Name	Clarinet
Image capt	B♭ Clarinet (Boehm system)
Background	woodwind
Classification	Wind Woodwind Single-reed
Hornbostel sachs	422.211.2-71
Hornbostel sachs desc	Single-reeded aerophone with keys
Range	Written range (though it is possible to play higher):
Midi	071/072
Related	* Saxophone Tárogató (modern) Oboe Chalumeau
Musicians	* Clarinetists
Articles	}}

The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix ''-et'' (meaning ''little'') to the Italian word ''clarino'' (meaning a type of trumpet designed for high-register playing), as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed. In jazz contexts, it has sometimes been informally referred to as the "licorice stick."

Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches. The clarinet family is the largest such woodwind family, with more than a dozen types, ranging from the (extremely rare) BBB♭ octo-contrabass to the A♭ soprano (piccolo clarinet). Of these, many are rare or obsolete (there is only one BBB♭ octo-contrabass clarinet in existence, for example), and music written for them is usually played on the common types. The unmodified word ''clarinet'' usually refers to the B soprano clarinet, by far the most commonly played clarinet.

A person who plays the clarinet is called a clarinetist or clarinettist. Johann Christoph Denner invented the clarinet in Germany around the turn of the 18th century by adding a register key to the earlier chalumeau. Over time, additional keywork and airtight pads were added to improve tone and playability. Today, the clarinet is used in jazz and classical ensembles, in chamber groups, and as a solo instrument.

Characteristics

Tone

The cylindrical bore is primarily responsible for the clarinet's distinctive timbre, which varies between its three main registers, known as the chalumeau, clarino, and altissimo. The tone quality can vary greatly with the musician, the music, the instrument, the mouthpiece, and the reed. The differences in instruments and geographical isolation of players in different countries led to the development, from the last part of the 18th century onwards, of several different schools of clarinet playing. The most prominent were the German/Viennese traditions and the French school. The latter was centered on the clarinetists of the Conservatoire de Paris. The proliferation of recorded music has made examples of different styles of clarinet playing available. The modern clarinetist has a diverse palette of "acceptable" tone qualities to choose from.

The A clarinet and B clarinet have nearly the same bore, and use the same mouthpiece. Orchestral players using the A and B instruments in the same concert use the same mouthpiece (and often the same barrel) for both (see 'usage' below). The A and the B instruments have nearly identical tonal quality, although the A typically has a slightly warmer sound. The tone of the E clarinet is brighter than that of the lower clarinets and can be heard even through loud orchestral textures. The bass clarinet has a characteristically deep, mellow sound, while the alto clarinet is similar in tone to the bass and the basset horn has a tone quality comparable to the A clarinet.

Range

Clarinets have the largest pitch range of common woodwinds. The intricate key organization that makes this range possible can make the playability of some passages awkward. The bottom of the clarinet’s written range is defined by the keywork on each instrument, standard keywork schemes allow a low E on the common B clarinet. The lowest concert pitch depends on the transposition of the instrument in question.

Nearly all soprano and piccolo clarinets have keywork enabling them to play the E below middle C (E₃ in scientific pitch notation) as their lowest written note, though some B clarinets go down to E₃ to enable them to match the range of the A clarinet. On the B soprano clarinet, the concert pitch of the lowest note is D₃, a whole tone lower than the written pitch. Most alto and bass clarinets have an extra key to allow a (written) E₃. Modern professional-quality bass clarinets generally have additional keywork to written C₃. Among the less commonly encountered members of the clarinet family, contra-alto and contrabass clarinets may have keywork to written E₃, D₃, or C₃; the basset clarinet and basset horn generally go to low C₃.

Defining the top end of a clarinet’s range is difficult, since many advanced players can produce notes well above the highest notes commonly found in method books. The G two octaves above G₄ is usually the highest note clarinetists encounter in classical repertoire. The C above that (C₇ i.e. resting on the fifth ledger line above the treble staff) is attainable by advanced players and is shown on many fingering charts, and fingerings as high as E₇ exist.

The range of a clarinet can be divided into three distinct registers. The lowest register, consisting of the notes up to the written B above middle C (B₄), is known as the ''chalumeau'' register (named after the instrument that was the clarinet's immediate predecessor). The middle register is termed the ''clarino'' (sometimes ''clarion'') register and spans just over an octave (from written B above middle C (B₄) to the C two octaves above middle C (C₆)); it is the dominant range for most members of the clarinet family. The top or ''altissimo'' register consists of the notes above the written C two octaves above middle C (C₆). Unlike other woodwinds, all three registers have characteristically different sounds. The chalumeau register is rich and dark. The clarino register is brighter and sweet, like a trumpet heard from afar ("clarino" means trumpet). The altissimo register can be piercing and sometimes shrill.

Construction

Materials

Clarinet bodies have been made from a variety of materials including wood, plastic, hard rubber, metal, resin, and ivory. The vast majority of clarinets used by professional musicians are made from African hardwood, mpingo (African Blackwood) or grenadilla, rarely (because of diminishing supplies) Honduran rosewood and sometimes even cocobolo. Historically other woods, notably boxwood, were used.

Most modern, inexpensive instruments are made of plastic resin, such as ABS. These materials are sometimes called "resonite", which is Selmer's trademark name for its type of plastic. Metal soprano clarinets were popular in the early twentieth century, until plastic instruments supplanted them; metal construction is still used for the bodies of some contra-alto and contrabass clarinets, and for the necks and bells of nearly all alto and larger clarinets. Ivory was used for a few 18th century clarinets, but it tends to crack and does not keep its shape well.

Buffet Crampon's Greenline clarinets are made from a composite of grenadilla wood powder and carbon fiber. Such instruments are less affected by humidity and temperature changes than wooden instruments but are heavier. Hard rubber, such as ebonite, has been used for clarinets since the 1860s, although few modern clarinets are made of it. Clarinet designers Alastair Hanson and Tom Ridenour are strong advocates of hard rubber. Hanson Clarinets of England manufactures clarinets using a grenadilla compound reinforced with ebonite, known as 'BTR' (bithermal reinforced) grenadilla. This material is also not affected by humidity, and the weight is the same as that of a wood clarinet.

Mouthpieces are generally made of hard rubber, although some inexpensive mouthpieces may be made of plastic. Other materials such as crystal/glass, wood, ivory, and metal have also been used. Ligatures are often made out of metal and plated in nickel, silver or gold. Other ligature materials include wire, wire mesh, plastic, naugahyde, string, or leather.

Reed

The instrument uses a single reed made from the cane of ''Arundo donax'', a type of grass. Reeds may also be manufactured from synthetic materials. The ligature fastens the reed to the mouthpiece. When air is blown through the opening between the reed and the mouthpiece facing, the reed vibrates and produces the instrument's sound.

Basic reed measurements are as follows: tip, wide; lay, long (distance from the place where the reed touches the mouthpiece to the tip); gap, (distance between the underside of the reed tip and the mouthpiece). Adjustment to these measurements is one method of affecting tone color.

Most clarinetists buy manufactured reeds, although many make adjustments to these reeds and some make their own reeds from cane "blanks". Reeds come in varying degrees of hardness, generally indicated on a scale from one (soft) through five (hard). This numbering system is not standardized — reeds with the same hardness number often vary in hardness across manufacturers and models. Reed and mouthpiece characteristics work together to determine ease of playability, pitch stability, and tonal characteristics.

Components of a modern soprano clarinet

Note: A Boehm system soprano clarinet is shown in the photos illustrating this section. However, all modern clarinets have similar components.

The ''reed'' is attached to the ''mouthpiece'' by the ''ligature'', and the top half-inch or so of this assembly is held in the player’s mouth. German clarinetists often wrap a string around the mouthpiece and reed instead of using a ligature. The formation of the mouth around the mouthpiece and reed is called the ''embouchure''.

The reed is on the underside of the mouthpiece, pressing against the player's lower lip, while the top teeth normally contact the top of the mouthpiece (some players roll the upper lip under the top teeth to form what is called a ‘double-lip’ embouchure). Adjustments in the strength and shape of the embouchure change the tone and intonation (tuning). It is not uncommon for clarinetists to employ methods to relieve the pressure on the upper teeth and inner lower lip by attaching pads to the top of the mouthpiece or putting (temporary) padding on the front lower teeth, commonly from folded paper.

Next is the short ''barrel''; this part of the instrument may be extended to fine-tune the clarinet. As the pitch of the clarinet is fairly temperature-sensitive, some instruments have interchangeable barrels whose lengths vary slightly. Additional compensation for pitch variation and tuning can be made by pulling out the barrel and thus increasing the instrument's length, particularly common in group playing in which clarinets are tuned to other instruments (such as in an orchestra). Some performers use a plastic barrel with a thumbwheel that enables the barrel length to be altered. On basset horns and lower clarinets, the barrel is normally replaced by a curved metal neck.

The main body of most clarinets is divided into the ''upper joint'', the holes and most keys of which are operated by the left hand, and the ''lower joint'' with holes and most keys operated by the right hand. Some clarinets have a single joint: on some basset horns and larger clarinets the two joints are held together with a screw clamp and are usually not disassembled for storage. The left thumb operates both a ''tone hole'' and the ''register key''. On some models of clarinet, such as many Albert system clarinets and increasingly some higher-end Boehm system clarinets, the register key is a 'wraparound' key, with the key on the back of the clarinet and the pad on the front. Advocates of the wraparound register key say it improves sound, and it is harder for moisture to accumulate in the tube beneath the pad.

The body of a modern soprano clarinet is equipped with numerous ''tone holes'' of which seven (six front, one back) are covered with the fingertips, and the rest are opened or closed using a set of keys. These tone holes allow every note of the chromatic scale to be produced. On alto and larger clarinets and a few soprano clarinets, some or all finger holes are replaced by key-covered holes. The most common system of keys was named the Boehm System by its designer Hyacinthe Klosé in honour of flute designer Theobald Boehm, but it is not the same as the Boehm System used on flutes. The other main system of keys is called the Oehler system and is used mostly in Germany and Austria (see History). The related Albert system is used by some jazz, klezmer, and eastern European folk musicians. The Albert and Oehler systems are both based on the early Mueller system.

The cluster of keys at the bottom of the upper joint (protruding slightly beyond the cork of the joint) are known as the ''trill keys'' and are operated by the right hand. These give the player alternative fingerings that make it easy to play ornaments and trills. The entire weight of the smaller clarinets is supported by the right thumb behind the lower joint on what is called the ''thumb-rest''. Basset horns and larger clarinets are supported with a neck strap or a floor peg.

