A Guide to Bass Clarinet on the Web (Sept. 2014 column)

For this special bass clarinet-themed issue of The Clarinet, we created an annotated guide to some of the best online bass clarinet resources.

International Bass Clarinet Research Center
One of the most exciting bass clarinet projects on the web today is the International Bass Clarinet Research Center (Centro Internazionale di Ricerca sul Clarinetto Basso, or CIRCB). This website essentially attempts to gather any and all information relating to the bass clarinet and make it accessible to users in an easily searchable and sortable database of annotated listings and primary sources. There are versions in English, French, German and Italian.

The project’s stated goals are to increase insight into the history and the evolution of the bass clarinet and to stimulate biographical and historical study of players and their works. To that end, the contributors have created a database with more than 7,300 compositions and more than 100 recordings. The catalog of repertoire is easily searchable and includes a discography and publisher for each work. There is also an annotated bibliography of bass clarinet books sortable by subject, as well as dissertations, full-text articles, and scans of original manuscripts for older works featuring the bass clarinet like Verdi’s La Forza del Destino, with much of this material available for download. At CIRCB you can even find information about patents relating to the bass clarinet and a catalog of early models of the bass clarinet. And if you’re not looking for something specific, the homepage includes featured recordings and videos so you can start exploring.

Italian clarinetists Stefano Cardo, Elisa Marchetti, Alessandro Monitillo and Roberto Bocchio launched CIRCB in 2010, and it has since gained contributors like Albert Rice and Keith Bowen, and a video endorsement by Harry Spaarnay. These individuals are to be commended for creating a website that is not only an invaluable resource, but also aesthetically pleasing and well-organized. The sheer wealth of information and ease of use only makes us wish for a similar website for the soprano clarinet.

Jason Alder
Jason Alder’s personal website, JasonAlder.com, has a snazzy interface that first greets viewers with layered tracks of bass clarinet sounds, and with the option to view the site with a high or low-speed connection. Alder is an American clarinetist and bass clarinetist residing in Amsterdam and specializing in new and contemporary music. He has created an extensive quarter-tone fingering chart for Buffet instruments available in PDF format. Multiple links to his videos and recordings on his homepage include music from several ensembles that he collaborates with, including the group Payazen!, a “psychedelic klezmer-jazz band,” where you can hear him wail on the bass clarinet. Alder’s blog is full of helpful, in-depth information including updates about his current projects and reviews of technical gear such as clip microphones. Alder has a knack for writing and his blog narratives are a pleasure to read.

Sauro Berti 
Sauro Berti, bass clarinetist of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, has a commendable website at www.SauroBerti.it with downloadable files of bass clarinet sheet music, as well as audio and video files of Berti performing on soprano clarinet, bass clarinet, and basset horn. In the “downloads” section you can find the introductory page and first etude of his book, Venti studi, which contains exercises tailored to the specific needs of the bass clarinet and basset horn that other standard method books fail to address. His links to both a reed strength chart and a bass clarinet mouthpiece comparison chart prove helpful in comparing commercial reed strength variances and in corresponding facing measurements of many factory-made and handcrafted mouthpieces. For full access to all of the components on Berti’s website, viewers can register on the site for free. And for readers not fluent in Italian, we recommend using an Internet browser that easily allows translation of websites, such as Google Chrome. Although activity on his website and blog has remained dormant for the past few years, we hope that Berti will continue to add more valuable content in the near future.

Michael Lowenstern
We reviewed Michael Lowenstern’s website at Earspasm.com back in our December 2008 column, but a lot has changed since then -- and we would expect nothing less from Lowenstern, whose talent at the bass clarinet is equaled only by his talent for web design. He recently recorded the classic Voxman bass clarinet solo book, the Rubank Concert & Contest Collection, and made the recordings available for free download from his website. Registering to the site for free also allows access to download PDF scores and MP3s of music by Lowenstern and others. He also has a great blog, and bass clarinetists owe it to themselves to explore Lowenstern’s YouTube channel, with about 2,000 subscribers and 40 videos in his “So You Want to Be a Bass Clarinet Player” series.

Edward S. Palanker
Edward S. Palanker, bass clarinetist with the Baltimore Symphony and retired from teaching at the Peabody Conservatory, has written many articles for The Clarinet over the years. He has made these articles available on his website Eddiesclarinet.com, where 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.

