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Re: John Denman's clarinet

Author: symphony1010
Date: 2024-02-08 14:36

As a young clarinettist I grew up in north east Hampshire close to Guildford, just across the border in Surrey. My nearest professional orchestra was the Guildford Philharmonic, which was largely comprised of good London players heading out of town for a decently paid gig over the weekend. The conductor during my teenage years there was Vernon Handley and I encountered much of the central repertoire as well as Handley's specialisms during that time. John Denman was principal clarinet and my band director played 2nd. John's sound and style of playing were an inspiration and I think he was probably at his peak around that time. I can still hear him playing the solo in Tchaikovsky's Francesca da Rimini and warming the sound with his gentle vibrato.

He also gave recitals in Guildford and at one of these he developed a cough. A quick hand in the pocket and he promptly continued with a cough sweet whilst playing!

A few years later and I took up a scholarship at the Royal College of Music. My professor, Sidney Fell, had been principal clarinet of the LSO and at some point I told him how much I admired Denman's playing. He told me that Denman had been his second on some recordings including the Mendelssohn Incidental music to a Midsummer Night's Dream. In the famous scherzo he took delight in telling me that it wasn't quite fast enough for Denman's famous double-tongue and just at the limit for his single tongue.

You can hear the result here https://youtu.be/DS6Rqr-RYB4?si=NRUG2FafQeFw9cvw

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John Denman's clarinet new

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