Website Watch (December 2013 column)

ClarinetCentral.com

Greeting viewers with the beautiful and languid sounds of Harold Wright performing Richard Strauss’s Duet-Concertino for clarinet and bassoon, the homepage of ClarinetCentral.com has much to offer clarinet enthusiasts. Webmaster Russell Harlow has done an excellent job in providing a unique platform that allows viewers to listen to and compare various national styles of clarinet playing. The abundance of rare photos and excerpts of audio files of distinguished clarinetists from around the globe make this website an invaluable resource.

Tracing the lineage of clarinet teaching originating with European-American players such as Daniel Bonade, Gustave Langenus, and Simeon Bellison, Harlow conveniently categorized musicians by their nationality, including a set of links for easy comparison of the national styles of sound associated with Austria, France, England, and America.

Over fifteen countries are represented on the website, each with numerous listings of clarinetists including biographies, photos, and audio samples. Many of the sound files are of symphonic solos or exposed sections of chamber music, and many of the recordings span across several decades, giving listeners the opportunity to hear the evolution of the clarinetist’s sound and style. A handful of entries also include famous pupils of teachers.  

One notable entry is on Gustav Langenus. His biography highlights his innovative approach to teaching as he may have been one of the first clarinet teachers to help students via long-distance learning. Langenus would record himself playing his own etudes and studies on 78 rpm records and mail them to students lacking access to a local clarinet teacher. The student would then listen to the recordings, fill out the accompanying questionnaire to document their progress, and return it to Langenus, who would then respond accordingly. On these archived recordings, you can hear Langenus’s voice as he calls out the etude number and plays the musical line.*  [Edit: the voice is not actually Langenus; see note below]

The “Embouchure and Technique” section features a comical group photograph of the principal woodwind players of the Philadelphia Orchestra whimsically playing their respective instruments, followed by a second snapshot of a similar pose, this time with serious expressions. Daniel Bonade’s expression in the humorous photograph is priceless! In this section Harlow has compiled articles by Ralph McLane and James Collis on playing with a double-lip embouchure. He also includes Tom Ridenour’s three-part video explanation of double-lip embouchure and an audio file of oboist Marcel Tabuteau explaining the art of supporting the air. Anatomical diagrams of the chest, abdominal, and facial muscles further explain the concepts taught by Tabuteau. One interesting component of this section is the application of double-lip techniques by multiple clarinetists in different manners, highlighting the benefits and usefulness of playing double-lip.

An accompanying blog, also run by Harlow, mirrors content found on the main site and can be accessed from the home page. Although the blog contains many broken links or repetitive material borrowed from the main site, there is a handful of photos worth pursuing and also an interesting article on Louis DeSantis. Various clarinet-related merchandise, clothing, and printed music are available for purchase from the Clarinet Store section.

Only few hiccups were encountered when accessing the Clarinet Central website. As noted on the homepage, viewers using PCs or Google Chrome as their Internet browser may experience troubles accessing the toolbar for the audio files. Harlow recommends using Internet Explorer for access to all of the audio files. Hopefully Harlow is working towards fixing these technical issues as this site is a definite must-see for all clarinetists.  

ClassicalConnect.com

ClassicalConnect.com is a streaming audio and video website for fans and performers of classical music.  All content is user-generated -- anyone can upload tracks, and the online community can leave comments and vote on the quality of each selection. A search for “clarinet” brings up more than 150 recordings by performers as accomplished as Alexander Fiterstein and John Bruce Yeh, along with many lesser-known players.

While visitors to the site can listen to the first three minutes of any selection, the free registration allows users to hear the full versions, create their own playlists, vote on recordings, and maintain an individual artist profile. Artists can upload MP3 files and link YouTube videos to the site, with all their recordings linked back to a profile page with biographical information. Users can also enter their concert information into an online calendar, though feature is somewhat lacking in that you can browse by instrument or performer but not location.

One useful aspect of the site is the ability to create playlists which can be shared and embedded on other websites. Teachers can create playlists for students to listen to, and performers are able to create a playlist of their own performances that can be embedded on their personal website. Better yet, these embedded playlists update automatically when the playlist is updated at ClassicalConnect.com.