Finally, the flared end is known as the ''bell''. Contrary to popular belief, the bell does not amplify the sound; rather, it improves the uniformity of the instrument's tone for the lowest notes in each register. For the other notes the sound is produced almost entirely at the tone holes and the bell is irrelevant. On basset horns and larger clarinets, the bell curves up and forward and is usually made of metal.

Boehm Keywork and sample fingerings of a modern soprano clarinet

Theobald Boehm did not directly invent the key system of the clarinet. Boehm was a flautist who created the key system that is now used for the Transverse Flute. Klosé and Buffet applied Boehm's system to the Clarinet. Although the credit goes to those people, Boehm's name was given to that key system.

The current Boehm key system consists of generally 6 rings, on the thumb, 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th holes, a register key just above the thumb hole, easily accessible with the thumb. Above the 1st hole, there is a key that lifts two covers creating the note A in the throat register (high part of low register) of the clarinet. A key at the side of the instrument at the same height as the A key lifts only one of the two covers, producing G# a semitone lower. The A key can be used in conjunction solely with the register key to produce A#/Bb.

Acoustics

Sound is a wave that propagates through the air as a result of a local variation in air pressure. The production of sound by a clarinet follows these steps:

# The air in the bore of the instrument is at normal atmospheric pressure and moves towards the bell (or the first open hole). The minuscule space between the mouthpiece and the reed allows only a small amount of air to enter the instrument. This creates a low-pressure area in the mouthpiece. The difference in pressure between the two sides of the reed increases, causing the reed to press against the mouthpiece. # The wave of low-pressure air moves down the bore and arrives at the first open hole. # The outside air, at normal atmospheric pressure, is sucked in by the low pressure inside. The air that was previously leaving the clarinet through the hole changes direction quickly and enters the bore. # The incoming air normalizes the pressure within the bore, starting at the open hole and moving back towards the mouthpiece. # Once all the air in the bore is at atmospheric pressure (moving towards the mouthpiece), the difference in pressure between the two sides of the reed decreases and the reed returns to its original position. # The moving column of air is stopped by the sudden collision with the pressurized air coming from the player's mouth. A wave of high-pressure air moves towards the first open hole. # When the high-pressure air arrives at the open hole, the air coming into the bore abruptly changes direction and goes out through the hole. # The high pressure normalizes and the cycle restarts.

The cycle repeats at a constant frequency and emits a note related to that frequency. For example, A4 (440 Hz) is produced when the cycle repeats 440 times per second.

The bore of the soprano clarinet is cylindrical for most of the tube with an inner bore diameter between , but there is a subtle hourglass shape, with the thinnest part below the junction between the upper and lower joint. The reduction is depending on the maker. This hourglass shape, although not visible to the naked eye, helps to correct the pitch/scale discrepancy between the chalumeau and clarino registers (perfect 12th). The diameter of the bore affects characteristics such as available harmonics, timbre, and stability of pitch (the extent to which a note can be 'bent' in the manner required in jazz and other styles of music). The bell at the bottom of the instrument flares out to improve the tone of the lowest notes.

Most modern clarinets have "undercut" tone holes to improve intonation and the sound. Undercutting means chamfering the bottom edge of tone holes inside the bore. Acoustically, this makes the tone hole function as if it were larger, but its main function is to allow the air column to follow the curve up through the tone hole (surface tension) instead of "blowing past" it under the increased velocity of the upper registers.

The fixed reed and fairly uniform diameter of the clarinet give the instrument an acoustical behavior approximating that of a cylindrical stopped pipe. Recorders use a tapered internal bore to overblow at the 8th (octave) when its thumb/register hole is pinched open while the clarinet, with its cylindrical bore, overblows on the 12th. Adjusting the angle of the bore taper controls the frequencies of the overblown notes (harmonics). Changing the mouthpiece's tip opening and the length of the reed changes the harmonic timbre or voice of the instrument because this changes the speed of reed vibrations. Generally, the goal of the clarinetist when producing a sound is to make as much of the reed vibrate as possible, making the sound fuller, warmer, and potentially louder.

Covering or uncovering the tone holes varies the length of the pipe, changing the resonant frequencies of the enclosed air column and hence the pitch of the sound. A clarinetist moves between the chalumeau and clarino registers through use of the register key, or speaker key: clarinetists call the change from chalumeau register to clarino register "the break". The register key, when pressed, cancels the fundamental frequency scale and forces the clarinet to produce the next dominant harmonic scale a twelfth higher, and when using at least fingers 1-2-3 1-2, taking off the first finger on the left hand, acts as another register key, and doesn't overblow a twelfth, but instead a sixth. The clarinet is therefore said to overblow at the twelfth, and when moving to the altissimo register, a sixth. By contrast, nearly all other woodwind instruments overblow at the octave, or like the Ocarina and Tonette, do not overblow at all (the Rackett or Sausage Bassoon is the next most common Western instrument that overblows at the twelfth). A clarinet must have holes and keys for nineteen notes (a chromatic octave and a half, from bottom E to B) in its lowest register to play the chromatic scale. This overblowing behavior explains the clarinet's great range and complex fingering system. The fifth and seventh harmonics are also available, sounding a further sixth and fourth (a flat, diminished fifth) higher respectively; these are the notes of the altissimo register. This is also why the inner "waist" measurement is so critical to these harmonic frequencies.

The highest notes on a clarinet can have a shrill piercing quality and can be difficult to tune accurately. Different instruments often play differently in this respect due to the sensitivity of the bore and reed measurements. Using alternate fingerings and adjusting the embouchure helps correct the pitch of these higher notes.

Since approximately 1850, clarinets have been nominally tuned according to 12-tone equal temperament. Older clarinets were nominally tuned to meantone. A skilled performer can use his or her embouchure to considerably alter the tuning of individual notes or to produce vibrato, a pulsating change of pitch often employed in jazz. Vibrato is rare in classical or concert band literature; however, certain clarinetists, such as Richard Stoltzman, do use vibrato in classical music. Special fingerings may be used to play quarter tones and other microtonal intervals. Fritz Schüller of Markneukirchen, Germany built a quarter tone clarinet, with two parallel bores of slightly different lengths whose tone holes are operated using the same keywork and a valve to switch from one bore to the other. ==History==

Lineage

The clarinet has its roots in the early single-reed instruments or hornpipes used in the Middle East and Europe since the Middle Ages, such as the albogue, alboka, and double clarinet.

The modern clarinet developed from a Baroque instrument called the chalumeau. This instrument was similar to a recorder, but with a single-reed mouthpiece and a cylindrical bore. Lacking a register key, it was played mainly in its fundamental register, with a limited range of about one and a half octaves. It had eight finger holes, like a recorder, and two keys for its two highest notes. At this time, contrary to modern practice, the reed was placed in contact with the upper lip.

Around the turn of the 18th century, the chalumeau was modified by converting one of its keys into a register key to produce the first clarinet. This development is usually attributed to German instrument maker Johann Christoph Denner, though some have suggested his son Jacob Denner was the inventor. This instrument played well in the middle register with a loud, shrill sound, so it was given the name ''clarinetto'' meaning "little trumpet" (from ''clarino'' + ''-etto''). Early clarinets did not play well in the lower register, so chalumeaux continued to be made to play the low notes. As clarinets improved, the chalumeau fell into disuse and these notes became known as the ''chalumeau register''. The original Denner clarinets had two keys, and could play a chromatic scale, but various makers added more keys to get improved tuning, easier fingerings, and a slightly larger range. The classical clarinet of Mozart's day typically had eight finger holes and five keys.

Clarinets were soon accepted into orchestras. Later models had a mellower tone than the originals. Mozart (d. 1791) liked the sound of the clarinet (he considered its tone the closest in quality to the human voice) and wrote numerous pieces for the instrument., and by the time of Beethoven (c. 1800–1820), the clarinet was a standard fixture in the orchestra.

Pads

The next major development in the history of clarinet was the invention of the modern pad. Early clarinets covered the tone holes with felt pads. Because these leaked air, the pads had to be kept to a minimum, so the clarinet was severely restricted in what notes could be played with good tone. In 1812, Iwan Müller, a Russian-born clarinetist and inventor, developed a new type of pad that was covered in leather or fish bladder. This was completely airtight, so the number of keys could be increased enormously. He designed a new type of clarinet with seven finger holes and thirteen keys. This allowed the clarinet to play in any key with near-equal ease. Over the course of the 19th century, many enhancements were made to Mueller's clarinet, such as the Albert system and the Baermann system, all keeping the same basic design.

Arrangement of keys and holes

The final development in the modern design of the clarinet used in most of the world today was introduced by Hyacinthe Klosé in 1839. He devised a different arrangement of keys and finger holes, which allow simpler fingering. It was inspired by the Boehm System developed for flutes by Theobald Boehm. Klosé was so impressed by Boehm's invention that he named his own system for clarinets the Boehm system, although it is different from the one used on flutes. This new system was slow to gain popularity because it meant the player had to relearn how to play the instrument. To ease this transition, Klose wrote a series of exercises for the clarinet, designed to teach his fingering system. Gradually it became the standard, and today the Boehm system is used everywhere in the world except Germany and Austria. These countries still use a direct descendant of the Mueller clarinet known as the Oehler system clarinet. Also, some contemporary Dixieland and Klezmer players continue to use Albert system clarinets, as the simpler fingering system can allow for easier slurring of notes. At one time the reed was held on using string, but now the practice exists primarily in Germany and Austria.

Usage and repertoire

Use of multiple clarinets

The modern orchestral standard of using soprano clarinets in both B and A has to do partly with the history of the instrument, and partly with acoustics, aesthetics and economics. Before about 1800, due to the lack of airtight pads ''(see History)'', practical woodwinds could have only a few keys to control accidentals (notes outside their diatonic home scales). The low (chalumeau) register of the clarinet spans a twelfth (an octave plus a perfect fifth), so the clarinet needs keys to produce all nineteen notes in that range. This involves more keywork than is necessary on instruments that "overblow" at the octave — oboes, flutes, bassoons, and saxophones, for example, which need only twelve notes before overblowing.

