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From: "Mats Öljare" <oljare@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Swedish Ice Orchestra
Date: Sun, 23 Jan 2000 23:46:44 GMT
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.com>I was wondering if anyone else saw this, could maybe
>clarify for me what that instrument was--who the
>player was, maybe even--and if there's a recording or
>video of the performance in full somewhere.I saw a bit of it too,and i don´t know what it was from unfortunately.
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Mats Öljare
Eskilstuna,Sweden
Recently finished the review of the festival Sounds-99
http://www.angelfire.com/mo/oljare
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Date: Sun, 23 Jan 2000 16:14:20 -0800 (PST)
From: LynnEttte Mueller <bluwinterfox@yahoo.com>
Subject: Low woodwinds in bands
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.comThe community concert band I play in has a lot of low woodwinds- Jackson
Community Concert Band in Jackson, Michigan. There are 2 bassoons, 1
bari-sax, me on the contra-alto clarinet, 2 bass clarinets and 1 possibly
2 alto clarinets.I've never had any problem with being ignored when I played the
contra-bass or contra-alto clarinet. In high school after the senior who
had been playing the contra-bass graduated, I demanded to play the
contra-bass. The director told me I had to wait until after the football
season because marching with a contra-bass wasn't too smart of an idea. I
played it for 2 years until the director told me my tone had improved so
much that he wanted me on the soprano. Add to that I'd been playing
bari-sax music and we had 2 bari-saxes, (we also had 1 bassoon, 2 bass
clarinets and an alto).My biggest problem right now is playing music not written for the
contra-alto. I really wish someone would compose a piece of music with me
in mind. I don't want a solo mind you, just some music written in the
range that a bass instrument plays- not high C and above.I share music with the bari-sax player and he thinks I'm taking it down an
octave, I wish I were that talented. I see the note so that's the note I
play, I an unable to transpose on the fly. I can hit high C, but nothing
above it comes out. I squeak, squawk, and get red in the face. We had
the checked for any problems and those that were found were fixed. My
husband did a search on the net to help discover why and found a few
suggestions. He found this wonderful forum for me (he also gave me
grandpa for a Christmas present).
A note to Leanne Enck, I'm really glad someone else names their
instruments. I now know I'm not the only one!
=====
LynnEtte Muellermusic allow the heart to sing
and the soul to fly
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---------------------------------------------------------Date: Sun, 23 Jan 2000 19:40:11 -0500
From: Abi Tenenbaum <abi@brandeis.edu>
Subject: Re: Low woodwinds in bands
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.comYou want music specifically for contra-alto? This is a precious
commodity. In my two years of contra-playing in high school not once
did I play from the correct part. I played bari-sax, same as you, but I
also played bassoon music. This is really not so hard, and bassoons
don't go above that E (transposed to your C) in band music so much.
Just pretend the music is in treble instead of bass clef and add three
sharps (or was it subract three sharps?)On another note, my mother, a professional harpist, was preparing a
program of mostly harp-y Jewish music for a concert. She saw the
contra-alto and ideas started budding. We played the first ever, I
believe, harp and contra-alto clarinet duet for Hava Nagila. It was
amazing. We sent an audio copy of the concert to a distant cousin. He
listened to it while driving to work. When the contra (I just call it
the beast) started belting out notes in melodious contrast to the
angelic harp tones, he said he had to pull off the road; he was laughing
so hard!Abi
LynnEttte Mueller wrote:
***
> My biggest problem right now is playing music not written for the
> contra-alto. I really wish someone would compose a piece of music with me
> in mind. I don't want a solo mind you, just some music written in the
> range that a bass instrument plays- not high C and above.
