 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Tom Piercy
Date: 2017-02-04 23:29
Gervase De Peyer has left us.
A sad day for his family, friends, and students.
A sad day for the clarinet and music world.
You will be missed, dear Gervase.
His voice is silenced.
His music will live on in my heart, mind and ears.
A great teacher and mentor, a great friend. A true inspiration.
Very early on in my lessons with Gervase, he told me to write something down. He said it was important.
I still have that note.
"Do Something,
Say Something,
Don't be Predictable."
I try to to live up to these words every time I play.
Gervase de Peyer was my most influential and long-lasting teacher and mentor. His sound - bold, colorful - was in my head since I was a teenager. I moved to NYC to study with him and continued to learn from him until the last time we spoke. He was always there to give advice and encouragement, both about music and life.
His personality and musicality were a great match: bigger than life, full of energy, endlessly curious. His playing was unique and almost instantly recognizable: full of charm and elegance, with a powerful technique always at the service to the music. Many composers wrote their music for him, as they knew he would bring a great life to those little black dots on the page. Playing for him, and with him, was a walk on the high-wire: endlessly exciting and thrilling; always learning and living something new.
It was a true honor and joy to become friends with Gervase and his dear wife Katia. So many good laughs; so many good talks about music and life. My deepest sympathies to Katia and the family.
With a deep love and respect, and endless gratitude for all you did for me, goodbye for now, Gervase.
Until I see you again, I will continue to try to "Do Something, Say Something, Don't be Predictable."
http://www.gervasedepeyer.com/
Tom Piercy
Post Edited (2017-02-05 00:37)
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2017-02-05 01:06
So sad to hear he has left us.
I first heard him live when taking part in a concert in the Royal Albert Hall in 1961 with the LSO and the Household Cavalry bands, in which I was a very minor player.
The last live porformance I heard him play was on his 80th birthday concert in the Wigmore Hall, London 2006.
A unique player, sorely missed. RIP
Post Edited (2017-02-05 01:33)
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Author: clarinetguy ★2017
Date: 2017-02-05 06:05
I'm very sorry to hear this sad news. When I was in high school in the early 70s, I bought his LP of the Weber first and the Rossini Theme and Variations. Without a doubt, it was my favorite recording of this concerto, although to be honest, I haven't put it on lately.
I once had the opportunity to hear a concert of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center when they were on tour, and it was announced that De Peyer would be with them. Unfortunately, plans changed at the last minute and he didn't come, and that was the closest I came to hearing him live.
I'm sure many of you remember the days of going to record stores and searching for clarinet recordings. In my pre-college days, I recall having LPs of Benny Goodman, Reginald Kell, and De Peyer, and being influenced by all three.
Yes, he was a wonderful clarinet player, and he will be missed.
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Author: seabreeze
Date: 2017-02-05 06:29
DePeyer certainly was a stylist who stood out from the clarinet crowd. The way he played a piece tended to remain in memory long after. Though I always preferred the sound and approach of Louis Cahuzac and Leopold Wlach, and didn't take to DePeyer's vibrato at all, my understanding of certain pieces, such as Arthur Benjamin's "Le Tombeau De Ravel" and Martinu's "Sonatina" was strongly shaped by hearing DePeyer play them on the L'Oiseau Lyre 12" LP recital with pianist Cyril Preedy. Whenever I play the Benjamin piece, I still feel I have to articulate those low chalumeau e's the way he did; in fact that articulation seems the only way to play the passage.
DePeyer paved the way for classical clarinetists (all very different from him stylistically) to be featured as solo performers.
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Author: ruben
Date: 2017-02-05 11:03
Thank you for this fine, heartfelt tribute, Tom I imagine Mr. De Peyer was living in France at the end of his life. I never had the good fortune to meet him, which I much regret. Rest in blessed peace, Gervase de Peyer.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: ruben
Date: 2017-02-06 01:02
Dear Seabreeze, I have just listened to Mr. de Peyer's rendidtion of Debussy's Rhapsodie and found it very appealing. He is very free, technically very sound (he never makes anything sound purely technical) and the phrasing is very free, lyrical and generous; not the least bit academic. It is true the sound of those Boosey 1010s (he later played Peter Eaton, but still large-bored clarinets) and his vibrato are not the flavor of the day.
You mentioned Cahuzac. Mr. de Peyer studied with him. I recently started a thread on Luigi Amodio. Amodio didn't play with a hint of vibrato. In art, some things age better than others, I suppose.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: D Dow
Date: 2017-02-07 03:07
It is a very sad day..Gervase De Peyer was a superb clarinetist and the last exponent of the older British school of clarinetistry. His recording of the Mozart Quintet with the Amadeus has been worn out from over use until I found the CD. His readings are among my favorite of many piece..his Kegelstatt and the Berwald Septet are among others!
Rest in Peace Gervase...
David Dow
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Author: Philip Caron
Date: 2017-02-07 05:12
His was my original recording of Weber's 2nd, and I played that lp many times. I also enjoyed numerous recordings of the Melos Ensemble, of which De Peyer was a founding member and with which he recorded many times.
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Author: PaulIsaac
Date: 2017-02-07 16:02
His 1992 CD "French music for Clarinet and Piano" is a favourite of mine. Saint-Saens Sonata, Poulenc Sonata - magnificent!
RIP Maestro.
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Author: MartyMagnini
Date: 2017-02-07 20:12
De Peyer performances helped me define musicality in my youth. His version of the Premier Rhapsody was the first solo clarinet recording I ever bought (together with the Marcellus Mozart). I can still see the blue cover in my mind's eye - that's how important that recording was to me. In my teens, I did not particularly care for his sound, vibrato, etc., much preferring Marcellus' approach. However, as I became more open to different types of musicality, I appreciated him much more, and could see the musical statements he was making, which were (of course) significant. I came to regard many of his recording as my favorites - like the Spohr Concertos, which he played with such agility, style, and joy that really brought the pieces to life (unlike some popular other renditions, which I found to sound more like technical exercises). Now I find that I am much more open to different interpretations, different musical statements and ideas, and I owe much of that to my listening and trying to appreciate (then very much appreciating) De Peyer and his approach to music. R.I.P. Maestro.
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Author: rtaylor
Date: 2017-02-07 20:16
I never heard him live and I regret not having done so. His recordings however were very influential on my "formative" years of clarinet playing. His sense of style and the turn of a phrase were always an inspiration to me.
He will be sorely missed.
Robert
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