 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: Joarkh
Date: 2014-03-08 19:31
Hi everyone,
In three weeks' time I will be performing the Mozart clarinet concerto with a community orchestra in my home town, and I am considering the possibility of preparing an encore as well.
I would like it to be something for solo clarinet, either B flat or A, not too long, of musical substance, could be a bit flashy but perhaps not too much, and it would have to be something which could come after Mozart without ruining the experience of that.
Do you have any suggestions, bearing all this in mind? Or maybe it is better not to prepare an encore, seeing as it is only three weeks left? Any opinions are appreciated!
I was instinctively thinking of one of Kovacs's Hommages, but I don't know them so well so I couldn't say if it would fit.
Kindly,
Joar
Clarinet and saxophone teacher, clarinet freelancer
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: cigleris
Date: 2014-03-08 15:00
Contact me offline, I have something which you might be interested in. It's scored for the same orchestra as the Mozart Concerto.
Peter Cigleris
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Joarkh
Date: 2014-03-09 01:32
Thanks!
Joar
Clarinet and saxophone teacher, clarinet freelancer
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: William
Date: 2014-03-09 20:57
See Dan Higgins video posting and get creative. Mozart, if he were alive, would probably love it.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: John Peacock
Date: 2014-03-09 22:06
Violinists always seem to do solo Bach as an encore. A lot of that works well on the clarinet too (e.g. Martin Frost on his recent disc).
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2014-03-09 22:40
In my opinion, there can be no encore after the Mozart Concerto, any more than there could be after the Verdi Requiem or the Beethoven 9th.
Just maybe you could repeat the finale, with some ornamentation and more joyous and dance-like.
Rudolf Serkin was asked what might serve as a warmup or encore for the Goldberg Variations. He said "The last time I needed something to go with the Goldberg Variations, I played the Hammerklavier."
Ken Shaw
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: bmcgar ★2017
Date: 2014-03-10 00:52
I'm with Ken, fwiw. No encore!
If the audience isn't sufficiently impressed with your playing and musicianship by the end of the Mozart, they never will be.
If the audience isn't musically satiated by the end of the Mozart, then you'll need to work on the Mozart more, not an encore piece.
B.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: davyd
Date: 2014-03-10 02:19
I'm inclined to agree: no encore. But I'm not a soloist.
If you're set on playing something, definitely stick with the A clarinet. Under the circumstances, you don't want to take even a moment to switch to a 'cold' Bb.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Joarkh
Date: 2014-03-11 12:51
Thanks all for advice!
Joar
Clarinet and saxophone teacher, clarinet freelancer
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Joarkh
Date: 2014-03-11 13:22
Yes, sorry I didn't reply yet! Thank you!!
Joar
Clarinet and saxophone teacher, clarinet freelancer
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: snilsson
Date: 2014-03-12 12:43
Whether you choose to do an encore or not (and I think it's very difficult to top the Mozart concerto) don't forget to rehearse how to acknowledge the applause.
You know the drill: thanking the audience, thanking the conductor, sharing the applause with the orchestra, flowers and hugs, walking off and then on again, with and without the conductor. You need to plan and rehearse this.
By the way, you should't think of this as superficial or manipulative. After a good performance, the audience really wants to show their approval and you should give them the chance. Also, everyone will remember the concert in a positive way if their was plenty of applause afterwards. It's a win for everyone.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2014-03-12 17:38
How to take a bow: walk out, turn to the audience and look at your feet. Bow your head as well as your body.
The worst sort of bow is where the performer holds his/her head up trying to keep the audience in view.
Ken Shaw
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: snilsson
Date: 2014-03-13 00:02
Ken, this being the Internet, I can't tell whether you're joking or not. But let's just say that looking at your feet is rarely the best way of communicating.
Also, it's not about talking a bow. It's about letting the audience see and know that you appreciate their cheering. How you do it matters little. Most of us stage people do it by simply looking at the audience and saying a quiet "thank you". The first few hundred times you probably don't even have to fake it.
Here is the real secret. If you're a young gifted musician, the audience will love you. It doesn't matter if you overdo or underplay your thank-you routine. They will find it adorable. Even looking at your feet will work.
As a director used to tell me when I was young: "The audience is your mama. Your mama loves you."
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2014-03-12 21:23
I'm absolutely serious. A genuine bow absolutely requires that you bend both your torso and your head down. You're accepting the audience's cheers humbly, not communicating back to them, at least for that moment.
If the Queen of England taps you on the shoulders with a sword and inducts you as a Knight of the Garter, the last thing you would do is look her in the eye.
Ken Shaw
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: snilsson
Date: 2014-03-13 13:55
I've performed for quite a few queens, but not that particular one, so what do I know?
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Joarkh
Date: 2014-03-15 01:19
I certainly always bend my head as well, but I wasn't appointed Knight of the Garter yet.
I'm thinking a little about Stravinsky's second piece for solo clarinet as encore. (It's for A clarinet...) Tasteless?
Referring to a comment in an earlier post about not having to use an encore to demonstrate any further musicianship and virtuosity than in the concerto: I don't think that's what encores principally are about, rather they are a part of the process which happens between the performer (soloist) and public after the performance of the formal program: The public applaud and thus thank the performer, who in return bows and akcnowledges the applause, and, if there is more applause and the public would like to hear you play a little more, you do that, not to show off or somehow top what they've just heard, but rather as a gesture to the audience.
(I'm of course doing it all by heart, including an eventual encore.)
Joar
Clarinet and saxophone teacher, clarinet freelancer
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: snilsson
Date: 2014-03-15 07:25
Hello again Joar, here are a few more thoughts.
Don't worry too much about the advice from this bulletin board. It's your concert and we don't know enough about the audience, the venue, the time of day, what else is on the program and so on.
That said, I've been doing a lot of performing over 30 years, both music, lecturing, and pure entertainment and I've noticed a few things that always seem to be true.
It's a very common mistake to make the program too long. It's much better to leave the audience wanting more than to do one piece too much. The things people remember most strongly is the initial impression of the performer and how they felt at the end of the performance. As a performer you are always very energetic and feel like you could go on for ever. It's a very good idea to stop when you're at the top. (And of course, it's very difficult to do better than Mozart.) This is the reason why professional stage performers spend a lot of time planning how to end their show (including the applause). You want the audience to leave feeling warm and fuzzy inside. (By the way, the Mozart concerto has exactly that effect when performed well.)
Another very common mistake with musicians is that they spend years and years perfecting the music, but totally ignore that live music performance is much more than sound. Saying a few words about the piece before playing and thinking a little bit about how to say "thank you" can make a tremendous difference. (Once again, it doesn't matter at all exactly how you do it, but it's bad if you skip it.)
Toi, toi, break a leg.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: snilsson
Date: 2014-03-15 12:06
This probably doesn't apply to Joar's situation but I still want to tell you about the best way of handling encores that I've ever seen.
This was at a concert with Stockholm Syndrome Ensemble a few weeks ago. The formal program consisted of
Leoš Janácek: The Diary of One Who Disappeared
Arnold Schönberg: Transfigured Night
Pretty heavy stuff for most audiences and even though these musicians are incredibly good, the house was less than half-full.
There were no encores in the concert hall, instead everyone who wanted was invited downstairs to the bar where some of the musicians continued playing. Pretty much everyone stayed and had a great time -- and those few who couldn't, were able to leave. Even better, there was a never-ending line to the bar. Instead of a potential economic mess, this concert may well have generated a surplus.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Joarkh
Date: 2014-03-15 18:37
Thanks again for your thoughts
Joar
Clarinet and saxophone teacher, clarinet freelancer
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
