Igor Stravinsky. “Three Pieces”
for cla-rinet solo were written in 1920 for the amateur clarinetist Werner Reinhart in
gratitude for his patronage of The Soldier's Tale. The first is a calm arioso, the second
a freeform fantasy, employing chord-like arpeggiandi and the third is reminiscent of
Stravinsky's jazz-influenced style, as in the ragtime and tango of the Soldier's Tale.
Claude Debussy. “Petite Piece”, “The Prèmiere Rhapsodie” for
clarinet and piano. Both pieces were written for the “concours”, the audition contest
of the year 1910 for the Conservatoire in Paris. The Petite Pièce was written
specifically for sight reading at the audition. Rhapsodie was first performed with piano
accompaniment on January 26, 1911, by the clarinet-player Paul Mimart, a soloist to whom
the piece was dedicated.
Darius Milhaud. “Scaramouche” for clarinet and piano. This suite was originally
composed for alto saxophone and orchestra in 1939. Its title came from the character of
the same name of the commedia dell’arte. Parts of the suite are based on the music for
Molière's Le Mèdecin Volant. The third movement Brazileira was written under the
influence of Milhaud’s trip to Brazil in 1917, where he was fascinated by the rhythms of
the Brazilian folk music.
Bela Kovacs. “Hommage à C. Debussy” for clarinet solo. Béla Kovács
– clarinet professor of the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, wrote Hommage à
C. Debussy in 1994 which was one of the pieces from his collection of Hommages to such
composers as Weber, Bach, Strauss, Falla, and others.
Maurice Ravel. “Piece en forme de Habanera” for clarinet and piano.
This piece was written in 1907 at the end of Ravel’s studies at the Paris Conservatoire.
A short, atmospheric piece of exquisite sensitivity, it takes its inspiration from the
'habanera', a swaying dance in slow dotted duple time of Spanish ancestry. Originally a
wordless song (Vocalise) for voice and piano, it can be heard in many transcriptions.
Robert Muczynski. “Time Pieces” for clarinet and piano. Muczynski,
Professor of Composition and Composer-in-Residence at the University of Arizona, is firmly
established as one of the major contributors to the solo piano repertory. The suite Time
Pieces was first performed at the Clarinet Congress of the International Clarinet Society
in London, on August 15, 1984 by Mitchell Lurie (clarinet) and Robert Muczynski (piano).
Eugene Bozza. “Aria” for clarinet and piano. Famous French composer,
conductor and violinist Bozza conducted the orchestra of the Opéra-Comique until 1948;e
he then became Head of the Conservatoire in Valenciennes. This “Aria” was originally
written in 1936 for a French saxophonist Marcel Mule. It is a lovely, eloquent, short work
written in an accessible style where the solo part is very expressive and flowing.
Alexey Gorokholinsky was born in 1984. He began formal training on the
piano at age four, switching to the clarinet at age seven. From that time until the age of
thirteen, he studied in the Special Central Music School in Moscow. His first clarinet
teacher was Vladimir Sokolov with whom he has studied till 1999. In 1999 Alexey came to
Idyllwild Arts Academy where he studied with Yehuda Gilad till 2003. In 2000 he has won
the Jack Smith Award at the Pasadena Instrumental Competition. In 2001 he was the Runner
Up (second prize) at Spotlight Competition. In 2003 he was accepted to Juilliard School in
New York where he conti-nues his studies with professor Charles Neidich.
Marina Gorokholinsky. Educated at Central Music School of Moscow she
has graduated from the Moscow State Conservatory in 1984. All this time she has studied
with famous pianist and professor Victor Merzhanov. Now she performs as a chamber player
and solo pianist. “Marina Gorokholinsky is a bright representative of Russian piano
school. Her concert performances are always exceptional in artistic way and never leave
the audience emotionally untouched. She possesses a smooth beautiful sound and deep
sensitivity, which allows her to show in her performances all the uniqueness of the pieces
of the composers of different styles.” (Victor Merzhanov).
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