 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: RosewoodClarinet
Date: 2005-04-20 18:56
He is not with St.Louis Sym. any more......he was at Cleveland Orch before the St. Louis.........this is all what I know about him.
I would like to know about him. I am looking for the recording to see how he sounds like. Any recommended recordings? Any reviews? Any previous threads? All are welcome and appriciated.
RosewoodClarinet
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Author: TonkaToy
Date: 2005-04-20 20:12
Rosewood,
I had the good fortune to study and play with George for several years in the early to mid 1980's. I'd have to say it was a life transforming event for me.
As an orchestral player, and I admit I have a personal bias, I just don't think that George could be topped. He knows the repetorie inside and out. Not just the clarinet parts but every part in the orchestra. George is not only a clarinetist but a very accomplished pianist and conductor. His playing in the orchestra was so perfect at times that it made the other players in his section as well as others in the orchestra just shake their heads and smile.
Personally, some things about his orchestral playing that I found most engaging was his ability to, within the constraints of the orchestra ensemble, to play solo parts that we have all heard millions of times and make them his own. An accented note here, a change of color there, suddenly becoming an "oboe" for a few notes, then sliding back into the ensemble. That's what I have always found so unique and satisfying about George's playing. As a technician, George is simply a monster. He could play anything you put in front of him. First time. Every time.
As a teacher, I couldn't have asked for anyone better. I studied with him in graduate school and was an advanced player when I began studying with him. I don't recall him ever teaching the beginning or intermediate student and I think I know the reason; George didn't have the interest or patience to be a pedagogue. His response to technical mistakes made in lessons or masterclasses was not a dialog on possible reasons for the problem and suggested solutions, it was just a quick, irritated, "fix that and don't do it again". Having said that, he taught me a great deal about playing the clarinet, about how to isolate and solve problems, how to think about a piece organically, and what was expected of you when you presumed to call yourself a professional musician.
When I studied with George he was not a teacher (or player) who was obsessed with what mouthpiece or reed or ligature to use. I'm sure he cared about those things but he was a "tee it up and let's play" kind of a guy. The flip side of that attitude was that with his students he didn't have much patience with excuses about reeds or mouthpieces. A remark that I heard more than once from George was,"The conductor doesn't care about your reed or mouthpice, he just want's you to make a piano entrance on a high e-flat when he gives the downbeat for your solo in Death & Transfiguration".
Reading back over this post it strikes me that I've made George sound like a not very nice fellow, but that's far from the truth. He's a genuinely caring and warm man; gregarious and fun to be around. However, there was a definite separation between George the friend and George the teacher or collegue. When the lesson started or the baton came down it was very serious business.
You asked in your post about recordings. Just about anything from the Slatkin days with the SLSO give a great look at George's playing and that of the rest of the orchestra. Most of those recordings are on RCA Red Seal, but there are a few on Telarc ( Daphnis and Chloe comes to mind). The orchestra didn't record much when Vonk was music director but there are some recordings the orchestra privately produced during his tenure. I thing the label they created was called Arch Records. You might want to visit the SLSO web site to see if they still offer those recordings. I think they did several of the Beethoven symphonies with Vonk. As far as recordings that George has done, i'd have to recomend the Brahms Serenades with Slatkin, Prokofiev 5th, again with Slatkin and some chamber music recordings on Vox. I love his recordings of the Mozart and Brahms Quintets and the Mozart Quintet for Piano & Winds.
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Author: donald
Date: 2005-04-20 21:04
some time ago i posted here asking who was the principal player in SLSO for a recording of Miraculous Mandarin- i was really impressed with the clarinet playing (to be fair, both 1st and 2nd did a good job...), and George Silfies came up as the player.
A great player for sure!
just an aside here- didn't George Mellot also play in St Louis at some stage?
donald
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Author: TonkaToy
Date: 2005-04-20 21:10
Yes, that's George and Tina Ward on the Bartok. It's too bad that the orchestra never recorded the Nielsen 5th. It was a piece in their regular rotation for a while and George played the beejesus out of it.
He's a big man and has a very big sound when he needs it. It's the type of sound that can cut through and soar over the orchestra. That, unfortunately, is something that doesn't come across well on the orchestral recordings.
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Author: RosewoodClarinet
Date: 2005-04-21 04:50
Quote: "The conductor doesn't care about your reed or mouthpice, he just want's you to make a piano entrance on a high e-flat when he gives the downbeat for your solo in Death & Transfiguration". I agree with Mr.Silfies.
I am so interested about Mr. Silfies because he is very clear on making his own decision. He left Cleveland Orch. because he could not be principal clarinet since Marcellus was the one. Certainly, at certain point, one have to make its own decision for better career and better life like he did.
Also, it is impossible to play great standard orchestral pieces all the time. In my school, I could not be like the person who play principal clarinet for great standard orchestral pieces in my school.
I am NOT a bad student or player at all. I am getting good reputations from many of faculty and my clarinet teachers. But, the conductor does not put me on principal for great piece. My clarinet teachers recommends leaving for my country and studying with another teacher, who they trusts as a good player and teacher, and recommends getting a job there. So, I made a decision to make a new direction in my life for my better life.
Anyway, I appriciate information about Mr. Silfies and certainly start searching for recordings.
RosewoodClarinet
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Author: DAVE
Date: 2005-04-21 06:25
Wasn't Silfies the pianist for the Cleveland Orchestra for a time before becoming one of the clarinetists? Seems like I read this once...
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Author: TonkaToy
Date: 2005-04-21 12:33
My understanding is that he was the pianist with Cleveland at the same time he was Asst. Principal Clarinet.
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Author: D Dow
Date: 2005-04-21 13:21
I have a wonderful set of the Schumann symphonies under Jerzy Semkow with Silfies playing Principal and he is wonderful...beautiful liquid sound without the overtly even tone one tends to hear in these works.
I love his playing also on Scherherazade.
David Dow
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Author: John J. Moses
Date: 2005-04-21 18:37
George worked in NYC for a while at the NYC Ballet, and he sounded great!
I was really astonished at his ability on the keyboard, which was equal to he expertise on the clarinet.
He succeeded me as principal clarinetist of the St. Louis Symphony, a very good choice for them. He was there for many years, and has just recently left the orchestra.
JJM
Légère Artist
Clark W. Fobes Artist
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Author: Robert Moody
Date: 2005-04-22 02:25
I thought Silfies was just okay. Never impressed me.
Gotta be an athiest at every gathering. 
I truly enjoyed his playing as well.
Robert Moody
http://www.musix4me.com
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