Because users upload the content, recordings range widely in quality of audio, performance quality, and even volume level. Like YouTube and other websites where content is user-generated, the quality and usefulness of the website is directly related to the activity of the users. If many high-quality recordings continue to be uploaded, and clarinetists rate recordings thoughtfully, it could prove to be a much more refined resource for listening to clarinet music than YouTube, where low-quality recordings often have high view counts. But as is, many tracks on ClassicalConnect.com are currently unrated, and there is a lack of variety and quantity (there is only one recording of the Mozart concerto, for example).

Despite these issues -- and the fact that the interface could use updating -- it’s a great place to discover new repertoire and performers.  With more participation from performers and listeners, it has the potential to become a valuable resource for clarinetists.

*Note from David Ross:
I did want to make a little correction to what you wrote about Langenus. His “Clarinet Correspondence School” is certainly a fascinating document of a world long gone. I have a complete set of these discs and they make interesting listening. But the voice announcing the etudes is certainly not Langenus. The practice in early (pre-WW1) discs and cylinders was to have a loud-voiced speaker (not the player) announce the pieces to be played, and this is what Langenus did.

Pedagogy 2.0: An Exploration of 21st-Century Innovations in Clarinet Teaching (March 2013 Column)

Through our research over the past four years for this column and blog, we have been on the forefront of developments in online clarinet resources, and we have encountered countless examples of innovative uses for the Internet and mobile technology to teach clarinet. This column is based on our presentation at ClarinetFest 2012 in Lincoln, Nebraska and in it we explore a variety of resources and techniques for integrating technology into clarinet instruction.  Most of these require only internet access and can be immediately implemented by teachers looking to augment their traditional teaching style.  

Sheet Music Sharing Sites

The Internet is a continually expanding repository of valuable resources for clarinetists. It is now easier and cheaper for both teachers and students to explore scores through public-domain sheet music sharing sites, with access to print music from any computer. In our Sept. 2009 column, we went in depth on the one of the largest sheet music resources, International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP).  Since our first report on the site, IMSLP has reorganized their instrumentation listing of works, making it easier to navigate. The site lists around 150 solo clarinet works with piano and 52 unaccompanied pieces. The increase in chamber music entries is difficult to calculate due to the nearly 500 listings of ensembles involving the clarinet.  

While many websites offer a general collection of sheet music, The Clarinet Institute of Los Angeles is specifically tailored for the clarinetist.  Managed by David Shorr, this website has numerous videos, MIDI files, and recordings. The site currently offers a DVD containing over 840 PDF files of clarinet music for only $13.50-- an unbeatable price for that amount of music! It has recently widened its instrumental spectrum to include similar discs with sheet music for wind quintet, all band instruments, recorder, and stringed instruments.

Oliver’s (mostly) Clarinet Music Page is also a great source for sheet music. Here, Oliver Seely has formatted chamber music parts into MIDI and MUS files, allowing you to print the music and download parts into music software programs such as Finale or Smart Music for accompanimental playback. The downside to using these types of files is the lack of articulation and dynamic markings. If you don’t have Finale, try visiting Mark Charette’s “mirror” of Seely’s page. Charette, who is also the webmaster of Woodwind.org, has translated the Finale notation files into PDF format, allowing more viewers access to the music.

Audio

As a teacher, it can be frustrating when students continually turn to random YouTube videos for reference recordings of works. Several services can help you to provide better audio resources to your students, making it easy for teacher and student alike to research new repertoire and compare interpretations.  

          

Many colleges and universities pay to subscribe to the Naxos Music Library, which can be a valuable tool in the classroom or applied lesson setting.  With a wide variety of recordings from the Naxos label and many other labels, it is easy to create playlists of repertoire for study.  Students can even listen to playlists from their mobile device with the Naxos Music Library mobile application.

           

Sound Cloud is a web platform for streaming and sharing audio.  One possible use for this website would be to post recordings of student performances and use the “timed comments” feature to provide commentary at specific moments during the recording.  