Clarinets with few keys cannot therefore easily play chromatically, limiting any such instrument to a few closely related key signatures. For example, an eighteenth-century clarinet in C could be played in F, C, and G (and their relative minors) with good intonation, but with progressive difficulty and poorer intonation as the key moved away from this range. In contrast, for octave-overblowing instruments, an instrument in C with few keys could much more readily be played in any key.

This problem was overcome by using three clarinets — in A, B and C — so that early 19th century music, which rarely strayed into the remote keys (five or six sharps or flats), could be played as follows: music in 5 to 2 sharps (B major to D major concert pitch) on A clarinet (D major to F major for the player), music in 1 sharp to 1 flat (G to F) on C clarinet, and music in 2 flats to 4 flats (B to A) on the B clarinet (C to B for the player). Difficult key signatures and numerous accidentals were thus largely avoided.

With the invention of the airtight pad, and as key technology improved and more keys were added to woodwinds, the need for clarinets in multiple musical keys was reduced. However, the use of multiple instruments in different keys persisted, with the three instruments in C, B and A all used as specified by the composer.

The lower-pitched clarinets sound more "mellow" (less bright), and the C clarinet — being the highest and therefore brightest of the three — fell out of favour as the other two clarinets could cover its range and their sound was considered better. While the clarinet in C began to fall out of general use around 1850, some composers continued to write C parts after this date, e.g. Bizet's Symphony in C (1855), Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 2 (1872), Smetana's ''Vltava'' (1874), Brahms Symphony No. 4 (1885), and Richard Strauss deliberately reintroduced it to take advantage of its brighter tone, as in ''Der Rosenkavalier'' (1911).

While technical improvements and an equal-tempered scale reduced the need for two clarinets, the technical difficulty of playing in remote keys persisted and the A has thus remained a standard orchestral instrument. In addition, by the late 19th century the orchestral clarinet repertoire contained so much music for clarinet in A that the disuse of this instrument was not practical. Attempts were made to standardise to the B instrument between 1930 and 1950 (e.g. tutors recommended learning the routine transposition of orchestral A parts on the B clarinet, including solos written for A clarinet, and some manufacturers provided a low E on the B to match the range of the A), but this failed in the orchestral sphere.

Similarly there have been E and D instruments in the upper soprano range, B, A, and C instruments in the bass range, and so forth; but over time the E and B instruments have become predominant.

The B instrument continues to be dominant in wind ensemble music and in jazz, with both B and C instruments used in some ethnic traditions, such as klezmer music.

Classical music

In classical music, clarinets are part of standard orchestral instrumentation, which frequently includes two clarinetists playing individual parts — each player is usually equipped with a pair of standard clarinets in B and A (see above) and clarinet parts commonly alternate between B and A instruments several times over the course of a piece or even, less commonly, of a movement (e.g. 1st movement Brahms 3rd symphony). Clarinet sections grew larger during the last few decades of the 19th century, often employing a third clarinetist, an E or a bass clarinet. In the 20th century, composers such as Igor Stravinsky, Richard Strauss, Gustav Mahler and Olivier Messiaen enlarged the clarinet section on occasion to up to nine players, employing many different clarinets including the E or D soprano clarinets, basset horn, alto clarinet, bass clarinet and/or contrabass clarinet.

This practice of using a variety of clarinets to achieve coloristic variety was common in 20th century music and continues today. However, many clarinetists and conductors prefer to play parts originally written for obscure instruments on B or E clarinets, which are often of better quality and more prevalent and accessible.

The clarinet is widely used as a solo instrument. The relatively late evolution of the clarinet (when compared to other orchestral woodwinds) has left solo repertoire from the Classical period and later, but few works from the Baroque era. Many clarinet concertos have been written to showcase the instrument, with the concerti by Mozart, Copland and Weber being well known.

Many works of chamber music have also been written for the clarinet. Common combinations are: Clarinet and piano (including clarinet sonatas) Clarinet, piano and another instrument (for example, string instrument or voice) Clarinet quartet: various combinations including four B clarinets, three B clarinets and bass clarinet, two B clarinets, alto clarinet and bass, and other possibilities such as the use of a basset horn, especially in European classical works. Clarinet quintet, generally made up of a clarinet plus a string quartet. Wind quintet, consists of flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, and horn. Trio d'anches, or ''trio of reeds'' consists of oboe, clarinet, and bassoon. Wind octet, consists of pairs of oboes, clarinets, bassoons, and horns.

Concert bands

In wind bands, clarinets are a central part of the instrumentation, occupying the same space (and often playing the same notes) in bands that the strings do in orchestras. Bands usually include several B clarinets, divided into sections each consisting of two or three clarinetists playing the same part. There is almost always an E clarinet part and a bass clarinet part, usually doubled. Alto, contra-alto, and contrabass clarinets are sometimes used as well, and, rarely, a piccolo A clarinet.

Jazz

The clarinet was a central instrument in early jazz starting in the 1910s and remained popular in the United States through the big band era into the 1940s. Larry Shields, Ted Lewis, Jimmie Noone and Sidney Bechet were influential in early jazz. The B soprano was the most common instrument, but a few early jazz musicians such as Louis Nelson Delisle and Alcide Nunez preferred the C soprano, and many New Orleans jazz brass bands have used E soprano.

Swing clarinetists such as Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, and Woody Herman led successful and popular big bands and smaller groups from the 1930s onward. With the decline of the big bands' popularity in the late 1940s, the clarinet faded from its prominent position in jazz, though a few players (John Carter, Buddy DeFranco, Eric Dolphy, Jimmy Giuffre, Perry Robinson, Theo Jorgensmann and others) used clarinet in bebop and free jazz. The clarinet's place in the jazz ensemble was usurped by the saxophone, which projects a more powerful sound and uses a less complicated fingering system.

During the 1950s and 1960s, Britain underwent a surge in the popularity of traditional jazz. During this period, a British clarinetist named Acker Bilk became popular, founding his own ensemble in 1956. Bilk had a string of successful records, including the popular "Stranger on the Shore".

In the U.S., the instrument has seen something of a resurgence since the 1980s, with Eddie Daniels, Don Byron, and Marty Ehrlich and others playing the clarinet in more contemporary contexts. The instrument remains common in Dixieland music; Pete Fountain is one of the best known performers in this genre. Bob Wilber, active since the 1950s, is a more eclectic jazz clarinetist, playing in several classic jazz styles. Filmmaker Woody Allen is a notable jazz clarinet enthusiast, and performs New Orleans-style jazz regularly with his quartet in New York. Jean-Christian Michel, French composer and clarinetist has initiated a jazz-classical cross-over on the clarinet with the drummer Kenny Clarke. See also Gilad Atzmon whose 21st century jazz style has been described as bebop/hard bop, with forays into free jazz and swing, influenced by Arabic music.

In Canada, John Malmstrom performs in various mid-20th-century styles as well as writes original jazz compositions featuring clarinet and saxophone.

Other genres

In rock the clarinet is used very rarely.

Clarinets also feature prominently in klezmer music, which entails a distinctive style of playing. The use of quarter-tones requires a different embouchure. Some klezmer musicians prefer Albert system clarinets.

The popular Brazilian music styles of choro and samba use the clarinet. Prominent contemporary players include Paulo Moura, Naylor 'Proveta' Azevedo, Paulo Sérgio dos Santos and Paquito D'Rivera.

The clarinet is prominent in Bulgarian wedding music, an offshoot of Roma/Romani traditional music. Ivo Papazov is a well-known clarinetist in this genre. In Moravian dulcimer bands, the clarinet is usually the only wind instrument among string instruments.

In the Republic of Macedonia, old-town folk music -called chalgija ("чалгија"), the clarinet has the most important role in wedding music; clarinet solos mark the high point of dancing euphoria. One of the most renowned Macedonian clarinet players is Tale Ognenovski, who gained worldwide fame for his virtuosity.

In Greece the clarinet (usually referred to as "κλαρίνο" - "clarino") is prominent in traditional music, especially in central, northwest and northern Greece (Thessaly, Epirus and Macedonia). The double-reed zurna was the dominant woodwind instrument before the clarinet arrived in the country, although many Greeks regard the clarinet as a native instrument. Traditional dance music, wedding music and laments include a clarinet soloist and quite often improvisations. Petroloukas Chalkias is a famous clarinetist in this genre.

The instrument is equally famous in Turkey, especially the soprano clarinet in G. The soprano clarinet crossed via Turkey to Arabic music, where it is widely used in Arabic pop, especially if the intention of the arranger is to imitate the Turkish style.

Groups of clarinets

Groups of clarinets playing together have become increasingly popular among clarinet enthusiasts in recent years. Common forms are: Clarinet choir, which features a large number of clarinets playing together, usually involves a range of different members of the clarinet family (see Extended family of clarinets). The homogeneity of tone across the different members of the clarinet family produces an effect with some similarities to a human choir. Clarinet quartet, usually three B sopranos and one B bass, or two B, an E Alto Clarinet, and a B Bass Clarinet, or sometimes four B sopranos.

Clarinet choirs and quartets often play arrangements of both classical and popular music, in addition to a body of literature specially written for a combination of clarinets by composers such as Arnold Cooke, Alfred Uhl, Lucien Caillet and Václav Nelhýbel.

Extended family of clarinets

There is a family of many differently pitched clarinet types, some of which are very rare. The following are the most important sizes, from highest to lowest:

! Name !! Key !! Commentary !! Range (concert)
Piccolo clarinet	A	Now rare, used for Italian military music and some contemporary pieces for its sonority;
Sopranino clarinet	E	Characteristic timbre, used in concert band repertoire because its tonality is considered "compatible" with other instruments, especially those in B.
Sopranino clarinet	D	Obscure because of its limited repertoire in Western music.
Soprano clarinet	C	Rare because its timbre is considered too bright.
Soprano clarinet	B	The most common type: used in most styles of music.
Soprano clarinet	A	Has a richer sound than B, frequently used in orchestral and chamber music.
Basset clarinet	A	Clarinet in A extended to a low C; used primarily to play Classical-era music. Mozart's Clarinet Concerto was written for this instrument, though it is frequently played in a version for the ordinary A clarinet. Basset clarinets in Bb also exist; this instrument is required to play the obbligato to the aria "Parto, parto" in Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito.
Basset-horn	F	Similar in appearance to the alto, but differs in that it is pitched in F, has an extended range to low C, and has a narrower bore on most models. Mozart's Clarinet Concerto was originally sketched out as a concerto for basset horn in G. Rarely used today.
Alto clarinet	E	Used in chamber music and wind ensembles.
Bass clarinet	B	Used in contemporary music, concert band and jazz; sometimes used in orchestral music.
Contra-alto clarinet (also called E Contrabass Clarinet)	EE	Used in clarinet choirs.
Contrabass clarinet (also called B Subcontrabass or Double-bass Clarinet)	BB	Used in clarinet choirs and sometimes in orchestras and wind ensembles.