The [Bass] Clarinet of the 21st Century 
E. Michael Richards’ book The Clarinet of the Twenty-First Century, mentioned in our March 2012 column on contemporary clarinet resources, is available online and has a chapter focusing on the bass clarinet. Richards discusses at length the acoustics of the instrument and its extended techniques, with accompanying spectrograms. The chapter includes fingering charts for altissimo, quarter-tones and multiphonics, with examples from contemporary music.

Aber/Lerstad Altissimo Fingerings
Another resource for bass and contrabass clarinet altissimo fingerings is a website with articles and charts by Thomas Aber and Terje Lerstad. Aber’s bass clarinet chart encompasses fingerings from C-sharp3 to C5; Lerstad’s contrabass chart ranges from C-sharp3 to an impressive G6. Both charts indicate which fingerings work best on different makes of low clarinets.

The Woodwind Fingering Guide 
Timothy Reichard’s altissimo Boehm-system finger chart for alto, bass, and contrabass clarinets at Woodwind.org is easy to read, with commentary on pitch tendencies. Although Reichard’s chart does not reach as high as Aber and Lerstad’s fingering charts, the layout and clean format of the chart makes it a go-to resource for players and teachers alike.

Alea Publishing
Alea Publishing at Bassclarinet.org is a company that specializes in bass clarinet sheet music. Created by the group “Duo Alea,” bass clarinetist Michael Davenport and pianist Kimberly Davenport, the website contains a large inventory of bass clarinet music available for purchase. In 1998 they began to compile what is now an extensive bibliography of bass clarinet compositions of solo works, chamber ensembles, concertos, and duet arrangements, with newer works continuously added. An impressive number of entries listed under the “Bass clarinet with tape/electronics” section illustrates how popular this genre of instrumentation was three or four decades ago, with the main group of compositions dating back to the last quarter of the twentieth century. One great feature of the bibliography is the option to purchase music directly from Alea Publishing within the entries (when applicable). Another useful component is the classified section, a wonderful platform for those wanting to buy or sell bass clarinet-related items.

IMSLP
IMSLP.org is always a great resource for public domain sheet music, and it has a mixture of newer original works for bass clarinet and and older transcriptions. Just look under “Instrumentation/Genre” and find the bass clarinet category under “Featured Instruments.”

Contrabass.com 
The Octocontrabass page at Grant D. Green's fascinating site Contrabass.com has a collection of information on the lowest of the low wind instruments.

NewBassClarinetGroup
All you need is a Yahoo! login to join a fairly active Yahoo! group called “NewBassClarinetGroup” with many knowledgeable contributors.

Let us know if we missed any important bass clarinet website and we'll add them to the list.

Octocontralto Clarinet

Cyrille Mercadier's videos of the octocontralto clarinet have been flying around the internet this past week, and for good reason -- this particular instrument is very rare and many people have never heard it.  The octocontralto (or sub-contralto) clarinet is pitched in E-flat and plays one octave below the more common contralto clarinet in E-flat.  We recommend listening with good speakers to get the full bass effect - laptop speakers may only sound the upper harmonics of the pitches.



Mercadier claims it is the only one of its kind, made at the Leblanc factory in 1971, although according to Wikipedia they made three contralto clarinets and one octocontrabass clarinet.  This coincides with the Octocontrabass page at Grant D. Green's fascinating site Contrabass.com, a collection of information on the lowest of the low wind instruments.

Mr. Leblanc himself playing the octocontralto clarinet (photo from Contrabass.com and courtesy of G. Leblanc)

And for a truly odd musical coupling, Mercatier and Benjamin Masciotta perform Tchaikovsky's "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" on the octracontralto and the A-flat piccolo clarinet!

ClarinetFest Day 3

With all of the great programs scheduled during the festival, it's hard to choose which ones to attend and there is never enough time to take everything in. Taking the morning off from concerts to spending time to peruse the exhibit booths was a nice break.  With so many vendors to visit, it was easy to feel like a kid in a candy shop. All of the accessories, instruments, and music booths were divided amongst the three separate rooms, all of which were busy, sometimes filled with people elbow to elbow.  The cacophony of clarinet sounds coming from some of the rooms was deafening and it was necessary to step out into the hall to get a breather; however, the excitement was contagious and seeing so many familiar faces was more than welcoming.  Coming to festivals like this is a reminder of how friendly and personable the clarinet community is.