Spotify is a streaming subscription service that can be downloaded for free, with upgrades available for mobile access and premium content.  It is easy to create and share playlists; find a sampling of the clarinet recordings available by checking out our ClarinetFest 2012 playlist. Spotify is recommended here with reservations, as the low artist royalties they pay have been a contention with many whose record labels allowed the service to have access to their music.  

Instant Encore is a source for streaming video and audio uploaded by artists themselves.  It is primarily a promotional tool for artists, but the quality and depth of information provided about the works and artists make this a place to be sure to search when looking for reference recordings. See our Sept. 2011 column on streaming video for more information about InstantEncore.

Video

We wrote in our previous column about the Rico Reeds website, but we’d like to add a few more details from our presentation. Rico has a wonderfully produced website with numerous videos of their sponsored artists presenting mini-master classes and interviews both on the homepage and in “The Lesson Room” section.

Several videos of the late David Etheridge show him teaching and demonstrating a sampling of fundamental concepts from his book “A Practical Approach to the Clarinet.” These videos are excellent tools for learning about hand position and other basic concepts.  Michele Gingras is another featured Rico artist with 23 videos available on their site. Gingras offers performance strategies and tips for more advanced players in her video series that accompanies her book 52 Clarinet Secrets.  Here you will see her demonstrate exercises on how to increase tongue speed, how to form an embouchure, and other tips found in her book. Lawrie Bloom’s instructional videos on bass clarinet are geared to the beginner player and cover fundamental topics such as instrument assembly, breaking in reeds, and articulation.  

YouTube is a mega-platform that has countless videos of note for clarinetists. While we’ve mentioned them before in our columns, we’d like to put the spotlight on two clarinetists who have produced high-quality instructional videos that stand out. Tom Ridenour has over 96 videos on his YouTube channel and on them he shares his philosophies on playing double-lip, reed finishing, and other various topics. Peruvian clarinetist Marco Mazzini’s channel has several instructional videos in both English and Spanish, as well as footage of live performances of modern and standard pieces for both soprano and bass clarinets.

Multimedia

We blogged about Kyle Coughlin’s Clarinet Space in a post from 2009, and it still stands out as a multimedia resource for clarinet teachers.  The Flash-based “Pitch Name Game” is a fun way for younger students to learn to recognize pitches on a staff, and the interactive fingering charts with sound help students to hear if they are playing the notes correctly.  Music Teacher’s Helper has become a popular tool for private instructors; for a low monthly fee it handles scheduling, does automatic invoicing, accepts credit card payments, and allows students and parents to log in to their accounts from home. Online metronomes have been in existence for many years, but several now have additional rhythmic training options. Students without an electronic metronome or mobile app can always use BestMetronome.com or other online metronomes to keep time when practicing at home.

Social Networking

Social networking is not only useful for establishing professional connections, but can also serve as a platform for open educational or pedagogical discussions. On Facebook many group pages are dedicated to the clarinet.  You may remember our interview with James Zimmerman back in Sept. 2008 about his Facebook group “Clarinet Jobs,” which serves as a sounding board for orchestral and band vacancies, audition tips, and discussion of audition repertoire.  Many university teachers are now utilizing Facebook to share information with students through studio pages, stay connected with individual students, and even recruit new students.

           

The Clarinet BBoard on Woodwind.org has been mentioned in several of our blog posts and our March 2009 column, but it is worth mentioning again as it continues to be one of the largest and most popular forums for sharing clarinet information. Twitter is another previously mentioned web application that we want to highlight because of its capacity to reach large audiences and its nature of immediacy. In 140 characters or less, a person can use their cell phone to tweet about upcoming events, performances, or to ask other people questions in real time. Two clarinetists who have secured a large following on Twitter include Anthony McGill and Michael Lowenstern. Of course, we also tweet about ClarinetFest and new blog posts on Twitter as @ClarinetCache.

           

The last web site listed, 8notes.com, is geared toward younger musicians and contains not only social network forums, but also free sheet music and numerous music theory lessons.  The site offers free music and lessons on almost every instrument; however, the musical content consists mainly of simple folk tunes and popular music.  Members can register and upload any kind of music to share with others, or make request for scores.  

