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Mozart, Concerto K622
On Mozart’s 250th anniversary in 2006, I had the chance to perform the clarinet concerto on my newly obtained Peter Eaton basset clarinet. This particular concert was in Tokyo with the Japan Chamber Orchestra, a special event.
Lovreglio, Concert Fantasy on Verdi's 'La Traviata'
This perfomance of Lovreglio's Concert Fantasy on Verdi's 'La Traviata' closed Anna's sold out debut recital at the Bunka Kaikan Recital Hall in Tokyo.
Francaix, Clarinet Concerto
This is my favourite clarinet concerto, and this performance was given with the Purcell Symphony Orchestra at LSO St Luke's in March '07.'
Daugherty, Brooklyn Bridge (concerto)
'Michael Daugherty's Clarinet Concerto "Brooklyn Bridge" was written in 2005 as a commission by the International Clarinet Association, and this was the Japan Premiere I gave in Tokyo during the ICA ClarinetFest '05, which was broadcast on FM Tokyo. He says "Like the four cables of webs of wire and steel that hold the Brooklyn Bridge together, my ode to this cultural icon is divided into four movements. Each movement of the clarinet concerto is a musical view from the Brooklyn Bridge:
- I. East (Brooklyn and Brooklyn Heights);
- II. South (Statue of Liberty);
- III. West (Wall Street and the lower Manhattan skyline which was once dominated by the World Trade Towers);
- IV. North (Empire State Building, Chrysler Building, and Rockefeller Center).
In the final movement of the concerto, I also imagine Artie Shaw, the great jazz swing clarinetist of the 1940s, performing with his orchestra in the once glorious Rainbow Room on the sixty-fifth floor of the Rockefeller Center.
Carter, Gra
Composer's Notes
'GRA ('Game' in Polish) for solo clarinet, was written as a tribute to my dear friend, Witold Lutoslawski, to commemorate his 80th birthday. During the twenty-five or so years that I have known Witold, I have never ceased to admire his impressive works and his gracious personality. This clarinet piece combines frequently changing, playful characters together (all based on the same material) and recalls to me my many delighted visits with the composer in America and Poland.' - Eliot Carter