Klarinet Archive - Posting 000073.txt from 2011/08

From: "Keith Bowen" <keith.bowen@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Mozart quintet repeat
Date: Sun, 14 Aug 2011 10:10:40 -0400

Finn

Yes, exactly. The Mozart concerto and quintet were written for basset
clarinet in A. This is a (normal soprano pitch) clarinet, invented by
Stadler (made I think by Lotz), which has keywork extending to low written
C, a third below the norm. There are, for example, the passages where a
figure is repeated in three octaves is played accurately rather than altered
in the lowest octave as required for the normal clarinet.

Several manufacturers now make complete basset clarinets. A cheaper
alternative is to get an alternative replacement joint for the lower joint
of your A clarinet. Stephen Fox is IMO the best person to go to for this. I
have one, one which I performed the Quintet on the Leblanc Concerto I had
then, and a friend borrowed it to perform the Concerto on his Buffet. I have
since changed to Wurlitzer Reform Boehm, and Steve redid the joint to fit
the different socket size and also retuned it. The quality of Steve's work
is world class.

You're not in the least foolish, just uninformed in this instance, and we
can fix that!

Best, Keith

-----Original Message-----
From: Finn Jespersen [mailto:fj4800@-----.dk]
Sent: 14 August 2011 13:25
To: klarinet@-----.com
Subject: Re: [kl] Mozart quintet repeat

Hi, Your last sentences made me curious, Keith! A"basset joint"! Is this a
sort of a prolongation for an ordinary clarinet - to get ekstra deep tones?
Forgive me if I am foolish! Finn

> From: keith.bowen@-----.com
> To: klarinet@-----.com
> Date: Sun, 14 Aug 2011 12:39:03 +0100
> Subject: Re: [kl] Mozart quintet repeat
>
> Mark,
>
> I deliberately wouldn't answer your direct question, because it would be
> wrong to do so. Dan encapsulated this when he was coaching us at
> Kammermusik, on hearing a fine eingang by a clarinettist: "Brilliant
> eingang, David. Now, never do that one again!". The essence of
> embellishments is that they are spontaneous. The trouble with recordings
is
> that they are always the same. Tony Pay wouldn't give the same performance
> twice.
>
> Dan and Tom have given good principles to follow, and this is pretty much
> all you are allowed to have! I would add that you need some knowledge of
> harmony. You must make sure that the embellishments are within the local
> key. This often means simply obeying the key signature, but you must know
> whether the music has modulated to the dominant, or whatever. There's one
> passage in the Gran Partitta Adagio where the written part is three widely
> separated notes. I usually do a scale/arpeggio/broken chord between them;
> but though the key signature has not changed, study of the score shows
that
> there is a modulation during the second note. In this case, as I recall,
the
> upwards embellishment is C major, the downwards in C minor.
>
> Another Dan mantra: less is more. You don't have to change everything. Be
> subtle. As he says, the Lewin concertos are exemplary.
>
> Oh and you need to get a basset joint for your clarinet. Since we don't
know
> exactly what Mozart wrote for the clarinet let alone basset clarinet, this
> also guarantees some sort of embellishment!
>
> Keith
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Mark Thiel [mailto:mark.thiel@-----.com]
> Sent: 13 August 2011 18:37
> To: klarinet
> Subject: [kl] Mozart quintet repeat
>
>
>
> OK, since no one has actually answered the actual question I originally
> posed (though as usual there have e been interesting digressions), which
was
> what you personally do in the Mozart Clarinet Quintet slow movement for
the
> reprise of the opening melody (bar 51-70), I listened to some
> recordings. I found 4 (which surprised me, though I've also got George
> Silfies somewhere).
>
> Yes, I know that professional clarinetists are not necessarily (often?)
> musical experts and that I can't expect to come up with appropriate
> performance practice by averaging what I hear.
>
> I also checked tempos just for amusement, though my numbers are rough
> averages since everyone varied the tempo quite a bit,
> especially on the reprise.
>
> Walter Boeykens first time 42; reprise 40, no embellishments
>
> Jozsef Balogh (a Hungarian, should be an accent on the o of Jozsef) first
> time 44; reprise 42, quieter, no embellishments
>
> Richard Stoltzman first time 38; reprise 35, more vibrato, no
> embellishments, rubatissimo (or should I say rubato that should
> be charged as grand larceny) especially on bar 50, which is the bar of
16th
> notes leading up to the reprise. The concerto is
> on the same disk and in the slow movement there he does a quite nice
eingang
> and tasteful embellishments in the reprise
> (along with even more vibrato).
>
> Antony Pay first time 40; reprise 38 with a lot of rubato especially bar
> 50, embellishments starting in bar 58 (the 7th
> bar of the reprise) consisting of 2 apoggiaturas, 1 grupetto, a double
grace
> note and about a dozen 16th notes played
> rhythmically instead of eights or quarters.
>
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