 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Allessandra
Date: 2005-02-02 20:50
Hi! I recently recieved a First Division at District Solo & Ensemble on my performance of the Mozart Concerto, the Rondo movement, and I've decided to change my piece for State Solo & Ensemble. My teacher gave me an option of Weber's Concertino, Weber's Concerto No. 1 in F minor, or the Hindemith sonata. I'm also planning to use this piece for college band auditions, etc. Any thoughts or suggestions?
Also, what would be the best combinations of movements in the Hindemith to take, if I were to choose that piece? I have a two to five-minute time limit for Solo & Ensemble.
Thanks for the expertise and advice. I want to make sure I choose the right piece since I'll be facing it for another six months!
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Author: clarinetist04
Date: 2005-02-02 21:21
Well, I honestly think that if you can play the Mozart extraordinarily well (which many college students cannot do) that that is the piece to pick. Everyone knows and that could work in your favor if you play it well. On the other hand, my favorite of those pieces is the Weber Concerto No. 1. I would do the last movement, as it is quite a fun movement to play...was just playing through that yesterday as a matter of fact.
The Hindemith is sort of a wierd piece, I have not heard of many people doing it for college auditions, but it is a difficult piece, one that would certainly show you off...but I think the Weber shows you off more. I would not do the concertino. It seems to be more of a high school piece nowadays...not to say you won't study it in college, because you WILL, but most people have their first goaround in high school.
So my vote: Weber 1.
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Author: diz
Date: 2005-02-02 21:54
I vote for the Hindemith ... it's a dark horse and requires a lot of mental capacity to pull it off effectively ... and it is DECEPTIVELY easy looking, don't be fooled. The Weber is a bore, sorry, but that's my personal opion.
Without music, the world would be grey, very grey.
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-02-02 23:19
I vote the opposite of Diz. I don't think that the Hindemith will go over with the adjucators as well as the Weber #1 would. The Concertino is so overplayed.
Don't do the Mozart as it is so difficult to play really well - it's like a clear plate of glass.
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-02-03 02:20
Diz had mentioned that the Hindemith looks easy. There's one movement which doesn't look very difficult, but most of it does look pretty tough (and of course is!!!!). That is the "hardest" of the 4 works with the exception of Mozart being so difficult to play well. If your band director is in to modern works than it would be a good piece.
If you don't know of his Clarinet Concerto, have a listen to that too. I really like the Hindemith Concerto.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2005-02-03 05:19
I also vote for the Hindemit Sonata. When I auditioned to music university classical department (but eventually didn't go eventhough accepted) that was the piece I played. I like all movements a lot, so it's hard to choose which one is best. I suggest choosing the one you play best for the audition.
I basically agree with Diz, but don't remember it was very hard.
About what David said, for me personally the Mozart concerto was much harder than the Hindemit sonata, and I just mean technically.
Good luck.
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Author: musiq
Date: 2005-02-04 17:45
Allessandra, are you from Michigan? For some strange reason I think you are. If you are I'll have some helpful comments. later
~musiq~
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2005-02-04 18:16
Allesandra -
It's easy to play the piece all-gray, with a wrinkled brow and a frown. Actually, it has a lot of (rather elephantine) wit.
Hindemith was a great student of medieval and renaissance music, and he used some characteristic early music phrasing, with unequal phrase lengths and shifts back and forth between duple and triple meter (even though the time signature doesn't change.
For example, in the opening line, the first 3 notes are a pickup, the G is a downbeat, the next 3 notes are an ornament, followed by a downbeat on the next G. The following high C is on a weak beat and should not be accented. The next accented note is the F, which then relaxes off to the D in a feminine phrase ending.
In the following phrase, once again the strong note is the G on top of the staff, and not the following high D.
You determine these things by listening to the piano and noting where the chord changes are.
At the very end of the first movement, you should do the final phrase with a smile. Work with the pianist to get exactly together, with the same tone of voice. Try to draw a tear from the audience.
The scherzo should be light and not too loud. There are some climaxes that serve as a contrast, but you need to get back to almost a whisper to make the contrasts, and, again, it's a bit "cute" at the end.
Even though the slow movement is forte, it should be rich, not metallic.
In the last movement, you need to keep the staccato light. The "long tube" notes (e.g., the low clarion C) are slow to speak, so the second and third notes, G down to C, are difficult to keep in tempo. The second note, G, should be soft and light, and the phrase keeps going, to C, G and A.
The piano part is as important as yours in the finale. You have to look through it to see which of you has the melody, since it keeps shifting. A good example is at the very end, where you have a descending, decrescendoing line and the pianist plays the main melodic rhythm. If the two of you do it, you should get a little laugh from the audience.
Ken Shaw
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