 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: SusanE
Date: 2009-12-13 06:59
I have a possibility to play clarinet in this opera for a community group. Have some questions?
1. Have heard that the part might be in C. Did he expect the sound of C clarinet or does one transpose? Is it all in C? If not, which instrument.
2. Know where I can get just the clarinet part to look at ahead of time?
3. Is there bass clarinet used?
Any other advise, or comments would be useful
Thank you
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: GBK
Date: 2009-12-13 07:20
If I remember correctly, there is a good deal of C clarinet, along with a moderate amount of Bb clarinet.
BTW - Some of the C parts are in 3 and 4 sharps.
If you do not own a C clarinet, transposing is a bit of a challenge.
...GBK
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: cigleris
Date: 2009-12-13 13:33
Your A will come in handy for most of the C transposition.
Peter Cigleris
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2009-12-13 14:06
Very few players actually own a C clarinet so most of us transpose from our Bb clarinet. Some players find it comfortable to transpose from their A clarinet if the key signature has a lot of sharps. If the part in C is in the key of E, as an example, transposing on the Bb clarinet puts you in 6 sharps but playing it on the A clarinet puts you in only one sharp, the key of G. If you read bass clef you can think of A transposition as reading it in the bass clef, but in the correct range of course. I always get confused doing that because I play bass clarinet so much in the bass clef I tend to want to play the wrong octave if I transpose a C clarinet part on my A clarinet instead of on my Bb, but it can work either way.
Every clarinetist should practice transposing as part of their regular practice schedule, especially from their Bb clarinet. Up a whole step for C clarinet parts, and even down a half step for transposing A clarinet parts, especially if they play bass clarinet. ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: SusanE
Date: 2009-12-13 17:41
I own a C. Sharps not a problem. Wonder if he, he being Verdi, wanted the C sound or expected clarinetist to transpose.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2009-12-13 18:39
It is my opinion that Verdi wrote it in C because of the key signature not because of the sound. Of course I could be wrong. It was common back then to do that because in the early days of the clarinet development it was necessary to use different clarinets when the piece called for too many sharps or flats. It is my belief that the tradition continued through the 19 century except maybe for Berlioz, and even then who really knows. For sure Strauss used the C clarinet for different tone qualities often because in his wind symphonies he would use a Bb clarinet and a C, D and maybe even an Eb in the same piece. Of course that's just my opinion. ESP
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Liquorice
Date: 2009-12-14 07:17
As Ed states: "Of course that's just my opinion"
Check out this recent thread to see some other opinions:
http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=315893&t=305499
I've performed 16 Verdi operas. In my opinion his use of the C clarinet is not just a matter of which key the piece happens to be in. I could give many, many examples from these Verdi operas where the sound and articulation of the C clarinet adds to the required character of the piece, or blends better with the other instruments.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: mrn
Date: 2009-12-14 18:35
One thing that I think is worth keeping in mind is that, as far as the use of C clarinets go, it's not an either-or question--i.e., either Verdi used the C clarinet because of the key signature or Verdi used it because of the sound. It's more complicated than that, I think.
Art, as with basically any creative endeavor, is about making the best sort of thing out of what you have. And what you have may constrain you in one respect, while affording you creative advantages in another.
So the point I am trying to make is this: Even if the composer's choice of clarinet was dictated by key signature, you still have to ask yourself whether the instrument chosen, once chosen, was then exploited by the composer for it's characteristic sound. Did the composer orchestrate certain passages in a particular way because he was trying to take advantage of, say, the C clarinet's characteristic sound, even though the actual decision to use a C clarinet in the piece was dictated by the key? That's really a different question.
What Liquorice wrote suggests to me that this may be what some composers did. Their choice of clarinet may have been, to some degree, dictated by key, but the way they wrote for the clarinets so chosen took into account the instruments' strengths.
Verdi probably wrote his clarinet parts keeping in mind that Cavallini would play them on 5-key clarinets (thus making the choice of clarinet at least somewhat key-dependent). But he probably also kept in mind which clarinet he was writing for when he wrote the clarinet parts he did. Who knows--for an important enough clarinet solo, he might have even chosen the key of the music to fit the clarinet he wanted! We just don't know. The best thing we can do is try to figure out what Verdi was trying to do musically, and do what best serves the aims of the music.
And of course, if you don't have a C clarinet at your disposal, you do the best you can do with what you have (which is what I have to do, because I don't own one and it's not economically practical for me to purchase one at present).
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Liquorice
Date: 2009-12-14 19:13
I recently played an opera by Verdi called "Il Corsaro". In the overture there is a beautiful cantabile clarinet solo in D-flat major. He makes the logical choice of using B-flat clarinet, which then plays in E-flat major. Cavallini was obviously comfortable playing in 3 flats on his B-flat clarinet. A few numbers later there is a quirky staccato section with clarinet in unison with oboe, flute and piccolo. This passage is in D major. Technically it would have been easiest if Verdi had written for the A clarinet to play in F major. But he doesn't- he writes for C clarinet. The quirky character of this piece wouldn't be as effective on an A clarinet- which is why I prefer to play it on the clarinet that Verdi wrote it for. I could probably give 50 similar examples from Verdi operas where easier choices of clarinet have been avoided in favour of characteristic tone colour.
Interestingly, Verdi almost always uses the B-flat clarinet for the lovely, exposed cantabile solos (eg. Il Forza del Destino, La Traviata etc.) Whether this preference over the A clarinet was his or Cavallini's we will never know.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
