Re: Klezmer Clarinet

[Ari Davidow <ari...>]

At 07:40 AM 1/25/98 -1000, you wrote:
>At 06:27 PM 1/24/98 -0600, Bob Jacobson wrote:
>
>>Earlier periods aside, now that we have sound engineering technology that
>>allows us to do pretty much whatever we want, why are there still only a
>>small handful of excellent trumpet players who have chosen to focus on
>>klezmer?
>
>I don't know about why the trumpet players aren't choosing klezmer, but it
>seems pretty obvious to me that trumpets could never really "shine" in
>traditional Yiddish music because they simply lack the ability to produce
>all those elements of the vocal style that have been described and
>discussed here over the past few days.  While they have the element of
>wind, which in my view is what brought the clarinet to pre-eminence in this
>style, the metallic sound is a definite obstacle.  Yes, there have been
>wonderful, expressive trumpet/cornet players -- Manny Klein and the Klezmer
>Conservatory Band's current cornet player (sorry, his name escapes me) are
>two excellent examples whose work I enjoy very much -- but they can't do
>anywhere near what even a second string fiddler or clarinetist could do
>with respect to expressivity.

I dunno. I mean, I don't think of Frank London, of the Klezmatics,
as a second-string violin, and that goes double for David Buchbinder
of the Flying Bulgars. David, especially, has a wonderful klez feel
(in my unqualified opinion).

ari