 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: sarah.mah
Date: 2009-10-31 05:49
Hello! I have one question for an upcoming orchestra audition. We are suppose to know the orchestral parts ahead of time for this audition. There are some "A" clarinet parts. Is it okay that I play those parts on my Bb instrument during the audition? Since it is in a solo setting, I could pretty much play an A clarinet part on the Bb right?
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Author: Katrina
Date: 2009-10-31 05:56
Yes and no.
It depends on what kind of orchestra it is. Pro auditions require the use of the correct horn. College/community orchestras would probably want to know you can play it in the correct concert key, whatever that would be. High School/Youth Orchestra auditions you can probably get away with it, but I wouldn't count on it.
Your best bet (other than playing them on A) would be to play them in the correct concert key, transposing them from the A part.
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2009-10-31 12:53
You probably could for a non professional audition but if you win you will be asked and expected to have an A clarinet. Just let the committee know that you will get one if you win if and when asked. ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: Gretchen
Date: 2009-10-31 13:49
You could play the parts on Bb as long as the concert pitch is correct. If you acknowledge in your playing the fact that the music should be in a different key (but you don't have the horn) you'll probably be fine. It's all about how it sounds, so make sure the notes are in the correct key. Good luck!
Gretchen
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Author: mrn
Date: 2009-10-31 15:01
I've heard of AYO. They seemed to me to be a little more like a pre-professional training orchestra or a festival orchestra than most youth symphonies I'm familiar with. They will probably at least expect you to have an A clarinet to use while in the orchestra. [Edit -- You WILL need an A clarinet to play in this orchestra if you win a spot in it, because there are notes in the Mahler that can only be played on an A clarinet]
As to whether you need to use one for the audition, that's something you need to ask the AYO people about. I tried looking on their website to see if it gave any guidance. I'd say you wouldn't need an A for the audition, because they let you choose your own audition material (just choose stuff written for Bb clarinet)--but they do make you sight-read stuff out of R. Strauss's Don Juan and Mahler's 5th (both of which are written for A clarinet), so it's hard to say.
Actually Mahler requires A, Bb, and C, so you need to ask about whether you need a C clarinet, too; I wouldn't expect them to make you have one, since a lot of pros. don't own them (at least that was the case when I was a student facing my first C clarinet part in youth symphony), but you never know. You might also want to find out if they expect you be able to sight-transpose the C clarinet parts as part of the sight-reading, though. (If so, I recommend you transpose these parts in advance and memorize the transposed parts to play on your Bb instrument. You can download the Mahler parts from this website. If they're telling you what pieces the "sight-reading" is coming from, they don't necessarily expect you're going to be seeing the part for the first time at the audition. Incidentally, you can also download the score to Don Juan from http://www.imslp.org or buy the parts for download on http://www.everynote.com. Learn the parts before you audition--it will not only help you audition, but since you will be performing these pieces if you win the audition, it will pay off in the long run, too.)
Actually the clarinet clinician for AYO is Steven Barta, who plays with Ed P in the Baltimore Symphony. He might be the right person to ask about this (because, if nothing else, he should know who to talk to to get a definitive answer about this--or even advocate for a good policy on this topic, if necessary). Perhaps Ed can help you get in touch with him.
Post Edited (2009-10-31 15:35)
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Author: mrn
Date: 2009-10-31 17:33
EEBaum wrote:
> I'd be shocked if the orchestra required you to have a C
> clarinet.
Me, too--but they are playing Mahler, and I have actually run across people who think that even youth orchestra players should have C clarinets.
Post Edited (2009-10-31 18:13)
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Author: sarah.mah
Date: 2009-11-01 08:34
Mrn, how did you figure out that I was auditioning for the AYO? I guess you must have kept up with my earlier posts!
I have no clue how to keep in contact with Steven Barta. I've been in communication with Keith Lau, the General Manager who is going to be on the jury next to Richard Pontzious. I am currently preparing Weber's Concerto No. 1, III mvt. and for a slow mvt. I have not decided yet if I should pick the Mozart or something else.
My audition is coming up on Jan. 31, 2010, so there's three months left. Yikes!
I've been in contact with the local rep. and she said an A clarinet is not required to play with AYO. Transposition is allowed.
But she does not know if I need to sight-transposed on audition day itself.
I've found all my clarinet parts for the audition thanks to the imslp.org and some other websites.
It will be nice if someone already had a collection of transposed pieces somewhere on the web ...
Sarah
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