Experimental EEE and BBB octocontra-alto and octocontrabass clarinets have also been built. There have also been soprano clarinets in C, A, and B with curved barrels and bells marketed under the names Saxonette, Claribel, and Clariphon.

See also

List of Clarinet concerti

List of clarinetists

Clarinet makers Lists of makers of clarinets, clarinet mouthpieces, and clarinet reeds.

Double clarinet A Middle Eastern instrument, not a true clarinet in the western sense of the term

Quarter tone clarinet

International Clarinet Association

Notes

Further reading

Nicholas Bessaraboff, ''Ancient European Musical Instruments.'' Boston: Harvard University Press, 1941.

"Woodwind Instruments and Their History" by Anthony Baines, Dover Publishing.

Jack Brymer, ''Clarinet''. (Yehudi Menuhin Music Guides) Hardback and paperback, 296 pages, Kahn & Averill. ISBN 1-871082-12-9.

David Pino, ''The Clarinet and Clarinet Playing.'' Providence: Dover Pubns, 1998, 320 p.; ISBN 0-486-40270-3.

F. Geoffrey Rendall, ''The Clarinet.'' Second Revised Edition. London: Ernest Benn Limited, 1957.

Cyrille Rose, ''Artistic Studies, Book 1.'' ed. David Hite. San Antonio: Southern Music, 1986.

Nicholas Shackleton, "Clarinet", ''Grove Music Online'', ed. L. Macy (accessed 21 February 2006), grovemusic.com (subscription access).

Buffet Crampon Greenline website

Jennifer Ross, "Clarinet", "Ohio: Hardcover Printing Press, 1988.

Fabrizio Meloni, ''Il Clarinetto'', ill., 299 pages, Zecchini Editore, zecchini.com Italy, 2002, ISBN 88-87203-03-2.

Bărbuceanu Valeriu, "Dictionary of musical instruments", Second Revised Edition, Teora Press, Bucharest, 1999.

"Fundamentals of Musical Acoustics" by Arthur H. Benade, Dover Publishing.

SELMER Paris : the clarinet family

External links

The International Clarinet Association

The-Clarinets.net - Comprehensive clarinet info-site, non-commercial

Clarinets in the Edinburgh University Collection of Historic Musical Instruments

Clarinet acoustics

UNM List of Clarinet Repertoire

Clarinet Fingering Chart

Interactive Clarinet Fingering Trainer

Comprehensive list of fingerings for Kinderklarinettes and Boehm-, Albert-, and Oehler-system clarinets

Professional Orchestral Clarinetists Worldwide List

Category:Clarinets Category:French loanwords Category:Clarinetists Category:B-flat instruments Category:Reed aerophones

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Name	Artie Shaw
Background	non_vocal_instrumentalist
Birth name	Arthur Jacob Arshawsky
Born	May 23, 1910New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	December 30, 2004Thousand Oaks, California, U.S.
Instrument	Clarinet
Genre	Swing, big band
Occupation	Bandleader, composer
Years active	1925–2004
Notable instruments	}}

Arthur Jacob Arshawsky (May 23, 1910 – December 30, 2004), better known as Artie Shaw, was an American jazz clarinetist, composer, and bandleader. He was also the author of both fiction and non-fiction writings.

Widely regarded as "one of jazz's finest clarinetists," Shaw led one of America's most popular big bands of the late 1930s and early '40s. Their signature song, a 1938 version of Cole Porter's "Begin the Beguine," was a wildly successful single and one of the era's defining recordings. Musically restless, Shaw was also an early proponent of Third Stream, which blended classical and jazz, and recorded some small-group sessions that flirted with be-bop before retiring from music in 1954.

Early life

Born Arthur Jacob Arshawsky in New York City, Shaw grew up in New Haven, Connecticut, where, according to his autobiography his natural introversion was deepened by local antisemitism. Shaw began learning the saxophone when he was 13 years old, and by the age of 16, he switched to the clarinet and left home to tour with a band. Returning to New York, he became a session musician through the early 1930s. From 1925 until 1936, Shaw performed with many bands and orchestras, including those of Johnny Caverello and Austin Wylie. In 1929 and 1930 he played with Irving Aaronson's Commanders, where he was exposed to symphonic music, which he would later incorporate in his arrangements.

Shaw first gained critical acclaim with his "Interlude in B-flat" at a swing concert at the Imperial Theater in New York in 1935. During the swing era, his big band was popular with hits like "Begin the Beguine" (1938), "Stardust" (with a trumpet solo by Billy Butterfield), "Back Bay Shuffle", "Moonglow", "Rosalie" and "Frenesi". He was an innovator in the big band idiom, using unusual instrumentation; "Interlude in B-flat", where he was backed with only a rhythm section and a string quartet, was one of the earliest examples of what would be later dubbed third stream.

In addition to hiring Buddy Rich, he signed Billie Holiday as his band's vocalist in 1938, becoming the first white bandleader to hire a full-time black female singer to tour the segregated Southern US. However, after recording "Any Old Time" she left the band due to hostility from audiences in the South, as well as from music company executives who wanted a more "mainstream" singer. His band became enormously successful, and his playing was eventually recognized as equal to that of Benny Goodman: longtime Duke Ellington clarinetist Barney Bigard cited Shaw as his favorite clarinet player. In response to Goodman's nickname, the "King of Swing", Shaw's fans dubbed him the "King of the Clarinet." Shaw, however, felt the titles were reversed. "Benny Goodman played clarinet. I played music," he said. In 1938 DownBeat Magazine's readers agreed with Shaw's evaluation and named Artie Shaw as the King of Swing.

Shaw prized innovation and exploration in music more highly than popular success and formulaic dance music, despite a string of hits which sold more than 100 million records. He fused jazz with classical music by adding strings to his arrangements, experimented with bebop, and formed "chamber jazz" groups that utilized such novel sounds as harpsichords or Afro-Cuban music.

The long series of musical groups Shaw formed included such talents as vocalists Billie Holiday, Helen Forrest and, Mel Tormé; drummers Buddy Rich and Dave Tough, guitarists Barney Kessel, Jimmy Raney, and Tal Farlow and trombonist-arranger Ray Conniff, among countless others. He composed the morose "Nightmare", with its Hassidic nuances, for his personal theme, rather than more approachable songs. In a televised interview of the 1970s, Shaw derided the often "asinine" songs that bands were compelled to play night after night. In 1994, he told Frank Prial (''The New York Times''), "I thought that because I was Artie Shaw I could do what I wanted, but all they wanted was 'Begin the Beguine.' "

Pacific overtures

During World War II, Shaw enlisted in the United States Navy and later formed a band, which served in the Pacific theater (just as Glenn Miller's wartime band served in Europe). After 18 months playing for Navy personnel (sometimes as many as four concerts a day in battle zones, including Guadalcanal), Shaw returned to the U.S. in a state of physical exhaustion, receiving a medical discharge. In the late 1940s, Shaw performed classical music at Carnegie Hall and with the New York Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein.

Like Benny Goodman and other leaders of big bands, Shaw fashioned a small group from within the band. He named it the Gramercy Five after his home telephone exchange. Band pianist Johnny Guarneri played a harpsichord on the quintet recordings and Al Hendrickson played an electric guitar, which was unusual in jazz recordings of the time. Trumpeter Roy Eldridge later became part of the group, succeeding Billy Butterfield. The Gramercy Five's biggest hit was "Summit Ridge Drive". A CD of ''The Complete Gramercy Five'' sessions was released in 1990.

Throughout his career, Shaw would take sabbaticals from the music business. This included studying advanced mathematics, as cited in Karl Sabbagh's ''The Riemann Hypothesis.'' His first interregnum, at the height of his success, was met with disbelief by booking agents. They predicted that Shaw would not only be abandoning a million-dollar enterprise but that nightclub and theater owners would sue him for breach of contract. Shaw's offhand response was, "Tell 'em I'm insane. A nice, young American boy walking away from a million dollars, wouldn't you call that insane?"

In 1954, Shaw stopped playing the clarinet, citing his own perfectionism, which, he later said, would have killed him. He explained to a reporter, "In the world we live in, compulsive perfectionists finish last. You have to be Lawrence Welk, or, on another level, Irving Berlin, and write the same kind of music over and over again. I'm not able to do that." He spent the rest of the 1950s living in Europe.

In 1981, he organized a new Artie Shaw Band with clarinetist Dick Johnson as bandleader and soloist. Shaw himself guest conducted from time to time, ending his self-imposed retirement.

After Canadian filmmaker Brigitte Berman interviewed Shaw, Hoagy Carmichael, Doc Cheatham and others for her documentary film ''Bix: Ain't None of Them Play Like Him Yet'' (1981) about Bix Beiderbecke, she went on to create an Academy Award-winning documentary, ''Artie Shaw: Time Is All You've Got'' (1985), featuring her interviews with Shaw, Buddy Rich, Mel Tormé, Helen Forrest and others. Later in 2003, along with members of his original bands and other music professionals, Shaw was extensively interviewed by Russell Davies for the BBC Television documentary, ''Artie Shaw — Quest for Perfection'', which became his last major interview.

In 1991, Artie Shaw's band library and manuscript collection was donated to the University of Arizona. In 2004, he was presented with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Personal life

A self-proclaimed "very difficult man," Shaw was married eight times: Jane Cairns (1932–33; annulled); Margaret Allen (1934–37; divorced); actress Lana Turner (1940; annulled); Betty Kern (1942–43; divorced), the daughter of songwriter Jerome Kern; actress Ava Gardner (1945–46; divorced); ''Forever Amber'' author Kathleen Winsor (1946–48; annulled); actress Doris Dowling (1952–56; divorced); and actress Evelyn Keyes (1957–85; divorced). He had one son, Steven Kern, with Betty Kern, and another son, Jonathan Shaw (a well-known tattoo artist who founded Fun City Tattoo), with Doris Dowling. Both Lana Turner and Ava Gardner later described Shaw as being extremely emotionally abusive. His controlling nature and incessant verbal abuse in fact drove Turner to have a nervous breakdown, soon after which she divorced him.