***
---------------------------------------------------------From: "Leanne Enck" <kontragirl@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Low woodwinds in bands
Date: Sun, 23 Jan 2000 18:26:42 MST
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.comI've played the correct part 5 times in my year of contralto playing. I'm
learning how to sight-transpose contrabass music...or I'm supposed to be, I
sneak in with my bass until I get it written out. I played alto clarinet
music before we got an alto clarinet, and sometimes I play contrabassoon music.You think your contra clarinet and harp music is weird? My friend said that
I should pair up with a piccolo and play a duet with them. I went to camp
that year with my contra in hand, and low and behold, my roommate had
brought her piccolo along! We played "duets" out of a piano book I had
brought with her on the treble clef and me on bass clef. I haven't decided
if Andrew Lloyd Webber would have loved or hated our rendition of Phantom of
the Opera...Leanne, the contralto clarinetist.
You know you're a contrabass freak when someone asks you what instrument you
play and your friends start giggling...
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From: lawrencejohns@webtv.net (lawrence johns)
Date: Sun, 23 Jan 2000 20:40:44 -0500 (EST)
Subject: Re: Low woodwinds in bands
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.comAre there any problems with playing alto clarinet parts for the
contraalto clarinet?
Larriman
baritone sax,bass sax
bass clarinet---------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 23 Jan 2000 21:06:21 -0800 (PST)
From: JJ McLallen <jam_ump10r@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [Contra digest]
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.comReplying to Jim Moore and the Vito BBb Contrabass Clarinet:
I am a student repair tech at Renton Technical College
and I agree with Katherine's assessment of your
situation. There are probably one or two leaky pads or
a key or two that are out of adjustment my less than a
millimeter. I had the chance to repad a Lablanc
paper-clip w/low C and found that any little leak
anywhere will cause problems. My guess is that your
leak is in your A or G# throat keys, or perhaps on the
Bb trill key, maybe even all 3. These can only be seen
with a leak light. I'd find a repair man in your area
that you trust and has a good reputaion for working on
big woodwind instruments. Those things are quite picky.
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---------------------------------------------------------Subject: Re: [bass-clarinet] Digest Number 194
Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2000 12:24:22 -0500
From: Michael G Famulare <flams@MIT.EDU>
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.comDoes anyone out there know where I can find a transciption (or at least some
sort of chord chart) for "God Bless The Child" by Eric Dolphy. It appeared on
as few recordings he did in the 1960's and it's wonderful display on the bass
clarinet.--(the usually dormant) Mike Famulare
---------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2000 12:22:40 -0700
From: Grant Green <gdgreen@contrabass.com>
Subject: Re: Swedish Ice Orchestra
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.com>>I was wondering if anyone else saw this, could maybe
>>clarify for me what that instrument was--who the
>>player was, maybe even--and if there's a recording or
>>video of the performance in full somewhere.
>
>I saw a bit of it too,and i don=B4t know what it was from unfortunately.If those of you who *saw* it can describe it, we may be able to identify it.
- -What color was it?
- -Was it "straight" like a bass clarinet, or folded?
- -Was the bell at the top or the bottom?
- -was there a mouthpiece?
- -Was the lead pipe (going to the mpc) the same diameter as the rest of the horn, or much smaller?
- -How wide was the bell?
If it was possible to see any of that from its brief appearance, we might be able to at least distinguish a contra clarinet from a sarrusophone.Grant
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Grant Green gdgreen@contrabass.com
http://www.contrabass.com
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
---------------------------------------------------------Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2000 12:44:21 -0700
From: Grant Green <gdgreen@contrabass.com>
Subject: Re: Low woodwinds in bands
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.com>My biggest problem right now is playing music not written for the
>contra-alto. I really wish someone would compose a piece of music with me
>in mind. I don't want a solo mind you, just some music written in the
>range that a bass instrument plays- not high C and above.We had so many works that called for Eb contra that I finally went
out and bought one last year. I already had the Bb contra, and was
getting really tired of transposing Eb parts on sight... Let's see
what I can remember:
- "Variations on a Theme by Paganini" by Barnes: this has a decent Eb contra part, including a nice solo (I think its variation III);
- "Fete Dieu a Sevielle", Albeniz / Calliet: this I think had both Eb and Bb contra parts. Actually, anything arranged by Calliet is likely to have good contra parts - I think he was involved with Leblanc in some way...
