Emrah Öztürk

Download

Download Full Text (977 KB)

Publication Date

3-5-2006

Year of Release

2006

Note(s)

Emrah Öztürk, clarinet

accompanied by

Yeşim Dikener, piano

This recital is presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts degree in Performance. Mr. Öztürk is a student in the clarinet studio of Dr. Ann Marie Bingham.

Program Notes

Claude Debussy was the most significant French composer of the early twentieth century. Debussy's music can be considered a bridge between the late romantic period and the twentieth century. It was a reaction against the heavy Germanic music of the time and can be recognized for its innovative use of tonal color and its unusual harmonies.

Debussy's Petite Piece and Premiere Rhapsodie were composed in 1910 as test pieces for the clarinet students at the Paris Conservatory. The Petite Piece was used for the sight-reading examination and the Rhapsodie was the prepared piece. The Petite Piece has a moderate tempo and a calm, relaxing character. This little piece is difficult only in maintaining the clarity of line and being completely in concord with the piano.

Debussy first wrote the Premiere Rhapsodie for clarinet and piano. In 1911 he made a transcription of the piano part for orchestra. Today it is performed frequently in both versions. The Premiere Rhapsodie was dedicated to Debussy's colleague at the conservatory, clarinet professor Charles Mimart. After Debussy finished the piece he said, ''This piece is one of the most pleasing I have ever written". ¹

The Rhapsodie is a sectional work with many different tempos. It begins softly and peacefully. The lyricism of the opening theme gives way to an energetic cadenza. This is followed by sections that test the performer's abilities of articulating cleanly, playing in difficult keys, and presenting numerous styles as well as maintaining control and secure intonation in extreme registers at extreme dynamic levels. It is indeed the quintessential examination piece for clarinetists.

Heinrich Sutermeister was a twentieth century Swiss composer who was most recognized for writing opera. He was strongly influenced by the well-known German composer Carl Orff. Orff’s influence is evident in the aggressive rhythms and angular melodic structures of the Capriccio for solo clarinet in A.

Sutermeister composed the Capriccio in 1947 as a contest piece for the Concours International d'execution Musicale Geneve. The Geneva Concours is an annual competition that features different musical disciplines each year and commissions new works for the featured instruments.

A capriccio generally exhibits freedom of tempo and style. In Sutermeister's piece two distinct characters can be heard. They have their own personalities and apparently are having a conversation with each other. The clarinetist must determine who those characters are and what they are attempting to say. The performer must have excellent technical facility as well as exceptional control of extreme dynamic ranges and tonal color to present this piece effectively.

Carl Maria von Weber was a German composer, pianist, and conductor. He studied composition with the eminent Joseph Haydn as well as one of Haydn's pupils, Georg Joseph Vogler.

Weber is most recognized as a founder of Romantic opera, but he composed symphonies, sonatas, chamber music, and concertos as well. His concertos for clarinet are a significant contribution to the repertoire. Weber wrote many compositions for the clarinet because of his close relationship with the great clarinetist Heinrich Joseph Baermann.

The Grand Duo Concertant, finished in 1816, was Weber's last instrumental composition before his death: The first movement of the Grand Duo actually was written last. Weber composed the second and last movements in 1815. Then he completed the first movement. It was his only work for the clarinet not composed for his close friend Baermann. He wrote it for Johann Hermstedt, a friend of Ludwig Spohr. Weber and Hemstedt premiered the Grand Duo.

The Grand Duo is a virtuosic composition for both clarinet and piano. Arnold Schonberg said about the piano part that, "Some of the stretches that he wrote cannot be played by normal human beings".²

Both parts of the Grand Duo are equally important. The music is reminiscent of a conversation between the two instruments. The musical ideas of the first movement are expressed with ascending and descending scales. The extensive range of the clarinet is exploited. The slow second movement has lovely yet unsettled themes. They resolve only at the end of the movement. The third movement, a rondo, is energetic and sparkling. The intricate and interactive passage work heard in the both parts provides a fitting ending to this virtuosic piece.

¹Jay Weitz. http://www.cmcolumbus.org/03-04_Season/Program%20Notes/spoleto.htm.

Note

Smith Recital Hall

Disciplines

Arts and Humanities | Fine Arts | Music | Music Performance

Marshall University Music Department Presents a Graduate Recital, Emrah Öztürk, clarinet

Share

COinS