ClarinetFest 2010 Exhibit Hall

After spending more than nine years as a resident of Texas, I (Kellie) made it a point to see the Texas Artists-Teachers concert in the Bates Recital Hall.  A majority of the program consisted of chamber works starting with a light-hearted clarinet, flute, piano trio by Donald Draganski.  The next work was Rebecca Clarke's Prelude, Allegro, and Pastorale for clarinet and viola with David Shea's dark and warm timbre blending nicely with violist Renee Skerik.

David Shea and Renee Skerik

The third piece, Ben Stonaker's Lachrymose (2010) for Clarinet (B-flat and Bass), Violin, and Viola, added a nice contemporary edge to the program.  The descriptive movement titles alone suggest the overall mood of the piece: "dust in a sunlit stairwell," "tiny fragments of things that were no longer there," "floating aimlessly," and "sinking slowly."  Multiphonics and other contemporary techniques were employed throughout the piece, adding to the overall effect of subtle texture and timbre changes.  At one point in the music Mary Alice Druhan removed her bass clarinet mouthpiece and blew into the neck, creating an eerie sound as she voiced notes with only her air stream.  

Mary Alice Druhan, Ute Miller, and Mark Miller

The next piece featuring clarinetist Richard Shanley lightened up the mood of the program. His trio played Libby Larsen's Barn Dances for flute, clarinet, and piano, which is a four-movement work inspired by cowboy dance steps, with the second movement being an homage to Gene Autry.  Always a standard piece at clarinet festivals, the Poulenc Sonata was then played by UT alumna Mary McKinney Schani.  The following Trio in B Minor by Edouard Destenay for clarinet, oboe, and piano showcased clarinetist Christopher Ayer's polished technique and lyricism alongside the spectacular piano playing by his wife Kae Hosoda-Ayer.

Christopher Ayer, Kae Hosoda-Ayer, John Goodall

Closing the concert, the Texas Clarinet Consort's jazzy tunes proved to be a great way to wrap up the program.  The second piece, "When I Fall in Love" was dedicated to the late David Etheridge, who passed away shortly after ClarinetFest began and will be greatly missed in the clarinet community.  Both the performers on stage and the audience could feel the sadness and loss through the group's tender rendition of the tune.  Following up with an upbeat Texas Clarinet Consort favorite, "A Toot in Ninesia," many giggles could be heard throughout the audience as the players themselves let loose and enjoyed the piece as much as the audience.

Texas Clarinet Consort: Robert Walzel, Raphael Sanders, Doug Storey, Gary Whitman, James Gillespie, John Scott

Meanwhile, the "Bass Clarinet Blow-Out" was happening in McCullough Theater.  Sponsored by Rico, the concert opened and closed with bass clarinet ensemble pieces, with solos and duos in between.  The first piece was an arrangement of Paquito D'Rivera's "Afro" from Aires Tropicales for five bass clarinets: Lawrie Bloom (USA), André Moisan (Canada), Rocco Parisi (Italy), Alcides Rodriguez (USA), and Pedro Rubio (Spain).  It was a nice arrangement, and though rhythmically challenging, the group performed it well.  Other highlights of the concert were André Moisan's performance of his own piece Quantum Leap for solo bass, and Lee Hyla's We Speak Etruscan for bass clarinet and bari sax, performed by Alcides Rodriguez and Nathan Nabb.  The concert concluded with a giant bass clarinet ensemble playing Michael Smetanin's exciting Ladder of Escape.  For all the bass clarinet enthusiasts in the audience, it was spectacular to hear these bass clarinetists all together on one concert.

Bass Concert Hall

The Friday evening concert at Bass Concert Hall featured the three famous clarinet quintets by Mozart, Weber, and Brahms, performed by the Grammy-winning Enso Quartet with three stellar clarinetists.  First was Franklin Cohen's rendition of the Mozart, then Greg Raden with the Weber, and Richie Hawley performing the Brahms.  Unfortunately, we were late getting to the hall in time to hear the first piece, but while waiting in the lobby to enter the concert hall, we could see and hear Franklin Cohen performing the Mozart Quintet with the Grammy nominated Enso String Quartet on a large-screen television.  Also piped into the bathrooms, it was clear even through the speaker system how beautiful Cohen's tone was.

After the exquisite melodies of the Mozart, Greg Raden took the stage to perform the Weber Quintet.  One would never guess that Raden and the quartet had only two rehearsals prior to the performance. The overall ensemble effect was impeccable as melodies were seamlessly passed between players.  To everyone's amazement the tempo of the last movement was quite swift, yet as usual, Raden's beautiful resonant tone and facile technique never faltered.

