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 Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: S. Friedland 
Date:   2008-04-30 21:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2niZ2hDl14&feature=related.
This is a film made in 1972 with Yehudi and Jeremy Menuhin and Thea King. While one might say that the clarinet sound is bright, still it is a very moving performance, and exciting.(She treats the dotted eights and 16ths more a la Baroque than what is written) I was especially moved by Mr. Menuhin. Even from the first pizzicato he attracts musical interest, and his son (I surmise) plays the last two bars of the slow movement with a beauty that one seldom hears.(But, is there an error in the clarinet part, 2nd movement?) The middle of the last movement just floats in space as it should). Please see and hear this.

Sherman Friedland



Post Edited (2008-04-30 21:56)

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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: DavidBlumberg 
Date:   2008-04-30 21:37

The beauty of Youtube.

Kids don't know how good they have it.

http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com


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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: cigleris 
Date:   2008-04-30 23:12

This is a great video, i've seen the 1st movt and the playing is fabulous. I'm not sure about Sherman's comment that Thea's sound is bright, i've heard players from Europe and the US sound brighter than that. I must check the other two movts.

Peter Cigleris

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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: Sylvain 
Date:   2008-05-01 14:08

Thank you for posting this Sherman, it should make it to the favorite youtube clips thread.

--
Sylvain Bouix <sbouix@gmail.com>

Post Edited (2008-05-01 14:09)

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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: DavidBlumberg 
Date:   2008-05-01 14:43

Go ahead, its still open.

http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com


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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: giuliano 
Date:   2008-05-01 15:05

Wonderful video!

I wouldn't trust the sound as you can hear it from YouTube and a couple of PC speakers, though...

I am particularly fond of Thea King, and I have quite a number of her records, and her sound is different from that, darker and deeper.

Anyway, her control of the clarinet in this piece is amazing.

By the way, I consider her rendition of the Brahms quintet on Hyperion a true masterpiece and possibly the best performance of that particular piece on record, am I the only one?

Giuliano Forghieri

Nubilaria Clarinet Ensemble, arranger, clarinet, Eb clarinet
Accademia Musica Insieme, founder, arranger, clarinet

www.musicengraving.it

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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: DougR 
Date:   2008-05-02 05:03

thank you Sherman for the video. I agree about Menuhin too--he has an authority and expansiveness and expressiveness and a quality almost of telling a story when he plays. It's a magnificent, moving piece. I'm really glad you called the performance to my (our) attention.

Anyone want to weigh in with an opinion on the definitive recorded version of Contrasts? I have the Verdehr Trio version, and Ms. L-V is simply dazzling on it.



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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: S. Friedland 
Date:   2008-05-02 12:32

You are very welcome, Sylvain, and Doug
Sunday May 5 at 3, I am playing at the Unitarian Church in Montreal. Would love to see you.



Post Edited (2008-05-02 12:33)

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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: DougR 
Date:   2008-05-02 13:33

Thanks, Sherman--I'd love to hear you play. Unfortunately, geography prohibits. Any chance you could You Tube yourself?

As to the "Contrasts" video, it's very well lit, directed, and photographed. The sound must have been equally well recorded, I'm guessing, but YouTube compression makes for a tubby bottom and a thin top. I'm wondering about the original video, if it's available; will have to do a little research.



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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: DavidBlumberg 
Date:   2008-05-02 18:41

Here's my submission:

https://youtu.be/L_iqJQ-A_PE?list=PLTTLw3yp6mhSy28__6RUPWuzUo-Ed4uqi



17 yr old student (Michael Rescorla) with 14 yr old Violinist (Concertmistress of Phila. Youth Orch, and 16 yr old pianist. Was recorded live in a masterclass that Claude Frank gave. He played Soldiers Tale (trio) the next day on the Radio. One heck of a hard weekend!

From back in 1992. He didn't end up majoring in Clarinet, went the route of PHD in Philosophy at Harvard and is faculty now at the University of California.

One of those players who could have gotten a job early on.

http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com


Post Edited (2016-05-28 20:05)

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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: Tony Pay 2017
Date:   2008-05-02 21:26

S. Friedland wrote. in part:

>> But, is there an error in the clarinet part, 2nd movement? >>

Yes, there is: in bar 30 Thea plays an F natural on the Bb clarinet, sounding Eb. Whereas the correct note is an E (a G natural on the A clarinet, as in the score), and so should be an F# on the Bb clarinet.

The error arises because the B&H 'alternative' Bb part is mistransposed at that point. (In fact, there is another mistransposition on the fifth crotchet of bar 37, which Thea also plays wrongly -- on the Bb clarinet it should be a G natural, not a G#.)

Because the alternative Bb part was provided by B&H, many players (including myself for quite a few years, I'm ashamed to say) decided to play the whole piece on the Bb. Some of those players picked up these mistakes, some not.

I myself was fortunate to have learnt the piece using two clarinets as in the original score, so the mistakes were obvious to me when I decided (mistakenly, as I now think) to play everything on the Bb.

Nowadays, I switch instruments as Bartok specified -- though I have to say that I don't find it quite so easy to play the A part after so many performances on the Bb:-(

BTW, you might find this post amusing:

http://test.woodwind.org/Databases/Klarinet/2002/10/000116.txt

Tony

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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: S. Friedland 
Date:   2008-05-03 21:01

Thank you. I thought so, but was too lazy to look for my score. I have played them using both clarinets, so I learned the part correctly, hence my question.
I watch the video just to hear the vibrato on the very first pizzicato by Mehuhin.
Many years past, we played the Beethoven with Menuhin as soloist. The second movement was a lesson I have never forgotten.

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 Re: Bartok Contrasts, Menuhin, Thea King
Author: DavidBlumberg 
Date:   2016-05-28 20:14

Playing this next week in a Chamber Music Faculty Recital.

Started working on it Thursday this week (learned was playing it on Wednesday).

All kinds of fun............


Will use both Clarinets.

http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com


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