 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Keil
Date: 2001-11-22 04:42
We all agree that listening to recordings and/or live performances greatly enhances one's ability to play an instrument for a number of reasons. My question is do you think listening to, for instance, different wind concerti like those for flute, oboe, bassoon, or saxophone help more on a subconscious level or more conscious level? Basically, do you think that when one listens to a piece of music it helps them on a deeper level than on a more immediate, instantaneous level? i hope i've phrased this question well... i want to know if the benefits one gets from listening manifest themselves in forms of subtle nuances or more profoundly?
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Author: Keil
Date: 2001-11-22 04:43
I want to also state that i'm aware that it helps on both levels but on which level do you think the improvements are more greatly manifested?
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 2001-11-22 05:14
Ordinary CDs are recorded by 16 bits degital signals. If this is recorded by 20 bits, information amount is known to be 32 times. However, they anyway cut above 20kHz frequency range. Recently, researchers found above 20kHz range sounds normaly included by analogue records enhance alpha brain waves, which are generatate when we feel relaxed or comforable. My reply to your challenge is "that depends" on which equipment the music comes.
p.s. Phillips and Sony develped recently 'Super Audio System', which is easily searched in net.
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Author: Jim E.
Date: 2001-11-22 05:53
In my opinion, listening to ALL types of recorded and live music contributes to the overall development as a musician and is most necessary for true musical development. One who listens to only his/ her own instrument, or to only a favored style or period is (again in my opinion) shortchanging him/ her self.
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Author: Meri
Date: 2001-11-22 22:38
Listening to recordings does help--not only in the development of the sound concept, but also helping musicians explore different interpretations of the same piece, or to help them figure out sections of music they are having difficulty with.
Meri
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Author: Suzanne
Date: 2001-11-22 22:46
I listen to singers and violinists because they have such great expression and musicianship. It definitely helps my clarinet playing to become more singing.
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Author: werner
Date: 2001-11-23 00:26
wow .. what a great question. What my teacher told me is:
Even a little child can tell you instantly what *good playing*
and what *bad playing* is.
We want to hear good playing, because we want to get it
part of our .. and here leaves me my knowledge about your
language .. our person ? our soul ? our repertoire ?
When I hear good playing, then I try to find out: Why is it
good ? Why isn't it bad ? I try to make the subconscious
conscious so to speak. The next step is to make the consicious
part of my subconscious.
But I'm not sure whether I really understood your question.
I wished you would ask this question on the email list of this
(Marks) great clarinet recource. I would be interested in an Tony Pays answer.
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Author: Ken Shaw
Date: 2001-11-23 16:27
Keil -
I've learned about making music by listening to great musicians, regardless of instrument. Don't limit yourself to clarinetists.
Some of my favorites (mostly older), and leaving out clarinetists:
Piano: Lipatti, Richter, Rachmaninoff, Cortot, Britten
Violin: Kreisler, Heifetz, Szigeti, Francescatti
Viola: Tertis, Zuckerman, Vardi
Cello: Rostropovich, Casals, Feuermann
Voice: McCormack, Fischer-Dieskau, Pears, Caballe
Oboe: Goosens, Bourgue, Bloom
Bassoon: Allard
And in jazz: Ella, Mabel Mercer, Armstrong, Grappelli
These are my personal cream of the cream -- the ones who make great music all the time. Technical perfection is usually taken for granted, but some some of them drop notes (Cortot, for example). Nevertheless, every phrase is alive and fits in with everything else.
Best regards.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Mario
Date: 2001-11-23 18:02
A personal story of mine. I am working on Schubert "Arpeggione". Naturally, I got early on many CDs in order to find models and inspirations, eventualy settling down on the Stoltzman/Ax version (outstanding, and in the key of the Korodey-Kreutzer edition - much better for the clarinet). I simply did not care much for the many other clarinet interpretations, especially since they are all in the usual cello key creating technical demands for our instrument that get in the way of proper music.
I also listened to many cello interpretations (in particular, Rostopovitch/Britten - the so-called reference for the piece - interesting, but slow and rambling - the way I will probably play the piece in 30 years...). Not much luck there either.
But even the Stoltzman did not entirely "speak" to me. Yes, I could hear great music and appreciate the artistry, yes it was the best I had heard, yet I did not bind emotionally and artistically to the way the music was played. It was somebody's else music, not mine.
So, I worked several months with my pianist trying to find our own voice for this piece. We elaborated a concept for the piece and got to work. Not to happily I might add (or more exactly, with little self-confidence - were we doing the right thing for this piece?). Stoltzman stopped being useful quite a while back since we were diverging substantially from his views.
