 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Bino
Date: 2000-12-08 21:15
Who was the principal clarinetist for the Chicago Symphony around the 1950's under the direction of Reiner? Also who was the principal clarinetist of the Berlin Philharmonic under Karajan around the 1970's? I have purchased two recordings and have no clue who the clarinetists are? Why can't Record labels give a list of the performers on the record? I get all this info on the conductor and the piece yet not one musician listed from the orchestra...Sorry I went off on a tangent...If any1 knows who the clarenetists were I would appreciate it...Thanks in advance...
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Author: Ken Shaw
Date: 2000-12-08 21:28
Bino -
The principal in Chicago beginning in the 1950s was Clark Brody. A wonderful player. David Hattner, who I think reads this board and is a regular on the Klarinet board, has become an expert on him.
Karl Leister was the Berlin principal in the 1970s -- along with Marcellus, probably the ultimate orchestral player.
Best regards.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Phil
Date: 2000-12-09 02:54
Along these lines...who is the clarinetist on the 1978 recording of the Pines of Rome with the Berlin Philharmonic? Would this be leister or Marcellus at that year?
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Author: Bino
Date: 2000-12-09 03:17
Marcellus played in Berlin? This is Robert we are talkin about? Cleveland Symphony?
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Author: pam
Date: 2000-12-09 04:32
Leister was principal in Berlin from 1959, when he was 22, until a couple of years ago. Wasn't Mitchell Lurie also principal in Chicago in the 50's for a couple of years?
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Author: Chris Hill
Date: 2000-12-09 21:30
I think that some people may have misread Ken Shaw's statement. I think that he meant that Leister and Marcellus were ultimate orchestra clarinetists, not that they both played principal in Berlin. I misread it that way at first, also.
Chris
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Author: Dave Spiegelthal
Date: 2000-12-11 15:03
I have an old LP from (I believe) the late 50's or early 60's of the Columbia Symphony Orchestra under Bruno Walter, playing Dvorak's 8th Symphony. The clarinets and oboes sound absolutely wonderful to me, both sounding much like the Cleveland Orchestra players of the same era. Does anyone know who these players were? Also, who generally were the players in these "house" orchestras for the big record labels (RCA also had one), and did these orchestras only record, or did they ever 'play out'?
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Author: John Scorgie
Date: 2000-12-11 18:02
Dave --
My best guess: The orchestra on many of the Bruno Walter / "Columbia Symphony Orchestra" recordings is the NY Phil, possibly subbed or augmented with other NY area players. Second guess: The LA Phil is the orchestra on several of the Walter/Columbia Sym recordings because after he fled the Nazis Walter eventually settled in the LA area and lived there until his death.
I am not familiar with the recording you cite so I can't say for sure which orchestra is playing. If the recording says "recorded in New York (date) or recorded in Los Angeles (date) that would be a tip off.
You might look for a Bruno Walter website to get a definitive answer. Some of the people who collect Walter recordings have vast knowledge of the details surrounding those NY and LA recording sessions for Columbia.
If Walter ever made a bad or even indifferent recording, I am not aware of it. He is still my favorite Mahler conductor (after Jascha Horenstein, IMHO in a class by himself).
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Author: Dave Spiegelthal
Date: 2000-12-11 22:12
John,
Ain't the Internet wonderful? I took your suggestion, and a very quick (and perfunctory) search under "Bruno Walter" found a Sony recordings website with this statement: "Towards the end of his life an élite orchestra was assembled for him in Los Angeles, the Columbia Symphony Orchestra, with which he made stereo gramophone recordings of the most important part of his repertoire. " This partially answers my questions and adds some credence to your suggestion that possibly the Columbia Symphony Orchestra involved (in part or whole) the LA Philharmonic.
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Author: crnichols
Date: 2006-02-08 09:58
Sorry to bring up an old thread, but I am listening to a fairly amazing recordings of Bruno Walter conducting the Columbia Symphony Orchestra. Based on some of the information here, I'm concluding that in 1959 a recordings made in LA with the mentioned conductor and orchestra is likely in part the LA Philharmonic and the principal clarinet is possibly Kalman Bloch? It's from 1959, and whoever it is sounds great, really lovely sound for Wagner.
Christopher Nichols
1st Infantry Division Band
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Author: redwine
Date: 2006-02-08 11:31
Hello,
Sorry to respond to an old thread, but Iggy Gennusa was principal clarinetist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 1950 for one year before moving on. In this year, the orchestra recorded Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition, which won the grammy that year. I don't think this recording is still in print, but I got a bootleg recording of it from a friend who joined the CSO fan club (or whatever it's really called) and because he did, he got a box set of reissued recordings with this one on it.
Ben Redwine, DMA
owner, RJ Music Group
Assistant Professor, The Catholic University of America
Selmer Paris artist
www.rjmusicgroup.com
www.redwinejazz.com
www.reedwizard.com
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2006-02-08 12:46
Kalman did play on the Columbia / Stravinsky recordings so it could have been him playing.
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Author: Alphie
Date: 2006-02-08 19:52
The solo clarinettists in Berlin Phil around 1970 were Karl Leister and Herbert Stähr. If you don't have their particular sounds in your inner ear it's impossible to tell who's playing. Herbert Stähr is a clarinettist who was forgotten too fast. He was an excellent player indeed. Listend to old recordings of the Berlin Octet ensemble of wich he was a founding member.
Alphie
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2006-02-09 17:25
FWIW , I have a copy of "The C S O" by Lightfoot & Willis, CR. 1974, which lists Clark Brody, Larry Combs, Walter Wollwage and George Weber as Members/Clarinets as of June 1, 1974. Among many pictures, several show clarinets and -ists, but with no naming/dating. The first "large scale" pic shows 3 clists, I believe they are Brody and Combs, and a woman ?? On pg 31 there is a "lighter moment" pic of Brody and someone?? My interest in this came from playing/friendship with Clark's younger brother James [flutist], in school bands and orchs. Ah, memories, Don
Thanx, Mark, Don
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Author: LarryBocaner ★2017
Date: 2006-02-09 17:48
Jerry Stowell was asst. 1st and Eb clarinetist with the CSO from 1936 until his untimely death in 1953. I don't have the book you reference, but if the picture is of a man with a round, smiling face and light hair--could be him?
He was my teacher for about 4 years.
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Author: johnd
Date: 2009-04-30 01:27
Sorry about the long lag in my addition to this thread, but I am a new reader/member. (Outstanding site, so much great info). I just wanted to correct an apparent typo in this post which has Jerry Stowell's death in 1953. I knew that was wrong because I was his student for several years in the 50's. I checked the CSO site and it is 1973.
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Author: MartyMagnini
Date: 2009-04-30 11:45
Yes, it was '73, and if I remember correctly, Larry Combs was his replacement, and played assistant principal/Eb until Brody retired. George Weber died a few years later, and John Bruce Yeh replaced him (I took that audition and made the finals, but I don't even remember the year! Must have been around 77-78, because I came back from college to take the audition). I was a student of Wollwage's for 7-8 years, and got to know those guys fairly well in the mid-late 70's. Nice guys - great players! Seems like a lifetime ago.
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