In 1946, Shaw was present at a meeting of the Independent Citizens' Committee of the Arts, Sciences and Professions. Olivia de Havilland and Ronald Reagan, part of a core group of actors and artists who were trying to sway the organization away from communism, presented an anti-communist declaration which, if signed, was to run in newspapers. There was bedlam as many rose to champion the communist cause, and Artie Shaw began praising the democratic standards of the Soviet constitution. In 1953, Shaw was brought up before the House Un-American Activities Committee for his leftist activities. The committee was investigating a peace activist organization, the World Peace Congress, which it considered a communist front.

He was a precision marksman, ranking fourth in the United States in 1962, as well as an expert fly fisherman. In his later years, Shaw lived and wrote in the Newbury Park section of Thousand Oaks, California. Shaw had long suffered from adult onset diabetes and eventually died of complications of the disease at age 94. In 2005, Shaw's eighth wife, Evelyn Keyes, sued Shaw's estate, claiming that she was entitled to one-half of Shaw's estate pursuant to a contract to make a will between them. In July 2006, a Ventura, California jury unanimously held that Keyes was entitled to almost one-half of Shaw's estate, or $1,420,000.

Radio

Shaw did many big band remotes, and he was often heard from the Blue Room of New York's Hotel Lincoln. It was the location of his only regular radio series as headliner. Sponsored by Old Gold cigarettes, Shaw broadcast on CBS from November 20, 1938 until November 14, 1939.

At the height of his popularity, Shaw reportedly earned $60,000 per week. For a comparison, George Burns and Gracie Allen were each making US $5,000 per week during the year the Artie Shaw Orchestra provided the music for their radio show. He also acted on the show as a love interest for Gracie Allen.

Shaw's recording of "Nightmare" was used as the theme soundtrack for BBC Radio's adaptation of the Philip Marlowe novels by Raymond Chandler.

Films, TV and fiction

Shaw made several musical shorts in 1939 for Vitaphone and Paramount Pictures, and he portrayed himself in the Fred Astaire film ''Second Chorus'' (1940), which featured Shaw and his orchestra playing "Concerto for Clarinet." The film brought him two Oscar nominations, for Best Score and Best Song ("Love of My Life"). He collaborated on the love song "If It's You" sung by Tony Martin in the Marx Brothers' film, ''The Big Store'' (1941). In 1950, he was a mystery guest on ''What's My Line?'', and during the 1970s he made appearances on ''The Mike Douglas Show'' and ''The Tonight Show''.

Many of his recordings have been used in motion pictures. His recording of "Stardust" was used in its entirety in the closing credits of the film "The Man Who Fell to Earth". Also, Martin Scorsese used the Shaw theme song, "Nightmare," in his Academy Award-winning Howard Hughes biopic, ''The Aviator''.

He credited his time in the Navy as a period of renewed introspection. He entered psychoanalysis and began to pursue a writing career. His autobiography, ''The Trouble With Cinderella: An Outline of Identity'' was published in 1952 (with later reprint editions in 1992 and 2001). Revealing downbeat elements of the music business, Shaw explained that "the trouble with Cinderella" is "nobody ever lives happily ever after." He turned to semi-autobiographical fiction with the three short novels in ''I Love You, I Hate You, Drop Dead!'' (1965, reprinted in 1997), which prompted Terry Southern's comment: "Here is a deeply probing examination of the American marital scene. I flipped over it!" Shaw's short stories, including "Snow White in Harlem," were collected in ''The Best of Intentions and Other Stories'' (1989). He worked for years on his 1000-page autobiographical novel ''The Education of Albie Snow'', but the three-volume work remains unpublished. Currently, through Curtis International Associates, the Artie Shaw Orchestra is still active.

Shaw is mentioned in the CBS television show "NCIS" by Ernie Yost, the fictional Medal of Honor recipient, in the episode "Call of Silence."

References

External links

University of Arizona: Artie Shaw Collection

Biography at swingmusic.net

Swing Bandleader, Clarinetist Artie Shaw Dies, ''The Washington Post'', December 31, 2004

Category:Articles with inconsistent citation formats Category:1910 births Category:2004 deaths Category:Swing clarinetists Category:American jazz composers Category:American jazz clarinetists Category:American military personnel of World War II Category:Clarinetists Category:Deaths from diabetes Category:Disease-related deaths in California Category:Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Category:Big band bandleaders Category:American jazz bandleaders Category:People from New York City Category:People from New Haven, Connecticut Category:Bell Records artists Category:RCA Victor artists Category:Vocalion Records artists Category:Gennett recording artists

de:Artie Shaw es:Artie Shaw eo:Artie Shaw fr:Artie Shaw it:Artie Shaw he:ארטי שו ka:არტი შოუ hu:Artie Shaw nl:Artie Shaw no:Artie Shaw nds:Artie Shaw pl:Artie Shaw pt:Artie Shaw ro:Artie Shaw ru:Шоу, Арти simple:Artie Shaw fi:Artie Shaw sv:Artie Shaw

name	Julian Bliss
background	non_vocal_instrumentalist
origin	Harpenden, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
instrument	Clarinet
genre	Classical, Chamber music
occupation	Soloist, chamber musician, clarinet designer
website	http://www.julianbliss.com
notable instruments	Leblanc Bliss }}

Julian Bliss (born 1989) is a British clarinetist and clarinet designer. He has performed both as a soloist and as a chamber musician, notably with his teacher Sabine Meyer. He also recently designed the Bliss Clarinet for instrument manufacturer Leblanc.

Education

Bliss started playing clarinet at age 4, when he was given a Lyons C Clarinet, a clarinet designed to let children begin the clarinet four or more years younger than usual. Most students do not play wind instruments until age 11 or 12.

Bliss earned his Postgraduate Artist's Diploma from Indiana University in 2001 at age 12, but he was not awarded his diploma until he graduated from high school. He studied first with David Johnston at Harpenden,Paul Harris, then with Howard Klug at Indiana and now with Sabine Meyer in Germany at the Musikhochschule. He studies chamber music, conducting and studio technology at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

Music career

Bliss won the 2001 Concerto Soloists Young Artists Competition in Philadelphia. In 2002, he performed at Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee (during the Prom at the Palace) by royal invitation. He also performed at the Queen's 80th birthday.

He has appeared as a soloist with many orchestras, including the London Philharmonic, BBC Symphony, Royal Philharmonic, Orchestre National de France, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, BBC Philharmonic, NHK Symphony, Malaysian Philharmonic, Bergen Philharmonic and the National Youth Orchestra of Ireland Junior Orchestra. He has performed at Lincoln Centre in New York City and the Louvre in Paris.

Bliss also has a career as a chamber musician. He has collaborated with many of the world's top classical artists, including Joshua Bell, Stephen Kovacevich, Elena Bashkirova, Julian Rachlin, and Hélène Grimaud.

He was the subject of a three-part made-for-television documentary entitled "Gifted". He also appeared on the ''Today'' program in the United States and on NHK in Japan.

Leblanc Bliss

In collaboration with Leblanc, Bliss developed the Leblanc Bliss clarinet. Says Bliss of the line: "I know I can pick up any Bliss clarinet and be able to perform at the level to which I am accustomed." He characterizes the clarinet's design as "wicked".

The design deviates from standard synthetic clarinets in that it does not use acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), but instead uses a custom composite that produces 20% more amplitude. The barrel and bell are narrower (and thus lighter) than standard clarinets, and the keys are plated in black nickel to differentiate the clarinet's appearance from those with traditional silver-colored keys. The bore has several tapers and is manufactured to tolerances of hundreds of thousandths of an inch. The right hand trill keys are above the gravity line to reduce the risk of water in the tone holes.

Discography

After his debut album with Julien Quentin, Bliss signed an exclusive recording contract with EMI's main label.

2002: ''Prom at the Palace'', with various artists, EMI Classics

2003: ''Music for Clarinet and Piano'', with Julien Quentin, EMI Classics

2007: ''Krommer Concerto for two clarinets, Spohr Clarinet Concerto No. 4'', with Sabine Meyer (Clarinet) and Kenneth Sillito and Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, EMI Classics

2009: ''Best Encores 100'', with various artists, EMI Classics

References

External links

Julian Bliss Website

Leblanc Bliss

Category:1989 births Category:Living people Category:British classical musicians Category:Clarinetists

Louis Spohr (5 April 1784 – 22 October 1859) was a German composer, violinist and conductor. Born Ludewig Spohr, he is usually known by the French form of his name. Described by Dorothy Mayer as "The Forgotten Master", Spohr was once as famous as Beethoven. As a violinist, his virtuoso playing was admired by Queen Victoria. As a composer he ranks as a historic figure in the development of German music drama whose greatest triumph was in the oratorio. His orchestral writings and chamber works were once considered on a par with Mozart’s.

Life

Spohr was born in Braunschweig in the duchy of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel to Karl Heinrich Spohr and Juliane Ernestine Luise Henke. Spohr's first musical encouragement came from his parents: his mother was a gifted singer and pianist, and his father played the flute. A violinist named Dufour gave the lad his earliest violin teaching. The pupil's first attempts at composition date from the early 1790s. Dufour, recognizing the boy's musical talent, persuaded his parents to send him to Brunswick for further instruction.

The failure of his first concert tour, a badly planned venture to Hamburg in 1799, caused him to ask Duke Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand of Brunswick for financial help. A successful concert at the court impressed the duke so much that he engaged the 15-year old Spohr as a chamber musician. In 1802, through the good offices of the duke, he became the pupil of Franz Ignaz Beck and accompanied him on a concert tour which took him as far as St. Petersburg. Beck, who completely retrained Spohr in violin technique, was a product of the Mannheim school, and Spohr became its most prominent heir. Spohr's first notable compositions, including his ''First Violin Concerto,'' date from this time. After his return home, the duke granted him leave to make a concert tour of North Germany. A concert in Leipzig in December 1804 brought the influential music critic Friedrich Rochlitz "to his knees," not only because of Spohr's playing but also because of his compositions. This concert brought the young man overnight fame in the whole German-speaking world.

