 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2002-08-19 18:32
Does the Beethoven 2nd Symphony call for clarinets in A?
I've got the green light to join the community orchestra at the college I work for. The 2nd is in the linup for the semester. I should be able to get an A clarinet from the music department if I can justify needing it for the orchestra.
I really need to just get one of my own...
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Author: Brandon
Date: 2002-08-19 18:41
Does the Beethoven 2nd Symphony call for clarinets in A?
yes.
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Author: Marcia
Date: 2002-08-20 00:56
If you are joining an orchestra you would be well advised to get an "A", unless you are a whiz at transposing a semitone!!
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2002-08-20 01:55
No, I'm not a whiz at transposing a semitone, and yes, I'm in a mad search for an A clarinet. It'll likely be the deciding factor in whether or not I join. Wish me luck!
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Author: diz
Date: 2002-08-20 04:58
Ralph - just do it - beg, borrow, buy the A clarinet, you'll not regret it. The parts in this work are not "great" and in the first movement they sit around the break a lot, however the second movement is lovely and the two clarinets feature there (larghetto). Enoy!!
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Author: David Dow
Date: 2002-08-20 15:36
I think the Beethoven 2cd is one of the great 1sr or 2cd parts ever written. I have played this piece half a dozen times-- and enjoy itmore and more. The 1st movement is my favorite of all!
A few records you may want to work on just to hear how good this piece is are: Szell cleveland with marcellus on 1st clarinet and the Berstein NY Phil record with Drcuker. Both performances are volatile and really show how exciting this piece can be.
Best wishes and have a blast!
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Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2002-08-20 17:50
Ralph,
You might check the Sneezy classifieds. There is a Leblanc Symphonie III A clarinet listed there that might be worth looking into.
I wouldn't let the lack of an A clarinet keep me from joining the orchestra if I were you. Many works don't call for an A. Of those that do, many now come with an alternate part written out for Bb clarinet, either "official" (e.g., I think the Kalmus editions of the Beethoven Symphonies include alternate Bb parts) or "unofficial" (written out by someone before you who didn't have an A). Also, many clarinet parts (or sections of parts) are fairly easy to sight transpose with a little practice (play every note as if it had one flat added). Finally, for those relatively rare/usually short sections that are too difficult to transpose at sight, you can write out the transposition or use notation software to do the transposition for you.
If you can afford an A, can find a good one and want one, by all means go for it. Don't let the lack of one keep you from playing in an orchestra, however. Lot's of people in community orchestras (and perhaps even a few in small regional professional ones) get along fine without them.
(But if you don't have an A and the conductor asks you to play a concerto, tell him/her that you want to do Weber 1 instead of Mozart. :^) )
Best regards,
jnk
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