Eastern European Rhapsody - duets for clarinet and bassoon - automatic PDF download

A clarinetist does not usually get the chance to play orchestral literature, apart from studying excerpts, if not a member of an orchestra or philharmonic. East Eu­ropean Rhapsody is a delightful book of duets for clarinet and bassoon that allows just that. John Gibson has arranged eight orchestral pieces for the two woodwind instruments. Transcribing and arranging orchestral literature for two instruments can be challenging, but Gibson has not compromised the integrity of the pieces. And the addition of these duets provides the repertoire another collection of duets for clarinet and bassoon.

The collection is comprised of Roma­nian Rhapsody No. 1 by George Enescu, Hungarian Dance #3 by Franz Liszt, Slavonic Dances #6, 7, and 8 by Anton Dvorak, and Hungarian Dances #1, 3, and 10 by Johannes Brahms. Both the clarinet and bassoon players must perform at a high level, and also must be sensitive to each other. Because of the nature of the orchestral works, these transcriptions re­quire advanced use of tempo changes, fer­matas, accelerando, and ritardando. The players must be capable of following the score, able to cue each other and follow cues, and be sensitive to each other's mu­sical nuances.

One may miss the lush orchestral sound, but Gibson manages to keep the melodies of the pieces intact, and the pieces, as a whole, very recognizable since the form of the duets remains true to the orches­tral versions. Gibson omits sections of the music when the texture becomes too thick, complex, or when a section repeats itself more than once. The lines are not true to the instruments-there are lines that are played by the clarinet in the or­chestra that Gibson gives to the bassoon and vice versa. That is not always the case, however, because in the Liszt, the cadenza is still played by the clarinet. Some of the musical passages are technically difficult because in the orchestral versions these passages are carried by the violin section. And the transcription of these duets is not always true to the original key of the or­chestral versions.

Some of the pieces work very well with two instruments because of the duets that occur within the wind section of the orchestra, Brahms Hungarian Dance #3 in particular. Slavonic Dance #8 by Anton Dvorak may be perhaps the most difficult to arrange for two players because of the orchestral texture and the sheer volume of the piece. Gibson, of necessity, omits some of the harmonies and secondary melodies, but still manages to retain the important melody.

As with any duet, the piece demands the full expertise of the players. These du­ets are no exception. The two players are playing almost all the time. If there are rests, they are not long, and few and far between. Accordingly, the performance of these pieces might prove difficult because of the endurance required, especially since the Enescu will last from 12-15 minutes.