Live Online Instruction

As bandwidth increases and video quality improves, many instructors have begun offering lessons online via Skype or Google+.  Online instruction has many benefits, allowing teachers and students to make connections across the world with no time or gas used to travel.  It has drawbacks, such as audio and video lag and sound quality concerns, but teachers like Laurel Hall and Thomas J. West are making it work (and making money doing it).  Their personal websites, in addition to general websites like online-music-lessons.net and learnmusicathome.com can give teachers an idea of the process for teaching online and equipment needed.  Some new startups like LessonFace.com and LessonFire.com are aiming to improve on the Skype model by offering their own specialized platforms through which student and teacher can meet, combining scheduling, payment, and live videoconferencing in one place.

** An additional online instruction site discovered after our presentation at ClarinetFest 2012, ClariSkye Studio, is another great source for online instruction via Skype. The site, recently created by clarinetist Michele Gingras and violinist Harvey Thurmer, offers students 30-minute lessons with both Gingras and Thurmer, as well as other participating music faculty from Miami University (Oxford, Ohio).

Mobile Applications

These days, smartphones and other mobile devices have an increasing impact on our day-to-day lives, and teaching is no exception.  Mobile applications can turn a phone into a metronome, tuner, handheld recording device, decibel meter, spectrometer, and audio/video player.  Using these functions during lessons can provide instant feedback (often in visual form) for students, and can save time by allowing a teacher to instantly make recordings and send them to students via email.  

There can be drawbacks to using mobile apps in teaching: the input and output sound quality can be poor unless using an external microphone and speakers, for example.  Also, not everyone can afford the devices and expensive data plans.  However, once the device is purchased, tuner and metronome applications are incredibly inexpensive compared to their hardware counterparts.

Our favorite application for integration with clarinet pedagogy is TonalEnergy Tuner. Released in early 2012 by Sonosaurus, its most basic function is as an easy-to-use-tuner with a great interface.  It allows you to select from a variety of tuning systems (equal, just, Pythagorean, etc.) and timbres (just about any instrument) for the tone generator.  Much more than just a tuner, though, TonalEnergy can show the change in dynamics over time with its “waveform” function.  This is highly effective for working with students on dynamic shaping or even articulation.  It also can function as a spectrogram, showing the levels of overtones in the sound -- an opportunity for a great lesson about the reason for resonance fingerings.

           

We blogged in 2011 about the best metronome apps, so check here for more details about Tempo and other great metronomes to use on your phone.  Our favorite tuners include iStrobosoft (a strobe tuner by Peterson) and ClearTune (a needle tuner by Bitcount).  We will be sure to keep you informed when we hear about other great apps in the future!

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In addition to the resources listed above, we have also compiled a list of recommended readings that discuss both specific resources and larger trends for technology in education.  Visit our August 2012 post to find the list of supplementary articles and our powerpoint presentation from ClarinetFest.  

The Clarinet Institute of Los Angeles

The Internet functions as a global network of sharing, and no website demonstrates this credo better than The Clarinet Institute of Los Angeles. Here you will find a vast assortment of clarinet videos, recordings, MIDI files, and sheet music all for free! Managed by David Schorr, this L.A. based website serves clarinetists in the vicinity as well as clarinetists across the globe. This nonprofit site welcomes visitors to utilize all of the available media and encourages people to contribute their own submissions.

Tired of searching YouTube for interesting clarinet videos? Try visiting this site's extensive list of videos for standard repertoire and lesser-known pieces. It is easy to locate the piece you've been searching for and you may even discover something new in each of the categories-solo clarinet, clarinet quartets and quintets, choirs, woodwind quintets and more. Now that you have heard the music, you can download the sheet music. With over 420 PDF files available, even the starving musician can add to their library. A CD of the entire collection is also available for only ten dollars. If you wish to practice with piano accompaniment, try using the MIDI files with a karaoke player (also free) that allows you to mute the clarinet part. And last but not least, don't forget to listen to the recordings-they cover a wide range of the clarinet repertoire.

