 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Don Poulsen
Date: 2003-04-27 17:20
Some bass clarinetists wonder how frequently the notes below low E-flat are used in pieces for concert band. The answer is still "infrequently," for, before last Fall I only occasionally had seen a low D in bass clarinet music, but never anything lower than that and those Ds usually had an alternate (in parentheses) just-below-the-staff Ds written in.
Well, as I mentioned in a post last Fall I finally ran into a concert band piece that went down to low C--a medley from <i>The Wizard of Oz</i>. Now I've run into a piece that more obviously and more frequently uses the low C & D. It is "Variazioni Sinfoniche su 'Non Potho Reposare'" by Dutch composer Hardy Mertens. (Mr. Mertens is a clarinetist, by the way. He's also conducts four amateur orchestras. You can read about him at the Netherlands Police Orchestra Web site [http://www.politieorkest.nl]. Click on the English flag, unless you read Dutch.)
Let me tell you a little about this piece and try to make a long story long.
I wouldn't be playing this piece, except that a friend who normally plays bass clarinet in the Indiana Wind Symphony was not able to play in this month's concert and asked me to substitute, a request to which I obviously consented. This is, to my knowledge, the highest level wind ensemble outside of the university environment in the state of Indiana and most of its members have a lot more music education than I have had (I'm mostly self-taught.), so I consider it a priviledge to play with this group. The feature piece on tonight's (8:00 PM, St. Luke's United Methodist Church, Indy, free) is the Merten's piece. In fact, it is the American (North American?) premiere of this piece.
This music is fairly challenging and not for the faint-hearted. It uses more than a full complement of winds, including in important parts, b-flat contra bass clarinet, contra-bassoon, a saxophone septet (soprano, two altos, two tenors, baritone and bass) and a couple of obsolete brass horns (I don't recall precisely, but they look like alto horns to me). It also calls for a cello, but the important cello parts have been split among the bassoons and bass clarinets in our group. The saxophones, in fact, start the piece.
It is a modern composition and somewhat out of the ordinary. However, that is not to say that it is one of the non-melodic pieces that fall into this category. It is full of melodic lines throughout. In places it is quite intense, in others, quite delicate. Dynamic changes are frequent and dramatic. There are, for example, crescendos from p to ff that occur in spans as short as one beat. In places, the whole ensemble is booming forth; in others, a single flute is playing. At one point near the end, a bassoon and flute play while everyone else hums. At another, there are three piccolo soloists playing different solos simultaneously.
Back to the bass clarinet part. It has many sustained low Ds and several short ones. It also has a fair share of sustained low Cs. In fact, if I had not been substituting with my low-C bass, these notes would not be played, as the other bass clarinetist and the one I am substituting for have instruments that go down only to E-flat. The notes would have to have been played an octave higher.
Play this piece or listen to it if you ever get a chance.
Another piece of personal trivia--I'll also be playing today with the Indianapolis Municipal Band at ceremonies in Anderson, IN for the traveling version of the Vietnam Memorial Wall. This will take place at 2:30 if you're in the area (and even if you're not in the area). Both of today's concerts, coincidentally, contain the march, "Americans We." (There are a couple of others besides myself who will be playing in both concerts also.)
I'm somewhat hoping that the Wind Symphony asks me to continue on or, at least, keeps me as a substitute.
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Author: William
Date: 2003-04-28 14:12
I use the low C for the opening of the Holst Suite--not written, but probably should have been. (at the least, a fun note to play)
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2003-04-28 15:59
Very interesting commentary on several subjects, Don ! I am hoping that others, with more info than I have to contribute, will respond, before "we" go into the archives. Quite a piece of music you describe. Only once or twice have I run into even low D's in concert band music , perhaps a few more lowies in "church" arrangements, prob. resulting from transposed cello/viola parts. Low Eb's are quite common, partic. in the more recent compositions, p.e., we play several of Ed Huckaby's, and commissioned his "Heroic Sketches" [ a number of low Ebs] a year or so ago. He knows our band has bassoon, bass cl and bari sax as the usual low reeds, with several contras and low C's only available via working pros. Therefore, I might suggest that composers desiring low reed sounds, not from tubas, would pick musical keys that dont out-range the "conventional " insts, thereby diminishing their piece's salesability [sp?]. I hope others and some composers may respond to this ?challenge??. Don
Thanx, Mark, Don
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Author: Shorthand
Date: 2003-04-28 16:28
I've found a simple pattern over the years that newer composers that favor the bass for its unique sound have used the full range of the instrument when they wrote.
As the Bass sound is becoming more popular with modern composers (along with interesting tone colors in general.), you see unique bass parts in many modern pieces. Any of these dating from after ~1980 will freely go down to low C.
Though my instrument is a low Eb, the rest of my section has newer instruments. Even in older pieces, there are many places where low D & C would ovbiously have been preferred by the composer/arranger.
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Author: Don Poulsen
Date: 2003-04-28 18:33
William--
Are you talking about Holst's First or Second Suite? We also played the First Suite last night and it isn't obvious to me where he may have preferred a low C. Do you mean the long sustained C at letter E in the first movement of the First Suite? I happen to have, in my current possession, the b-flat contrabass/bass sax part and the contrabass has the equivalent of what would be the bass's low C, which may add credence to your theory. Fortunately, last night we had the contrabass to take care of that.
And I don't recall, at the moment, too much about the Second Suite. (I'll have to listen to the recording I have.)
But, I may get a chance in the near future to play it again as it is in the current music folders of the Indy Municipal Band (which means I'll probably get to play the solos this time). If I do, I may use low C's where appropriate.
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Author: William Hughes ★2017
Date: 2003-04-28 19:04
Don P.
Thanks for the interesting discourse. Sorry I missed you at the Anderson venue. Our clarinet choir, which rehearses at Anderson University, played at the Saturday afternoon program.
William Hughes
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