A change of program order placed the Brahms Quintet last and once again the Enso Quartet returned to the stage to play with Richie Hawley.  In this group, the seating arrangement was altered so that the clarinetist was on the outside right corner instead of the middle, and this created a noticeable difference in the balance of the group from where we were sitting.  Although Hawley was positioned away from us, it did not prevent his expressiveness and excellent musicianship from shining through.  The Enso Quartet exhibited an expressiveness and sensitivity rarely heard in live performance.  The level of musicianship of the players was enthralling, and audience turnout was probably the highest of any of the evening concerts.  This concert was a clear highlight of the entire conference.  

Greg Raden and the Enso Quartet

Michael Lowenstern's Earspasm (December 2008 column)

One of the most outstanding clarinet websites on the Internet is Earspasm.com, created by bass clarinetist (and composer, producer, and web designer) Michael Lowenstern. Earspasm's captivating interface contains a treasure trove of materials and resources for the bass clarinetist.

Earspasm has the standard sections for a performer website: Lowenstern's upcoming performances, recordings on which he is featured, and his press kit with biography and photos. But the good stuff is in the "Performer Info" section. After clicking on "How Do I...", one is invited to drag and drop topics such as "circular breathe" and "buy a new bass" to view Lowenstern's mini-classes. Stealthily embedded videos provide a visual demonstration of slap-tonguing, and all of the text is downloadable. Teachers may appreciate Lowenstern's methodical approach to bass clarinet voicing (under the "altissimo" topic), including his motto: "There are no squeaks, only wrong voicings."

Lowenstern describes himself as "an unashamed gear-hound," which becomes abundantly clear when exploring the "gear" section of the site. When Lowenstern talks about his "rig," he's not referring to his instrument; there is a photo of him playing onstage, and viewers can mouse over pieces of equipment for a description and picture -- from the wireless microphones on his bass to the LCD display he uses instead of a music stand. There is also a great discussion of equipment needed to perform pieces for clarinet and tape/CD as well as clarinet with interactive electronics. As for more conventional equipment, he highly recommends the Backun bass clarinet bell with a neat video demonstration.

Under "charts," there is an interactive altissimo fingering chart that can also be downloaded and printed. The chart has only one fingering per note, but makes up for it with the range covered -- up to a double high F! Other goodies include the download section with free mp3s (both streaming and downloadable) and pdfs of sheet music. For reference, Lowenstern includes his repertoire list, and has also begun an online composition database of works for bass clarinet and tape/CD/electronics.

All of this great content is assembled into an innovative Flash site that is a pleasure to explore. The site is highly interactive; you can not only grab windows and watch them bounce around, but also adjust the "viscosity" and "elasticity" to your liking. Don't like the default color? Choose from seven others to find the most pleasing hue. Some sheet music examples even zoom in as you grab them, iPhone-style.

The site will undoubtedly change as Lowenstern updates it and adds new content, but it is probably safe to say that Earspasm will remain on bass clarinetist's bookmark lists for years to come.

Bass clarinet altissimo fingerings

As anyone who plays or teaches bass clarinet knows well, altissimo fingerings for bass clarinet can be quite confusing. The standard B-flat fingerings work sometimes, but not in all situations. Some fingerings may even work on one bass but not speak at all on another.

This page from the website of Terje Lerstad is a great resource for anyone dealing with these issues. Lerstad has posted an article he and Thomas Aber wrote for The Clarinet entitled "Altissimo Register Fingerings for the Bass Clarinet," as well as an article by Lerstad about altissimo fingerings for contrabass and contra-alto clarinet. Both of these articles are accompanied by fingering charts.



One issue that the articles explain well is the difference between the double and single register vent systems, and their effect on altissimo fingerings for the low clarinets. Because student horns often have only a single register vent, certain categories of fingerings will not work as well for them. Other fingerings work great for single-vent horns, but not double. The charts differentiate these by adding an "S" under fingerings that work for double-vent horns (most Selmer and Buffet basses) and an "L" under those that work for single-vent horns (older Leblancs and others). These articles and fingering charts would be worthwhile for any bass clarinet player or teacher to explore.

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.

Michael Lowenstern - Summertime

In this performance at Grand Valley State University in 2006, Michael Lowenstern plays his virtuosic arrangement of the Gershwin classic "Summertime." This is probably different than any other version of the tune you've heard, with creative use of extended techniques such as multiphonics and slap tonguing.

Eric Dolphy - "God Bless the Child"