 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Gary Foss
Date: 2006-05-19 23:46
I am doing a recital in the fall that will require music that includes voice, it's sponsored by our opera company. Shepherd on the Rock is out as well as, Ned Rorems' Ariel and Berios' Folk Songs as all of these have been done recently. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
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Author: Kevin
Date: 2006-05-20 00:36
The Vaughan-Williams 10 Blake Songs? They're for oboe and tenor, but I suppose it wouldn't be too difficult to transpose for clarinet.
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Author: Phurster
Date: 2006-05-20 03:10
I have performed the Spohr “Sechs deutsche Lieder” on a number of occasions. They are great works to play. The general consensus seems to be that playing all six gets a bit boring for the audience but three or four of them is just right. They are all very playable, florid but “under the fingers” the first one “Sei still mein Herz” is perhaps the only one that is slightly tricky. The second one “Zwiegesang” has bird like trills, the third “Sehnsucht” has florid ,rapid arpeggios and is very effective. The sixth one is the unfortunately named “Wach auf”, try saying that after a few drinks.
Another work you may consider is “ Parto! Ma tu ben mio”, from "La Clamenza di Tito" well written probably more suited to a mezzo than a soprano (I am told) . Sounds fine to me with either.
Chris.
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Author: larryb
Date: 2006-05-20 11:41
if an opera company is involved and you can choose from several voices, you should try Mozart's 6 Notturni: 2 sopranos and bass accompanied by 3 basset horns/2 clarinets and basset horn.
If you don't have basset horns, you could try transcribing these for two clarinets and bassoon (I know it's been done).
You could pair the Mozart Notturni with a performance of Jose Myslivecek's 3 Notturni for 2 sopranos and various instruments (clarinets, horns, strings).
That would be a unique recital.
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Author: LarryBocaner ★2017
Date: 2006-05-20 14:10
Well, if we're talking about multiple clarinets and voice, how about Stravinsky's "Berceuse du Chat". Mezzo soprano, Eb, A, and bass clarinets.
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Author: hinotehud ★2017
Date: 2006-05-20 14:26
I also endorse Spohr's Six Songs, especially the 5th "Das Heimliche Lied". Also consider Copland's "As It Fell Upon A Day" for flute, clarinet and soprano. The new CD "The Obligato Clarinet" with Colin Bradbury is all clarinet and vioce. In addtition to Spohr and Schubert, it features works by Lachner, Obiols, Meyerbeer, Kucken, Kalliwoods, Walthew, and Spaeth. According tp Pamela Weston, in her book "More Clarinet Virtuosi of the Past", Mozart's "Parto" was the most performed work of all compostitions by the clarinetists she covered.
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Author: Katherine Handcock
Date: 2006-05-20 14:30
There is a wonderful piece by a Canadian composer, John Rea, for two sopranos and clarinet, called Offenes Lied. It has a semi-dramatic component, with a high/coloraturo soprano as a rather innocent character, a lyric soprano as a more worldly character, and the clarinet between, sometimes soothing, sometimes threatening. I performed this for one of my recitals at the University of Western Ontario several years ago, and got very positive responses.
John Head has a piece for mezzo-soprano, clarinet, and piano called "The World is Mad", which is also very nice. It takes a little putting together, though; there's a certain amount of freedom to the two parts that takes some coordination.
There's also a piece by Davis called Three Poems of William Blake, which is for soprano and low clarinet; I never performed it, but liked it on reading through it.
Last of all, I cannot recommend enough a BEAUTIFUL piece by Hovhaness called Saturn, which is for soprano, clarinet, and piano. We only played part of this work (it's lengthy, probably would have been twenty-five minutes long in full.) The last movement is a vocalise in the voice with the clarinet in open perfect intervals, and it's just the most wonderful sound. The incredible thing was, when we got it perfectly in tune, the resonance of the overtones in the voice and my instrument had the strangest effect--it sounded like there was a man's voice singing about an octave below the soprano! And it was LOUD! Unfortunately, when we performed it in recital, that didn't carry out to the audience--I guess it was only audible on stage--but everyone raved about the piece itself.
Hope this is helpful!
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Author: Fontalvo
Date: 2006-05-20 14:46
Vaugh-Williams also wrote this piece called three vocalises for clarinet, soprano and harpsichord. it is really nice.
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Author: David Peacham
Date: 2006-05-20 16:53
Brahms wrote two songs for mezzo/alto voice, viola and piano: Gestillte Sehnsucht and Geistliches Wiegenlied. I've never been quite convinced about the first, but the second is wonderful.
If viola players can steal our Brahms sonatas, perhaps we can steal these.
It turns out that I'm not the first to have this idea: http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000014CZ/qid=1148143657/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i2_xgl/203-3151372-1547925
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If there are so many people on this board unwilling or unable to have a civil and balanced discussion about important issues, then I shan't bother to post here any more.
To the great relief of many of you, no doubt.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2006-05-20 18:49
Nyman's Miserere (from The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover)
--
Ben
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Author: donald
Date: 2006-05-20 20:57
Meyerbeer- Hirtenlied, this is a good piece to start with, not too difficult to put together and a great way to find out if your group "works well" and want to continue working together.
i didn't know the Vaughn Williams had a harpsichord part, i thought it was just sop/clar?????
donald
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Author: DaveF
Date: 2006-05-21 09:15
I recently performed Gordon Jacob's Four Seasonal Songs at a recital (recorded), which is well written, clarinet in A, with some challenging moments. Also on our program was Arnold Cooke's Three Songs of Innocence, another well written work. Arthur Bliss's Two Nursery Rhymes was another, good piece. Paul Harris' Six Clerihew Songs are short, humorous and fun to do. I think the best piece we did is Spohr's Recitative and Aria "Ich bin allein" from Faust. A real work out for coloratura soprano, and wonderful obbligato clarinet lines. We also used Andrew Lloyd Webber's Pie Jesu (two sopranos plus piano) as an encore, I simply transcribed the 2nd soprano part. That is quite beautiful, and a crowd pleaser! I later learned the soprano parts are really a mother/daughter duet.......I took some ribbing on that one!
Dave F.
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Author: Gary Foss
Date: 2006-05-22 00:22
Thank You All for the great suggestions, I'm leaning towards the Sphor, but a number of the pieces mentioned above have me doing more research. It's because of such wonderful input from fellow clarinetists that this site is so valuable.
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Author: donald
Date: 2006-05-22 03:26
Dave F- another sop duet that you can do that with (sop/clar/pno instead of 2 sops/pno) is the flower duet from Lakme. The brits/europeans will know this as the "brittish airways song" but my experience in the US was that this piece is not well known. It is, none the less, very pretty and a good encore number
donald
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Author: diz
Date: 2006-05-23 02:10
You can not beat Shepherd on the Rock ... (needs piano too).
Without music, the world would be grey, very grey.
Post Edited (2006-05-23 02:11)
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Author: bob49t
Date: 2006-05-24 23:39
SOTR is a nice piece but done to death, and too many wobby sopranos have jaded my pleasure of this piece which should be a corner stone of the genre.
I've recently done the Six Spohr Songs..(none of them are marathons).They are a delight if done say as two separate groups of 3. Unusually, we actually played them as a complete set and although it was hard work, the music lies beautifully under the clarinet fingers and was more thrilling than fatiguing. Needs very competent singer and pianist. Audience seemed to enjoy them too which was reassuring possibly due to the changes of character within the set and the rhapsodic writing for clar. Even if you don't perform them I'd consider them a "must" for your library and repertoire.
BobT
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