Then the other day I found this other cellist. M. Maykat (sic.?) - a young Russian cellist with a great CD of Schubert's work. That was it! His way was essentially the same as ours, but much more profound and refined - self-assured. His interpretation was a credible destination in our musical journey and much of his aesthetic ideas were immediately relevant and meaningful to us. So, this CD instantly became our model.
With the CD, we consolidated our direction with confidence, polished many of the weak spots, and created music that was whole by filling some of the gaps. It is fair to say that this instant self-confidence got us to move forward with a step function. Our Schubert, today is MUCH better then it was 3 weeks ago because we are now at peace with the way we are playing it, and we have a few excellent solutions to a couple of bad problem spots.
I also experienced something very interesting. I can easily visualize the cellist playing this piece in my mind (the cello is one of my favorite instrument, and offers much visual clues as to what is going on). I catch myself hearing and seeing a cello when I play the piece. To say the least, it focuses my intepretation, darkens the tone, and assists greatly in playing passages which much emotional content (cellists can get quite dramatic - it helps reproduce the mood). The power of "visualisation" is critical to good performance ("the inner game of whatever").
Somehow, everything clicked into place. It is about time - We are playing it in a private recital in exactly 1 month (December 23rd)
It is like having an expert coach helping us out with great advices. But see the process followed here: Much listening from many sources, a very personal mental model of the piece already shaping up, and identification of somebody out there whose perspective on the piece match ours. There was much learning involved. I strongly recommend it.
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By the way, I used the word "our" systematically because of the special dialogue between my pianist and myself on everything we play. I have the good forture of playing with a seasoned pianist (whose students regularly compete at Canadian Music Competition) who has a rigorous mastery of solo piano music (especially, the romantics) but little experience working with a partner. She loves the clarinet now but knew it little when we started 3 years ago (I am very proud of making a very individualist pianist enjoy playing with our beautiful instrument - she is a 50 -something Russian woman of the old school trained in St-Petersburg - not the most adventurous person in the world). We approach our pieces with much discussion and thinking. She started as an accompanist, then became a music coach, but is now moving toward her own exploration of our music. She told me the other day that she actually like very much the music we have selected and that she has developped a special interest for the clarinet as an instrument.
Her 85 years-old mother use to be a fine soloist (soprano). She comes around regularly and listen to us. She loves the idea of her "baby-daughter" playing recitals with somebody else ("you get her out of her studio learning something new", she once told me in approximate English). She also said that in her young days, she loved the clarinet the most because it can sing like she could... All of that to say that our instrument has so much power to enchant people if it is used properly in the right context.
We are moving on to Prokofiev next (the sonata of course arranged by Kennan). She instantly fell in absolute love with it the first time we read it together. One year of hard work ahead... Gosh this will be fun.
It is important for me that my pianist likes our music, so that our session are not just a boring 2 hours of music coaching like she probably with her 30 other students. We, clarinet students, can be quite self-centered sometimes and we forget that our pianist-mate must also have fun. And then we wonder why it is so hard to find a pianist...
As a matter of fact, one of her top students (a 15-year old beautiful young woman who puts me to shame everytime she plays) said the other day that she would not mind trying something with me, as long as she could learn something useful to her in the process, and as long as I would be willing to play a couple of time with her in public (she wants to become a pro, so she participates in competition and concert as often as she can). Our coach thinks it is too early by a couple of years, but I am putting Weber Grand Duo Concertant as our eventual joint piece on the table. I think she will bite. Another potential year of exciting work head, with a few real recitals down the road. Fun, fun, fun!
This is the proof that even pianists can be convinced to play enthusiastically with clarinetists if we pay attention to their interest and do not waste their time squeeking and puffing in front of them. There is hope for us.
The observant follower (if such an individual exists) of some of my posts might see all of this as my secret missionary work to rehabilitate the clarinet around me... One of these days, I will tell you how a new friend of mine (the excellent flutist I talked about a few months back) is bonding quite deeply to the special relationship that can exist between a clarinet and a flute when used in the right context. This is another partnership of mine that is fast leading to some great music.
(And maybe some expert coaching - she just signed up with one of the leading flute teacher in Montreal; she is putting 3 of our pieces (Villa-lobos, Jolivet and Muycinski (sic.) as work to develop; she give little recital regularly; she is bound to ask me to play one piece with her in public one of these days; she will want a few sessions with her flute coach (impressed by the choice of the these pieces already); bingo! I get invited to a few lessons with another great coach - this is still a secret plot. Shuuuut!).
Anyway, all of this this belongs to other posts.
Go get CDs! Take care of your pianist! Get out and spread the word.
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Author: HAT
Date: 2001-11-25 17:51
Don't forget to listen to a lot of orchestral music. That's the clarinet player's daily bread.
Or you can get my cd, of course. . .
David Hattner, NYC
www.northbranchrecords.com
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