- -"The Cowboys" by John Williams has Eb contra;
- -anything by Alfred Reed is likely to have both Eb and Bb contra parts;
- -"Symphony No. 5, Finale", Shostakovich - I *think* this was an Eb contra part;
- -"Fetes, from Three Nocturnes", Debussy / Arr. Schaefer; this piece has great writing for Bb bass and Eb contra clarinets, often in harmony. At the very end, as the piece fades away to nothing, the Eb contra carries the line down and is completely exposed. Practice your triple tonguing...
- -"Midway March", Williams / arr. Curnow
If you can get into the band's music library, check for anything by Calliet, Alfred Reed, J. Curnow, or J. Barnes, and look at the score. You may find that the horn is in the score, but that there's no printed part: you don't usually get any extra contra parts, and the music can easily get lost.In the absence of Eb contra parts, there are a few alternatives. Eb bari sax parts you've already discovered. Transposing Bb contra parts is even better, where there are Bb contra parts. String bass parts also work well (taken down an octave: the SB is written an octave higher than it sounds), and tuba parts will do in a pinch (although, because of the timbre, it is usually preferable to play off the SB part). I even found an Eb tuba part in one work ("Star Wars", arr. by J. de Meij), in treble clef and properly transposed as if for a brass band. When none of these are available, I generally play the Bb bass clarinet part on the Bb contra, and take it up an octave where needed/possible (in fact, this is generally preferable to playing the tuba or SB part, unless the bass clarinet part is particularly high or unduly fast).
>I share music with the bari-sax player and he thinks I'm taking it down an
>octave, I wish I were that talented. I see the note so that's the note I
>play, I an unable to transpose on the fly. I can hit high C, but nothing
>above it comes out. I squeak, squawk, and get red in the face. We had
>the checked for any problems and those that were found were fixed. My
>husband did a search on the net to help discover why and found a few
>suggestions. He found this wonderful forum for me (he also gave me
>grandpa for a Christmas present).
I also have trouble getting the altissimo on the Eb contra. Bb contra I can play up to altissimo F#, but the Eb contra barely plays high C#. Possible that experimenting with different reeds and mouthpieces will help...Grant
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Grant Green gdgreen@contrabass.com
http://www.contrabass.com
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
---------------------------------------------------------From: Opusnandy@aol.com
Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2000 17:40:53 EST
Subject: Re: [bass-clarinet] Digest Number 194
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.comIn a message dated 1/24/00 11:25:04 AM, flams@MIT.EDU writes:
<< Does anyone out there know where I can find a transciption (or at least some
sort of chord chart) for "God Bless The Child" by Eric Dolphy. >>You can find the chords to God Bless' The Child in most jazz fake books. I
know for sure that the Real Book Vol. 1 has it. The tune has been recorded
hundreds of times, probably most famously by Billie Holliday (Blood, Sweat
and Tears did a neat version of it too). As for an actual transcription of
Dolphy's version, check out some old issues of Down Beat magazine. It may
take some searching, but they've been around long enough that they might have
featured it in their transcriptions section.Jon Carreira
Bassoon, Heckelphone, formerly Sarrusophone
---------------------------------------------------------Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2000 17:13:30 -0600 (CST)
From: Edmund William White <ewwhite@ews.uiuc.edu>
Subject: Re: [bass-clarinet] Digest Number 194
Reply-To: contrabass@contrabass.comI have a photocopy of the Jannotta transcription of God Bless the
Child published in Jazzforschung Magazine in 1977. This is a transcription of
the September 8, 1961 performance of God Bless the Child. E-mail me if
interested. I'm willing to make copies.Edmund William White
ewwhite@ews.uiuc.edu
ewwhite@cs.uiuc.edu***End of Contrabass Digest***
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