 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: gregbaker112@gmail.com
Date: 2016-02-21 07:31
Greetings
In bar 126 of the Copland Concerto there is an accelerando. There is also a phrase break before the last eighth note. First of all, is the last note in the new tempo or old tempo. Second, why the accelerando at all? I have never paid attention to this in the recordings I have heard, and wondered how much metronome time to spend on such a brief passage that has a phrase break in the middle anyway?
How do you approach this passage in performance and with your students? Also, anyone know if Copland had a specific reason for including it? Thanks.
Greg Baker
gregbaker112@gmail.com
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Author: kdk
Date: 2016-02-21 07:57
Greg, I'm not sure where you mean. First, are you talking about the 11 bars after the measure marked 115 (wich seems the more likely)? Or the bar after the one actually marked 125 - 120 is at the end of the long 16th note run from low F up to E6 - later in the piece (which doesn't have any of what you describe)?
Assuming you're in the cadenza that begins at the end of 115, there is an accelerando at the end of the bar between the one marked Somewhat faster and the one in 5/8 meter, which by my count would be 126 if the numbering continued from 115. But I don't see a phrase break - it accelerates directly into the alla breve marked Twice as fast (lively).
So I'm not sure where you are.
Karl
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2016-02-22 08:36
I was lucky enough to talk with Aaron about the concerto around 1976 or so. A few of us had lunch with him. As most of you know he wrote the concerto for Benny Goodman, because Benny was great at jazz and also very good as a classical player. Aaron actually felt that he was disappointed in how the piece was played, he wanted it to be more of a jazz feel, but still classical. Kind of confusing. He felt that players in general play the cadenza too fast, lacking any jazz feel and he was looking for that jazz feel. Not just a player showing off how fast he can play the end of the cadenza. It's not the Nielson Concerto. I have to grind in the word jazz here.
So my answer is to perhaps forget about how fast you can articulate the piece and how fast you can move your fingers. Play it cleanly and with a jazz feel. Maybe listen to Eddie Danials play it. I think he really got the feel of what Aaron wanted. Maybe Eddie and Aaron talked about it? Don't know.
When I played under Aaron a trumpet player was stuck between single tonguing and double tonguing and was screwing up the piece Rodeo. Copland stopped the orchestra and told the player to have fun with the solo and he would follow the trumpet player. It worked out great. Copland also said that his tempo markings are just guides.
So in my opinion, get into the head of the composer and play it the way he wanted it to be played. Here's a huge hint. He wrote the piece in the 1920's. What did jazz sound like back then? What does jazz sound like now? Play from your heart and have fun. Don't worry too much about all every single marking on the concerto, because Copland wouldn't want this. Just feel it! Hope this helps.
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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Author: kdk
Date: 2016-02-22 12:46
Bob Bernardo wrote:
> Here's a huge hint. He wrote
> the piece in the 1920's. What did jazz sound like back then?
I can't argue with anything you said about the concerto except the date. It was commissioned by Goodman in 1948 (the copyright date is 1950). Copland wrote a piano concerto in 1926, though, so a look at that might add some insight.
Karl
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