 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: runner
Date: 2010-03-19 03:12
Haven't we all played transcriptions of Handel's sonatas? Well, I am accompanying a saxophone student playing a transcription on the Handel Bb sonata.
The problem: He is playing it in 4 instead of 8. I was taught that the eighth note gets a beat. His teacher apparently never really playing these transcriptions and does not know the performance practice of baroque music.
He is playing it at contest on Saturday and I don't know what to do or say. His sax teacher will be there.
Suggestions?
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2010-03-19 15:04
I know this may not be of much help this late in the day, but maybe he ought to get advice from a good oboe teacher (or oboist) as chances are they'll be more experienced with Baroque playing than a clarinet or sax teacher will be.
This is the reason why I never took any grades on sax as the exam syllabus was pretty poor - if I wanted to play a Baroque flute sonata I'd play it on flute, not on alto sax. Which is why I did all my grades on clarinet as at least the pieces in the exam syllabus were actually for the instrument and not transcriptions of Baroque pieces.
Don't get me wrong as I love Baroque music far more than I like Classical era music, and when I got back into playing oboe it was great to be reacquainted with Baroque after putting up with playing Classical.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2010-03-19 17:10
I assume it's the movement that's often been transcribed. It begins with a descending tonic chord, a pickup and a descending V7 -- Do, Sol, Mi, Do -- Sol, La, Fa, Re, Ti. If so, it's from one of the violin sonatas.
The usual description of an adagio tempo is "playable in 4 or 8, but not so slow that you can't play it in 4."
The problem is that the notes are only the skeleton, which Handel expected to be elaborately ornamented. Ornamentation takes some time to learn, and you can't expect a student (high school, I presume) to do that without study and practice.
Thus the performance will be with only the written notes, played as smoothly as possible, in long phrases.
You can certainly suggest trying it a bit faster in 4, but if the soloist gets confused or uncomfortable, back off. Remember that you're the accompanist here. Your job is to help the soloist play as well as possible.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Katrina
Date: 2010-03-20 03:25
You're the accompanist. Period. You play the way the soloist wants (particularly at the level you're accompanying) because the kid has learned from his teacher (who will be there). That's their business. You might ask the private teacher why he had the kid do it that way. But (particularly if you're getting paid) you need to just do what the student needs. Especially if the contest is tomorrow, you'll mess him up!
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Author: runner
Date: 2010-03-21 16:29
Thanks for the comments. I did "lay low" and let him play the way he practiced. He had some problems: stumbling over some sixteenth note passages. He did choose to play his scales last and did a two octave D scale. (they needed only to do one ocatace. He also did a chromatic scale starting on low Bb. I thought that would make up for any minor errors. The judge gave him a II. He pointed out that he was the only 8th grade saxophonist to receive that.
My buddy and I reminded him that his duet and trio both got a I.
He still was disappointed.
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