Detecting Important Alto Clarinet Lines and Rewriting Them Into Soprano and Bass Clarinet Parts
At some point in the history of modern wind band instrumentation, the alto clarinet became a four-letter word. Looking back on articles in The Instrumentalist as early as 1947, one finds well-written pleas to bring back the instrumenti
even necessary in the modern wind bandii
, as well as questions of whether it is . The alto clarinet’s
exodus from the wind band happened for a variety of reasons. The early alto clarinets available to bands were of less than desirable quality, with tuning issues and anemic sound. The expense and time of owning and maintaining an alto clarinet was and is beyond practicality for many bands. Finally, in an ensemble where we seem to be eternally seeking a sufficient number of accomplished clarinet performers, dedicating a student to the alto clarinet may prove impossible. While it is true that the latest models of the alto clarinet (as well as the recently revived basset horn) are quality apparatuses that overcome the earlier weaknesses in tone production and intonation that doomed the instrument, the heart of the matter is that these other practical concerns have chased the alto clarinet from our bands, and modern composers are simply no longer including the instrument in their scores. As a result, one is more likely to see an alto clarinet hanging on a wall as an objet d'art than in the hands of a high school or college band member.
Faced with the reality of a world without alto clarinets in our bands, what do we do when we meet a concert work that calls for the instrument? This is the much more practical concern that many of us deal with on the podium, especially when we program wind works published prior to 1980iii
by Dr. Ward Miller
range to play certain excerpts from an alto clarinet part, the tessitura may not match the intended color in the original alto clarinet part. In its lower range, the alto clarinet's sound is reminiscent of the throaty, woody sound of the bass clarinet, while in its upper range, it more closely resembles the hollow warmth of the chalumeau register of the soprano clarinet. This chart demonstrates the appropriate target areas for rewriting voices within the alto clarinet's range.
. Unfortunately, a common response
is to treat the alto clarinet and its part as "optional," something that can be left out whether it's covered by other voices or not. This often leads to a sound that at best was not the original intent of the composer, and at worst omits important chord tones not covered in any other voice. However, with the knowledge of what to look for during score study, and a minimum of rewriting, these alto clarinet parts can be added to your clarinet and bass clarinet performers' parts. The results are rewarding for conductor, performer, and audience alike.
Rewriting the Part First of all, let us discuss how to rewrite an alto clarinet part into other clarinet voices. The two considerations one must weigh are range and tessitura. While a soprano or bass clarinet might have the
As demonstrated in the chart, the ranges of the bass clarinet and soprano clarinet overlap in multiple areas (green), and both can be used to replace an important alto clarinet part. The part chosen as the target for a rewritten line will depend on the ability of the performer - and therefore the technical difficulty or exposure of the part - and the desired color. The lower range of the soprano clarinet provides a warm, full sound, while the upper clarino registers are clearer and brighter. The bass clarinet is reedier yet warm in the middle register, and becomes increasingly plaintive and sweet in its clarion register. The conductor must evaluate these color changes when choosing which instrument will receive the rewritten alto clarinet part. A mixture of rewrites in the soprano and bass clarinets will often be the result. The orange highlighted areas feature pitches in which particular care should be taken, as these throat tones may prove challenging, especially when weaker players are given the rewritten part. Of course, practical concerns of who is available to perform a rewritten part will need to be considered. For example, if you only have one bass clarinetist, that performer will be busy with their own important lines, and therefore unable to perform many alto clarinet rewrites).
Score Study Knowing how to look for important alto clarinet parts during your score study can help pinpoint those times when a rewrite is required. This can be challenging, as a large scale work that includes an alto clarinet part often features such a plethora of staves that a unique alto clarinet line can be visually "lost in the shuffle." Also, there are many works and sections of works that simply double the alto clarinet with the bass clarinet, predisposing us to ignore this line. Because of these issues, one of the first steps in your score study should be a thorough inspection of the alto clarinet staff. Look for alto clarinet lines that contain chord tones that are not in any other clarinet part, or lines that double another part in octaves. Finally, look at the areas where the alto clarinet part is exposed while doubling another one or two instrumental parts at the same octave. This is an important color shading that should not be treated as optional.
All of the rewrite examples in this article will be taken from Warren Benson’s The Solitary Dancer and Darius Milhaud’s Suite Française. These works were chosen because they are from composers who have contributed multiple and lasting entries to the wind literature, because they are playable by accomplished high school and undergraduate ensembles, and because this author has put the rewrites into performance practice with his own ensembles. The excerpts given as examples are representative, and by no means the only alto clarinet rewrites necessary in the works discussed.
30 FebruaryMarch 2013
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