In 1805, Spohr got a job as concertmaster at the court of Gotha, where he stayed until 1812. There he met the 18-year-old harpist Dorette Scheidler, daughter of one of the court singers. They were married on February 2, 1806, and lived happily until Dorette's death 28 years later. They performed successfully together as a violin and harp duo (Spohr having composed the “Sonata in C minor for violin and harp” for her), touring in Italy (1816–1817), England (1820) and Paris (1821), but Dorette later abandoned her harpist's career and concentrated on raising their children.

In 1808, Spohr practiced with Beethoven at the latter's home, working on the ''Piano Trio Opus 70 No. 1, The Ghost.'' Spohr's writing indicates the piano was out of tune and that Beethoven's playing was harsh or careless, which has not been explained with certainty. Spohr later worked as conductor at the Theater an der Wien, Vienna (1813–1815), where he continued to be on friendly terms with Beethoven; subsequently he was opera director at Frankfurt (1817–1819) where he was able to stage his own operas — the first of which, ''Faust'', had been rejected in Vienna. Spohr's longest post, from 1822 until his death in Kassel, was as the director of music at the court of Kassel, a position offered him on the suggestion of Carl Maria von Weber. In Kassel on 3 January 1836, he married his second wife, the 29-year-old Marianne Pfeiffer. She survived him by many years, living until 1892.

In 1851 the elector refused to sign the permit for Spohr's two months' leave of absence, to which he was entitled under his contract, and when the musician departed without the permit, a portion of his salary was deducted. In 1857 he was pensioned off, much against his own wish, and in the winter of the same year he broke his arm, an accident which put an end to his violin playing. Nevertheless he conducted his opera ''Jessonda'' at the fiftieth anniversary of the Prague Conservatorium in the following year, with all his old-time energy. In 1859 he died at Kassel.

Like Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and his own slightly older contemporary Johann Nepomuk Hummel, Spohr was an active Freemason. He was also active as a violin instructor throughout his career. His notable pupils included violinists Henry Blagrove and Henry Holmes.

Works

A prolific composer, Spohr produced more than 150 works with opus numbers, in addition to a number of works without such numbers. He wrote music in all genres. His nine symphonies (a tenth was completed, but withdrawn) show a progress from the classical style of his predecessors to the program music of the ninth symphony, ''Die Jahreszeiten'' (The Seasons). Between 1803 and 1844 Spohr wrote more violin concertos than any other composer of the time, eighteen in all, including works left unpublished at his death. Some of them are formally unconventional, such as the one-movement Concerto No. 8, which is in the style of an operatic aria, and which is still periodically revived (Jascha Heifetz championed it), most recently in a 2006 recording by Hilary Hahn. There are two double-violin concertos as well. Better known today, however, are the four clarinet concertos, all written for the virtuoso Johann Simon Hermstedt, which have established a secure place in clarinettists' repertoire.

Among Spohr's chamber music is a series of no fewer than 36 string quartets, as well as four double quartets for two string quartets. He also wrote an assortment of other quartets, duos, trios, quintets and sextets, an octet and a nonet, works for solo violin and for solo harp, and works for violin and harp to be played by him and his wife together.

Though obscure today, Spohr's operas ''Faust'' (1816), ''Zemire und Azor'' (1819) and ''Jessonda'' (1823) remained in the popular repertoire through the 19th century and well into the 20th when ''Jessonda'' was banned by the Nazis because it depicted a European hero in love with an Indian princess. Spohr also wrote dozens of songs, many of them collected as ''Deutsche Lieder'' (German Songs), as well as a mass and other choral works. His oratorios, particularly ''Die letzten Dinge'' (''The Last Judgement'') (1825—1826), were greatly admired during the 19th century. During the Victorian era Gilbert and Sullivan mentioned him in Act 2 of ''The Mikado'' in a song by the title character.

Spohr, with his fifteen violin concertos, won for himself a conspicuous place in the musical literature of the nineteenth century. He endeavored (without any good result) to make the concerto a substantial and superior composition free from the artificial bravura of the time. He achieved a new romantic mode of expression. The weaker sides of Spohr’s violin compositions are observed in his somewhat monotonous rhythmic structures; in his rejection of certain piquant bowing styles, and artificial harmonics; and in the deficiency of contrapuntal textures.

Spohr was a noted violinist, and invented the violin chinrest, about 1820. He was also a significant conductor, being one of the first to use a baton and also inventing rehearsal letters, which are placed periodically throughout a piece of sheet music so that a conductor may save time by asking the orchestra or singers to start playing "from letter C", for example.

In addition to musical works, Spohr is remembered particularly for his ''Violinschule'', a treatise on violin playing which codified many of the latest advances in violin technique, such as the use of ''spiccato''. In addition, he wrote an entertaining and informative autobiography, published posthumously in 1860. A museum is devoted to his memory in Kassel.

According to Longyear, Spohr's best works were hailed by many of his contemporaries as quintessentially Romantic and inherited by Mendelssohn.

Selected recordings

Opera ''Der Alchymist'' Bernd Weikl, Moran Abouloff, Jörg Dürmüller, Jan Zinkler, Susanna Pütters, Staatsorchester Braunschweig, Christian Fröhlich. Oehms, 2009

Notes

References

Brown, Clive. ''Louis Spohr: A Critical Biography.'' Cambridge University Press. 1984. ISBN 0-521-23990-7.

Spohr, Ludwig, ''Violinschule'', Tobias Haslinger, Vienna, 1832.

External links

The Spohr Society of Great Britain

The Spohr Society of the United States

Werke von Louis Spohr im Verlag Dohr Köln

The German Louis Spohr website (links)

"Spohr" Titles; Spohr as author from archive.org

"Spohr" Titles; Spohr as author from books.google.com

"Spohr" titles from Gallica

"Spohr" Titles 1 Det Kongelige Bibliotek, Denmark

"Spohr" Titles from the Munich Digitisation Centre (MDZ)

"Spohr" Titles from the University of Rochester

Category:1784 births Category:1859 deaths Category:People from Braunschweig Category:People from Brunswick Category:19th-century German people Category:German composers Category:Opera composers Category:Romantic composers Category:Composers for violin Category:Concertmasters

ca:Ludwig Spohr da:Louis Spohr de:Louis Spohr es:Louis Spohr eo:Louis Spohr fa:لویی اشپور fr:Louis Spohr ko:루이스 슈포어 it:Louis Spohr he:לואי שפור hu:Louis Spohr nl:Louis Spohr ja:ルイ・シュポーア no:Louis Spohr pt:Louis Spohr ro:Louis Spohr ru:Шпор, Луи sl:Louis Spohr fi:Louis Spohr sv:Ludwig Spohr tr:Ludwig Spohr uk:Луї Шпор zh:路易斯·施波尔

name	Woody Allen
birth name	Allen Stewart Konigsberg
birth date	December 01, 1935
birth place	The Bronx, New York, U.S.
influences	Charlie Chaplin, Groucho Marx, Ingmar Bergman, Federico Fellini, Stanley Kubrick
occupation	ActorDirectorScreenwriterComedianMusicianPlaywright
home town	New York City, New York
years active	1950–present
spouse
partner	Mia Farrow (1980–92)
relatives	Letty Aronson (sister)
children	Seamus Farrow (son)Bechet Dumaine Allen (daughter)Manzie Tio Allen (daughter)
website	www.woodyallen.com

Woody Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; December 1, 1935) is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema. He is also a jazz clarinetist who performs regularly at small venues in Manhattan.

Early life

Allen was born in The Bronx and raised in Brooklyn, NY, the son of Nettie (born Cherrie; November 8, 1906 – January 27, 2002), a bookkeeper at her family's delicatessen, and Martin Konigsberg (December 25, 1900 – January 13, 2001), a jewelry engraver and waiter. His family was Jewish and his grandparents were immigrants who spoke Yiddish, Hebrew, and German; both of his parents were born and raised on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Allen has a sister, Letty, who was born in 1943, and was raised in Midwood, Brooklyn. His childhood was not particularly happy: his parents did not get along, and he had a rocky relationship with his stern, temperamental mother. Allen spoke German quite a bit during his early years. While attending Hebrew school for eight years, he went to Public School 99 (now The Isaac Asimov School for Science and Literature) and to Midwood High School. During that time, he lived in an apartment at 1402 Avenue K, between East 14th and 15th Streets. Unlike his comic persona, he was more interested in baseball than school and his strong arms ensured he was the first to be picked for a team. He impressed students with his extraordinary talent at card and magic tricks. To raise money he began writing jokes (or "gags") for the agent David O. Alber, who sold them to newspaper columnists. According to Allen, his first published joke read: "Woody Allen says he ate at a restaurant that had O.P.S. prices – over people's salaries."

He began to call himself Woody Allen. He would later joke that when he was young he was often sent to inter-faith summer camps, where he "was savagely beaten by children of all races and creeds." At the age of 17, he legally changed his name to Heywood Allen. He was already earning more than both of his parents combined.

After high school, he attended New York University (NYU), where he studied communication and film. He later briefly attended City College of New York and soon flunked out. Later, he learned via self-study rather than the classroom. He eventually taught at The New School. He also studied with writing teacher Lajos Egri.

Career

Comedy writer

He became a full-time writer for Herb Shriner, earning $75 a week at first. At the age of 19, he started writing scripts for ''The Ed Sullivan Show'', ''The Tonight Show'', specials for Sid Caesar post-''Caesar's Hour'' (1954–1957), and other television shows. By the time he was working for Caesar, he was making $1500 a week; with Caesar he worked alongside Danny Simon, whom Allen credits for helping him to form his writing style.

In 1961, he started a new career as a stand-up comedian, debuting in a Greenwich Village club called the Duplex. Examples of Allen's standup act can be heard on the albums ''Standup Comic'' and ''Nightclub Years 1964–1968'' (including his classic routine entitled "The Moose"). Together with his managers, Allen developed a neurotic, nervous, and intellectual persona for his stand-up routine, a successful move which secured regular gigs for him in nightclubs and on television. Allen brought innovation to the comedy monologue genre and his stand-up comedy is considered influential.

Allen wrote for the popular ''Candid Camera'' television show, and appeared in some episodes.

Allen started writing short stories and cartoon captions for magazines such as ''The New Yorker''; he was inspired by the tradition of four prominent ''New Yorker'' humorists, S. J. Perelman, George S. Kaufman, Robert Benchley and Max Shulman, whose material he modernized. Allen is also an accomplished author having published four collections of his short pieces and plays. These are ''Getting Even,'' ''Without Feathers'', ''Side Effects'' and ''Mere Anarchy.'' His early comic fiction was heavily influenced by the zany, pun-ridden humour of S.J. Perelman.