Edward S. Palanker: Eddiesclarinet.com

In the December 2008 edition of The Clarinet, we reviewed the excellent personal websites of Michèle Gingras, Michael Lowenstern, and John Cipolla. Well, now we have another one to add to the list, as Edward S. Palanker has created a personal website, Eddiesclarinet.com, that is equally interesting and informative.

Palanker, bass clarinetist with the Baltimore Symphony and (soon to be retiring) professor at the Peabody Conservatory, has written many articles for The Clarinet over the years. He has now made these articles available on his website. Subjects include maintenance (including helpful hints to keep your clarinet working when something suddenly goes wrong), tongue position, fingerings, and intonation (with comments about tuning a middle school clarinet section). Palanker has devoted a section of his site just to reeds, with well thought-out comments on adjusting and breaking in reeds. His section on bass clarinet includes some great information about orchestral excerpts for bass, and what can be expected at a bass clarinet orchestra audition. In general, Palanker's writings emphasize that there is no "one right way" to do things, and encourage the player to experiment with equipment, techniques, and fingerings to determine what works best. However, Palanker does outline his own methods in detail, and he gives reasons for why he dries reeds a certain way, or uses certain fingerings.

Another great feature of Eddiesclarinet.com is the audio from live performances. On the site, you can listen to Palanker performing the Mendelssohn Concertpiece No. 2 with former student Ricardo Morales, the Bela Kovacs Hommage a Kodaly on bass clarinet, and much more of the standard clarinet repertoire.

We welcome this great addition to clarinet resources on the web, and hope you enjoy Eddiesclarinet.com.

Soni Ventorum Woodwind Quintet Archives

The Soni Ventorum Woodind Quintet Archives are a valuable resource for the woodwind quintet clarinetist, containing streaming mp3 files of live performances of nearly 50 works for woodwind quintet. The recordings represent much of the (now) standard quintet repertoire, such as the Reicha, Taffanel, and Francaix Quintets, as well as lesser-known works like Ruth Crawford Seeger's Suite and William O. Smith's Jazz Set for Violin and Wind Quintet. The video archive is much smaller, but includes this performance of the "Andante" movement from Ibert's Trois pièces brèves.



Soni Ventorum was active as a quintet from 1961-2001, and was formed by graduates of the Curtis Institute of Music: Felix Skowronek, flute; Laila Storch, oboe; William McColl, clarinet; Arthur Grossman, bassoon, and David Kappy, horn. Learn more about Soni Ventorum on the History and Artists pages, and explore original newspaper clippings on the Press page.

This site is a great example of how the internet can be used to preserve and document the great ensembles of the past through audio and video. Hopefully we will see more sites like it in the future!

Bass clarinet quartets Edmund Welles and Acid Bass

What is it about bass clarinet quartets that seem to invite transcriptions of rock songs? Edmund Welles, a bass clarinet quartet from Oakland, CA, pulls off an incredible performance of Radiohead's "Creep" in this video.



According to EdmundWelles.com, the quartet "was originally founded on two principles: the bass clarinet can achieve a virtually unlimited range of sounds, and when this same instrumental voice is multiplied, it can be as powerful as a boogie woogie piano, a gospel quartet or a rock band." In addition to transcriptions, the group also performs original compositions by member Cornelius Boots.

Check out the MySpace page for Acid Bass, another bass clarinet quartet that harnesses the power of the bass clarinet to depict the music of rock bands. There, you can listen to their versions of Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" and Spinal Tap's "Big Bottom," along with more traditional repertoire.

Music@Menlo

Set in the heart of Silicon Valley, the Music@Menlo chamber music festival opened its inaugural season during the summer of 2003. Daily concerts of classical music at the festival have delighted the ears of audiences in past years, and thanks to the recording services of American Public Media, the music can still be enjoyed and listened to today. Performance highlights from the 2004 and 2005 seasons are available in four 1-hour programs, including bonus material of intimate conversations with the musicians. Check out archive recordings of past seasons and the 2006 broadcast, where you can listen to many chamber works for clarinet. Recordings include Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time and Weber's Grosses Quintet for clarinet and strings (both featuring the flawless clarinet playing of Anthony McGill).