 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Brenda ★2017
Date: 2008-02-22 17:50
Does anyone know what connection or knowledge Saint-Saens had of the clarinet? Did he have a clarinetist friend or secretly take clarinet lessons when his piano was down for repairs? Searches indicate an early knowledge of piano and violin composition.
It's interesting that in his Sonata there are several spots where he has the clarinet playing 12ths as opposed to octaves, making the transition very easy, only requiring adding the octave key when moving up or down. Also the Lento of the Sonata tests the player's abilities when he requires a volume of "pp" on the altissimo last half. It's as if he wrote it on purpose for an examiner to see if the student knows how to balance a reed!
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Author: donald
Date: 2008-02-22 18:03
He knew several clarinet players whom he didn't like so he wrote this Sonata to annoy them. We can return the favour by transcribing the whole thing for Alto Saxophone and performing it in this new version (Saint-Saens actually originally wrote "C melody sax" on the manuscript score, but then scribbled it out to write "cl"... at least i seem to remember someone telling me in a master class that they'd discovered this in their research)
dn
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Author: GBK
Date: 2008-02-22 18:28
It was dedicated to Auguste Périer, a clarinet professor at the Paris Conservatoire, so perhaps there was input from him...GBK
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Author: vjoet
Date: 2008-02-22 18:46
I consider Saint-Saens wonderful in his orchestration, second to none. His compositions are finely crafted. (I certainly prefer Saint-Saens to Ravel.)
I have no documentation for it, but it would surprise me if he didn't have close friends in the orchestras that he would ask to evaluate how well his parts lay for the various instruments. He lived and moved in a musical world, with musicians as friends. He would have asked for input, as Beethoven did, and as Verdi did.
(Our community orchestra did the Organ Sym at the last concert.)
vJoe
(amateur)
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Author: Brenda ★2017
Date: 2008-02-24 02:38
Thanks so much. Once I put the name Auguste Périer into the seach as well then the information I wanted came up. The Sonata is included in this weekend's concert, so at least if I have a chance to speak a few seconds about the Sonata I'll know a little bit more. I knew there had to be some input from a clarinetist at one point for the composition to be the way it is.
However, I really liked Donald's musings!
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Author: Clarinetcola
Date: 2008-02-24 09:24
I think "12ths as opposed to octaves" and the dynamic capabilities of any standard instrument should be known by any serious composer.
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Author: Bob Phillips
Date: 2008-02-24 16:09
I believe that Saint-Saens stopped in his late years and thought about his body of work. He noted that several instruments were under-represented, and set out to write a significant piece for each of them. He picked the Clarinet and got together with prof. Perier.
Bob Phillips
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