Playwright

He also became a successful Broadway playwright and wrote ''Don't Drink the Water'' in 1966. It starred Lou Jacobi, Kay Medford, Anita Gillette and Allen's future movie co-star Tony Roberts. A film adaptation of the play, directed by Howard Morris, was released in 1969, starring Jackie Gleason. Because he was not particularly happy with the 1969 film version of his play, in 1994, Allen directed and starred in a third version for television, with Michael J. Fox and Mayim Bialik.

The next play Allen wrote that was produced on Broadway was ''Play It Again, Sam'', which he also starred in. The play opened on February 12, 1969, and ran for 453 performances. It also featured Diane Keaton and Tony Roberts. Allen, Keaton and Roberts would reprise their roles in the film version of the play, directed by Herbert Ross. For its March 21 issue, ''Life'' featured Allen on its cover. In 1981, his play ''The Floating Light Bulb'' premiered on Broadway and ran for 65 performances. While receiving mixed reviews, it was noted for giving an autobiographical insight into Allen's childhood, specifically his fascination with magic tricks. He has written several one-act plays, including 'Riverside Drive' and 'Old Saybrook' which both explore well-known Allen themes.

On October 20, 2011, Allen's one-act play ''Honeymoon Motel'' opened as part of a larger piece entitled ''Relatively Speaking'' on Broadway, along with two other one-acts by Ethan Coen and Elaine May.

Early films

His first movie was the Charles K. Feldman production ''What's New Pussycat?'' in 1965, for which he wrote the initial screenplay. Warren Beatty hired him to re-write a script and to appear in a small part in the movie. Over the course of the re-write, Beatty's role was lessened and Allen's increased. Beatty was upset and quit the production. Peter O'Toole was hired for the Beatty role, and Peter Sellers was brought in as well; Sellers was a big enough star to demand many of Woody Allen's best lines/scenes, prompting hasty re-writes. Because of this experience, Allen realized the importance of having control of his own writing. Despite the fact that most of his movies do not gross well and the fact that due to the small amounts of money his producers are able to raise he asks his actors to work for far less than what they would normally be paid, Allen remains one of a handful of writers and directors who has been able to maintain complete control over his own work.

Allen's first directorial effort was ''What's Up, Tiger Lily?'' (1966, co-written with Mickey Rose), in which an existing Japanese spy movie – ''Kokusai himitsu keisatsu: Kagi no kagi'' (1965), "International Secret Police: Key of Keys" – was redubbed in English by Allen and his friends with entirely new, comic dialogue.

Allen also appeared in Feldman's follow-up to ''What's New Pussycat?'', the James Bond spoof ''Casino Royale''. A number of writers contributed to the film, but once again Allen scripted his own sequences, although in this case uncredited.

Allen directed, starred in, and wrote ''Take the Money and Run'' in 1969. That same year he starred in his own TV special, ''The Woody Allen Special.'' On the show he performed standup comedy routines before a live audience and acted in a sketch with Candice Bergen in which they appeared nude but their bodies were kept hidden from view by the camera. The special also had guest appearances by the pop vocal group The 5th Dimension singing their hit singles "Workin' On A Groovy Thing" and "Wedding Bell Blues." The show's sponsor, Libby's, broadcast comical commercials starring Tony Randall as a detective.

From 1971 to 1975, Allen co-wrote, directed, and starred in ''Bananas'', ''Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask)'', ''Sleeper'', and ''Love and Death''. ''Take the Money and Run'' and ''Bananas'' were co-written by his childhood friend, Mickey Rose.

In 1972, he wrote and starred in the film version of ''Play It Again, Sam'', which was directed by Herbert Ross and co-starred Diane Keaton. In 1976, he starred in ''The Front'' (directed by Martin Ritt) a humorous and poignant account of Hollywood blacklisting during the 1950s.

''Annie Hall'' won four Academy Awards in 1977, including Best Picture, Best Actress in a Leading Role for Diane Keaton, Best Original Screenplay and Best Director for Woody Allen. ''Annie Hall'' set the standard for modern romantic comedy and also started a minor fashion trend with the clothes worn by Diane Keaton in the film (the masculine clothing, such as ties with cardigans, was actually Keaton's own). While in production, its working title was "Anhedonia," a term that means the inability to feel pleasure and its plot revolved around a murder mystery. Allen re-cut the movie after production ended to focus on the romantic comedy between Allen's character, Alvy Singer, and Keaton's character, Annie Hall. The new version, retitled ''Annie Hall'' (named after Keaton, Hall being her original last name and Annie a nickname), still deals with the theme of the inability to feel pleasure. The film is ranked at No. 35 on the ''American Film Institute'' "100 Best Movies" and at No. 4 on the AFI list of "100 Best Comedies."

''Manhattan,'' released in 1979, is a black-and-white film that can be viewed as an homage to New York City. As in many other Allen films, the protagonists are upper-middle class academics. The love-hate opinion of cerebral persons found in ''Manhattan'' is characteristic of many of Allen's movies including ''Crimes and Misdemeanors'' and ''Annie Hall.'' ''Manhattan'' focuses on the complicated relationship between a middle-aged Isaac Davis (Allen) and a 17-year-old Tracy (Mariel Hemingway).

Between ''Annie Hall'' and ''Manhattan'', Allen wrote and directed the dark drama ''Interiors'' (1978), in the style of the late Swedish director Ingmar Bergman, one of Allen's chief influences. ''Interiors'' represented a departure from Allen's "early, funny" comedies (a line from 1980s ''Stardust Memories'').

1980s

Allen's 1980s films, even the comedies, have somber and philosophical undertones. Some are influenced by the works of European directors, notably Ingmar Bergman and Federico Fellini. ''September'' resembles Bergman's ''Autumn Sonata'', and Allen uses many elements from Bergman's ''Wild Strawberries'' in ''Another Woman''. Similarly, the Federico Fellini classic ''Amarcord'' strongly inspired ''Radio Days''.

''Stardust Memories'' features Sandy Bates, a successful filmmaker played by Allen, who expresses resentment and scorn for his fans. Overcome by the recent death of a friend from illness, the character states, "I don't want to make funny movies any more" and a running gag has various people (including a group of visiting space aliens) telling Bates that they appreciate his films, "especially the early, funny ones." Allen believes this to be one of his best films.

Allen combined tragic and comic elements in such films as ''Hannah and Her Sisters'' and ''Crimes and Misdemeanors'', in which he tells two stories that connect at the end. He also produced a vividly idiosyncratic tragi-comical parody of documentary, ''Zelig''.

He made three films about show business: ''Broadway Danny Rose'', in which he plays a New York show business agent, ''The Purple Rose of Cairo'', a movie that shows the importance of the cinema during the Depression through the character of the naive Cecilia, and ''Radio Days'', which is a film about his childhood in Brooklyn and the importance of the radio. ''Purple Rose'' was named by ''Time'' as one of the 100 best films of all time and Allen has described it as one of his three best films, along with ''Stardust Memories'' and ''Match Point.'' (Allen defines them as "best" not in terms of quality but because they came out the closest to his original vision.)

In 1989, Allen teamed up with directors Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese to make ''New York Stories'', an anthology film about New Yorkers. Allen's short, ''Oedipus Wrecks'', is about a neurotic lawyer and his critical mother. His short pleased critics, but ''New York Stories'' bombed at the box office.

1990s

His 1992 film ''Shadows and Fog'' is a black-and-white homage to the German expressionists and features the music of Kurt Weill. Allen then made his critically acclaimed drama ''Husbands and Wives'' (1992), which received two Oscar nominations: Best Supporting Actress for Judy Davis and Best Original Screenplay for Allen. His film ''Manhattan Murder Mystery'' (1993) combined suspense with dark comedy and marked the return of Diane Keaton, Alan Alda and Anjelica Huston.

He returned to lighter movies like ''Bullets Over Broadway'' (1994), which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Director, followed by a musical, ''Everyone Says I Love You'' (1996). The singing and dancing scenes in ''Everyone Says I Love You'' are similar to many musicals starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. The comedy ''Mighty Aphrodite'' (1995), in which Greek drama plays a large role, won an Academy Award for Mira Sorvino. Allen's 1999 jazz-based comedy-drama ''Sweet and Lowdown'' was also nominated for two Academy Awards for Sean Penn (Best Actor) and Samantha Morton (Best Supporting Actress). In contrast to these lighter movies, Allen veered into darker satire towards the end of the decade with ''Deconstructing Harry'' (1997) and ''Celebrity'' (1998). Allen made his only sitcom "appearance" to date (2009) via telephone on the show ''Just Shoot Me!'' in a 1997 episode, "My Dinner with Woody" which paid tribute to several of his films. Allen also provided the lead voice in the 1998 animated film ''Antz'', which featured many actors he had worked with and had Allen play a character that was similar to his earlier neurotic roles.

2000s

''Small Time Crooks'' (2000) (a remake of the 1942 film comedy ''Larceny, Inc.'', written by S. J. Perelman and starring Edward G. Robinson) was his first film with the DreamWorks studio and represented a change in direction: Allen began giving more interviews and made an attempt to return to his slapstick roots. ''Small Time Crooks'' was a relative financial success, grossing over $17 million domestically but Allen's next four films floundered at the box office, including Allen's most expensive film, ''The Curse of the Jade Scorpion'' (with a budget of $26 million). ''Hollywood Ending'', ''Anything Else'', and ''Melinda and Melinda'' were given "rotten" ratings from film-review website Rotten Tomatoes and each earned less than $4 million domestically. Some critics claimed that Allen's films since 1999's ''Sweet and Lowdown'' were subpar and expressed concern that Allen's best years were now behind him. Others have been less harsh; reviewing the little-liked ''Melinda and Melinda'', Roger Ebert wrote, "I cannot escape the suspicion that if Woody had never made a previous film, if each new one was Woody's Sundance debut, it would get a better reception. His reputation is not a dead shark but an albatross, which with admirable economy Allen has arranged for the critics to carry around their own necks." Woody gave his godson Quincy Rose a small part in ''Melinda and Melinda''. Allen was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2001. ''Match Point'' (2005) was one of Allen's most successful films of the decade, garnering very positive reviews. Set in London, it starred Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and Scarlett Johansson. It is also markedly darker than Allen's first four films with DreamWorks SKG. In ''Match Point'', Allen shifts his focus from the intellectual upper class of New York to the moneyed upper class of London. It earned more than $23 million domestically (more than any of his films in nearly 20 years) and over $62 million in international box office sales. ''Match Point'' earned Allen his first Academy Award nomination since 1998, for Best Writing – Original Screenplay and also earned directing and writing nominations at the Golden Globes, his first Globe nominations since 1987. In an interview with ''Premiere Magazine'', Allen stated this was the best film he has ever made.

