black mark
on a career.

The nature of your posting tells me that all of this may be new news to you.
Perhaps you may not have the experience you need to improvise in a way that
is consistent with the classical period. The object is NOT to jam as many
notes as you can get into the space of 2 seconds, but rather to embellish
what is written. Get a recording of a Mozart piano concerto played by Robert
Levin. Then get a score to that concerto and listen to the recording with
great care and attention many times. See if you can find where he
improvises, which is much of the time, but rarely in passagework. That is
the style that you want to achieve.

If you have jazz experience, that's good for a start but the Mozart quintet
does not call for a jam session. Find someone in your area who can speak
with authority on improvisation for music of the classic period.

Remember, you are not the center of attention. The music is. So if it is
your intention to show how fast you can play, I suggest you get involved
with a good Dixieland band. You must concentrate on bringing service to the
music. The music should be used to bring service to you, as is the case
with a cornetist who plays the variations on the Carnival of Venice, finally
achieving a variation in which he goes mad with all the technique as his
disposal; i.e., triple tonguing, trills, runs, leaps, and all kinds of
craziness. If you do that, I will find you no matter where you hide, and
make sure that are buried in cow dung up to you chin, while rattlesnakes
surround your final resting place.

But do the quintet with beautiful improvisations, and I will permit you to
marry my gorgeous daughter who has a rich father.

The rule is this: LESS IS MORE.

Dan Leeson

----- Original Message -----
From: "Mark Thiel" <mark.thiel@-----.com>
To: <klarinet@-----.com>
Sent: Thursday, August 11, 2011 2:44 PM
Subject: [kl] Mozart quintet repeat

>
>
> OK here's a question that should start a bit of fisticuffs :
>
> In the slow (Larghetto) movement of K. 581, the clarinet quintet, the
> first 26 bars are repeated, note for note, starting in bar 51. So the
> second time, do you/would you:
>
> a) Play it exactly the same, except dolce this time (assuming you were
> playing it a bit sourly the first time).
>
> b) Write in the chord changes and tell the strings: "OK guys, stand back,
> this chorus is MINE".
>
> c) Something in between, if so what do you do, justify motivations, give
> historical precedents, etc.
>
>
> Mark Thiel
>
>
> _______________________________________________
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