Customer Reviews

The Essential Clarinet

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Stoltzman's rendition of these four 20th century clarinet masterpieces are very satisfying. Stoltman's interpretation of these pieces are jazzy and fun, complete with a touch of glissando here and there. Personally, I enjoyed the Copland and the Bernstein the most. A word of caution. The pieces included on this CD are quite contemporary. They may sound a little odd at first to the unaccustomed. Nevertheless, this is a wonderful CD.

Okay, at the risk of sounding crazy, Richard Stoltzman is the greatest thing that ever happened to clarinet music!! There are no words to describe the great talent he displays on this CD. I've personally perfomed the Copland Concerto (not anywhere nearly as well as him, though) and I'm baffled by his technical skill and how easy he makes it sound. I've heard many versions of this (including the original by Goodman) and Stoltzman's jazzy interpretation is wonderful and not at all over-done (as far as smears and what not). The Stravinsky is really nice, but might take a little getting used to.. I really enjoy it though. The Berstein is really nice, but I do agree w/ another review which said it was largely filler... there isn't a whole lot of clarinet in the "Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs", but what there is is fantastic.

Now, for the Corigliano. I've met Corigliano before, and the man is a genious (as is evident in his music). Beware of "Cadenzas"... it starts really soft, but gets really loud so be read to adjust the volume at a moments notice... The last movement is unbelievable... Stoltzman really showcases his abillities here. There is a quasi-cadenza in the clarinet in the third section after a little timpani solo that is amazing. I've listened to it several times and I still can't grasp how he makes the sounds he does (you really have to hear it to understand). While a little harder on the listener than a "typical" concerto, this one is really nice. Corigliano manages to showcase the most wonderful qualities of the clarinet AND create unique and inspiring sounds in the orchestra (especially in the first movement). This is a must have for any music lover (clarinetist or not).

All right, Richard Stoltzman is awesome. Yes. We all know it. This CD is great in its own right, however...it's lacking more of what the title promises--the clarinet. The Copland Concerto is great (a little brighter than other recordings of his I've heard) and the Corigliano is different and VERY essoteric. However, the other pieces are primarily orchestral filling. This CD is all about style and attitude! If you're looking for something different, this CD is for you.

I've played the clarinet for 15 years and also teaches music professionally and I have to warn you I am one of those nerds that will read the sheet music while listening...well I can tell you, NO ONE COMPARES TO STANLEY DRUCKER. I hear and read so many mistakes with Stolzman and it almost sounds like he's faking or playing the wrong notes...which can be understandable with Corigliano's concerto (it's harder than anything I've played).
I do have to admit that Stolzman plays with great character and you NEVER tell when he makes a mistake (Drucker is too much a perfectionist sometimes).

This CD showcases Richard Stoltzman's strength in jazz-oriented modern clarinet music. The selections are well-matched in their sound, yet still provide a diverse musical experience. You *will* enjoy this CD.

I actually own a previous version of the album, featuring all but Stravinsky's Ebony Concerto, but I have lots of good things to say about the top three clarinet music I really enjoy listening to.

Corigliano: As a person obsessed with the so-called Avant Garde Classical music (consider those like Pendericki, Glass, Boulez, etc.), Copland's Clarinet Concerto is nothing less than subtle. A complete travesty to those who love Mozart's I would have to say (sinister laughter)! Anyway, as with other music by the the composer, it's both highly barbaric, wild and intense in faster segments, and dark, solemn, and painful in slower sections. Both the orchestra and the brilliant clarinet soloist Richard Stolzman plays with much passion. I especially like the outer two, each frenzic in its own way. I just love listening to the constant scream-like high notes in those movements - the first more bitter and serious, and the third more witty and somewhat sardonic.

Copland: A complete shift from something vile to something much more innocent and enjoyable for causal listeners. Just having the soloist being accompanied by the string orchestra, harp, and piano also adds the effect. The first movement is slow, lyrical, and lulls you to peace, while the second movement is more active, more fun, with a bit of jazz-like elements. Stolzman has done a brilliant work playing both beautifully and richly in the first, and full of wit and color in the second, more than most other recordings I have heard.

Bernstein: This is the recording of the piece to look for, after finding myself somewhat not as pleased in the Bernstein/Goodman recording and the more disasterous Bernstein/Vienna one (Would you expect a world class European orchestra to play a piece not really part of their very genre, and across the Atlantic???). The jazz band in this recording is more enticing, more jazzy feeling. Excellent timbre in both brass and the saxophones (I love the honking sounds of baritone, and the soprano sounds very nostalgic as in the Roaring 20s). As for the clarinet solo, no offense Goodman, but Stolzman wins this one. More apparent musicality. In one section, he actually makes a huge glissiano from an A up to a E.

For those who like Mozart's Clarinet concerto, try getting out of this obstinate conservatism like the constant arpeggios themselves and be exposed to something more beyond the borderline.

I am a performing clarinet player of 12 years of experience. I teach and study at the Peabody Conservatory for performance in the USA. Like the other reviewer who actually looked at the Corigliano music when listening, the amount of errors Stolzman makes is unreal. The "Cadenzas" movement, as brilliant as it is, was performed in the midlest form sloppily. It is not even that I dislike his sound. Everyone is entitled to their own unique aspect, but he does whatever he wants a little too much. YES, the Corigliano Concerto is the hardest thing i have played, HOWEVER, it is most definetely doable. I am playing it for my freshman recital, and it is in a condition well exceeding the performance here. I may not be the showman Stoltzman is, but i can surely handle the technical aspect of the piece better. It seems as if he was too lazy to learn the darned thing. In the "Antiphonal Toccata" movement, his tonguing sounds like an 8th grader trying to stop tongue. It's dreadful and annoying. My teacher played the Copland Concerto under Aaron's direction, and he forewarned him not to swing the darned cadenza! Maybe Benny was swinging it, but it's not supposed to. Playing incorrectly is not "essential" clarinet music, and never will be. I am sorry but all this CD is good for is showing the future performers of the Corigliano Concerto the things that they should NOT do.