Allen returned to London to film ''Scoop'', which also starred Johansson, Hugh Jackman, Ian McShane, Kevin McNally and Allen himself. The film was released on July 28, 2006, and received mixed reviews. He has also filmed ''Cassandra's Dream'' in London. ''Cassandra's Dream'' was released in November 2007, and stars Colin Farrell, Ewan McGregor and Tom Wilkinson.

After finishing his third London film, Allen headed to Spain. He reached an agreement to film ''Vicky Cristina Barcelona'' in Avilés, Barcelona and Oviedo, where shooting started on July 9, 2007. The movie stars Scarlett Johansson, Javier Bardem, Rebecca Hall and Penélope Cruz. Speaking of his experience there, Allen said: "I'm delighted at being able to work with Mediapro and make a film in Spain, a country which has become so special to me." ''Vicky Cristina Barcelona'' was well received, winning "Best Musical or Comedy" at the Golden Globe awards. Penélope Cruz received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the film.

Allen has said that he "survives" on the European market. Audiences there have tended to be more receptive to Allen's films, particularly in Spain, France and Italy – countries where he has a large audience (something joked about in ''Hollywood Ending''). "In the United States things have changed a lot, and it's hard to make good small films now," Allen said in a 2004 interview. "The avaricious studios couldn't care less about good films – if they get a good film they're twice as happy but money-making films are their goal. They only want these $100 million pictures that make $500 million."

In April 2008, he began filming for a movie focused more towards older audiences starring Larry David, Patricia Clarkson and Evan Rachel Wood. Released in 2009, ''Whatever Works'', described as a dark comedy, follows the story of a botched suicide attempt turned messy love triangle. ''Whatever Works'' was written by Allen in the 1970s and the character now played by Larry David was originally written for Zero Mostel, who died the year ''Annie Hall'' came out.

2010s

''You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger'', filmed in London, stars Antonio Banderas, Josh Brolin, Anthony Hopkins, Anupam Kher, Freida Pinto and Naomi Watts. Filming started in July 2009. It was released theatrically in the US on September 23, 2010, following a Cannes debut in May 2010, and a screening at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 2010. Allen announced that his next film would be titled ''Midnight in Paris'', starring Adrien Brody, Owen Wilson, Marion Cotillard, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates, Michael Sheen, Gad Elmaleh and French First Lady Carla Bruni. The film followed a young engaged couple in Paris who see their lives transformed. It debuted at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival on May 12, 2011. Allen said he wanted to "show the city emotionally," during the press conference. "I just wanted it to be the way I saw Paris – Paris through my eyes," he added. ''Midnight in Paris'' has overthrown ''Hannah and Her Sisters'' to become Allen's most successful film at the box office in the United States. It has also opened to much critical acclaim, and has been considered by many critics to mark his return to form. His next film, ''Nero Fiddled'', is a Rome-set comedy slated for a 2012 release. The film will be structured in four different vignettes featuring dialogue in both Italian and English. The film will mark Allen's return to acting since his last role in ''Scoop''. In October 2011, Woody Allen's one-act play called ''Honeymoon Motel'' premiered as one in a series of one act plays on Broadway titled ''Relatively Speaking''. Also contributing to the plays are Elaine May and Ethan Coen with John Turturro directing.

Future projects

For many years, Allen wanted to make a film about the origins of jazz in New Orleans. The film, tentatively titled ''American Blues'', would follow the vastly different careers of Louis Armstrong and Sidney Bechet. Allen has stated that the film would cost between $80 and $100 million and is therefore unlikely to be made.

Distinction in the film world

Over the course of his career, Allen has received a considerable number of awards and distinctions in film festivals and yearly national film awards ceremonies, saluting his work as a director, screenwriter, and actor.

Allen's film ''Annie Hall'' won four Academy Awards in 1977, including Best Picture.

Allen won the 1978 O. Henry Award for his short story ''The Kugelmass Episode'', published in ''The New Yorker'' on May 2, 1977.

Allen twice won the César Award for Best Foreign Film, the first in 1980, for ''Manhattan'' and the second in 1986, for ''The Purple Rose of Cairo''. Seven other of his movies were nominated for the prize.

In 1986, Allen won the Golden Globe for Best Screenplay for ''The Purple Rose of Cairo''. In 2009 he won the same award for Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical for ''Vicky Cristina Barcelona''. In 2012, he won the Best Screenplay award for ''Midnight in Paris'' which was also nominated for Best Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical, Best Director and Best Actor (Comedy/musical) - ''Owen Wilson''. Overall, Allen has been nominated five times as Best Director, five times for Best Screenplay and twice for Best Actor (Comedy/musical).

At the 1995 Venice Film Festival, Allen received a Career Golden Lion for lifetime achievement.

In 1996, Allen received a lifetime achievement award from the Directors Guild of America.

In 2002, Allen won the Prince of Asturias Award. Subsequently, the city of Oviedo, Spain, erected a life-size statue of Allen. In 2002, Allen received the ''Palme des Palmes'', a special lifetime achievement award granted by the Cannes Festival. In a 2005 UK poll ''The Comedian's Comedian'', Allen was voted the third greatest comedy act ever by fellow comedians and comedy insiders.

In June 2007, Allen received a PhD Honoris Causa from Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain.

Academy Awards

Woody Allen has won three Academy Awards and been nominated a total of 23 times: 15 as a screenwriter, seven as a director, and one as an actor. He has more screenwriting Academy Award nominations than any other writer; all are in the "Best Original Screenplay" category. He is tied for third all-time with seven Best Director nominations. His actors have regularly received both nominations and Academy Awards for their work in Allen films, particularly in the Best Supporting categories.

''Annie Hall'' won four Academy Awards (Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Director and Best Actress in a Leading Role - Diane Keaton). The film received a fifth nomination, for Allen as Best Actor in a Leading Role. ''Hannah and Her Sisters'' won three, for Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor in a Supporting Role and Best Actress in a Supporting Role categories; it was nominated in four other categories, including Best Picture and Best Director.

Despite friendly recognition from the Academy, Allen has consistently refused to attend the ceremony or acknowledge his Oscar wins. He broke this pattern only once. At the Academy Awards ceremony in 2002, Allen made an unannounced appearance, making a plea for producers to continue filming their movies in New York City after the 9-11 attacks, where he stated, "I didn't have to present anything. I didn't have to accept anything. I just had to talk about New York City." He was given a standing ovation before introducing a montage of movie clips featuring New York.

BAFTA

Allen has won a number of British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards and nominations for best picture, best director, best actor, and best screenplay. In 1997, he received the honorary BAFTA Fellowship for his work.

1978 – Won – Best Film – ''Annie Hall''

1978 – Won – Best Screenplay – ''Annie Hall'' (with Marshall Brickman)

1978 – Won – Best Direction – ''Annie Hall''

1980 – Won – Best Film – ''Manhattan''

1980 – Won – Best Screenplay – ''Manhattan'' (with Marshall Brickman)

1985 – Won – Best Screenplay – ''Broadway Danny Rose''

1986 – Won – Best Film – ''The Purple Rose of Cairo''

1986 – Won – Best Screenplay – ''The Purple Rose of Cairo''

1987 – Won – Best Screenplay – ''Hannah and Her Sisters''

1987 – Won – Best Direction – ''Hannah and Her Sisters''

1993 – Won – Best Screenplay – ''Husbands and Wives''

Nominated for best film for ''Hannah and Her Sisters'', ''Radio Days'', ''Crimes and Misdemeanors''.

Nominated for best actor for ''Annie Hall'', ''Manhattan'', ''Hannah and Her Sisters''.

Nominated for best director for ''Manhattan'', ''Crimes and Misdemeanors''.

Nominated for best screenplay for ''Zelig'', ''Radio Days'', ''Crimes and Misdemeanors'', ''Bullets Over Broadway'' (with Douglas McGrath).

Theater

Although best known for his films, Allen has also enjoyed a very successful career in theater, starting as early as 1960, when Allen wrote sketches for the revue ''From A to Z''. His first great success was ''Don't Drink the Water'', which opened in 1968, and ran for 598 performances for almost two years on Broadway. His success continued with ''Play it Again, Sam'', which opened in 1969, starring Allen and Diane Keaton. The show played for 453 performances and was nominated for three Tony Awards, although none of the nominations were for Allen's writing or acting.

In the 1970s, Allen wrote a number of one-act plays, most notably ''God'' and ''Death'', which were published in his 1975 collection ''Without Feathers''.

In 1981, Allen's play ''The Floating Light Bulb'' opened on Broadway. The play was a critical success but a commercial flop. Despite two Tony Award nominations, a Tony win for the acting of Brian Backer (who also won the 1981 Theater World Award and a Drama Desk Award for his work), the play only ran for 62 performances. , it is the last Allen work that ran on Broadway.

After a long hiatus from the stage, Allen returned to the theater in 1995, with the one-act ''Central Park West'', an installment in an evening of theater known as ''Death Defying Acts'' that was also made up of new work by David Mamet and Elaine May.

For the next couple of years, Allen had no direct involvement with the stage, yet notable productions of his work were being staged. A production of ''God'' was staged at The Bank of Brazil Cultural Center in Rio de Janeiro, and theatrical adaptations of Allen's films ''Bullets Over Broadway'' and ''September'' were produced in Italy and France, respectively, without Allen's involvement. In 1997, rumors of Allen returning to the theater to write a starring role for his wife Soon-Yi Previn turned out to be false.

In 2003, Allen finally returned to the stage with ''Writer's Block'', an evening of two one-acts – ''Old Saybrook'' and ''Riverside Drive'' – that played Off-Broadway. The production marked the stage-directing debut for Allen. The production sold out its entire run.

Also that year, reports of Allen writing the book for a musical based on ''Bullets Over Broadway'' surfaced, but no show ever formulated. In 2004, Allen's first full-length play since 1981, ''A Second Hand Memory'', was directed by Allen and enjoyed an extended run Off-Broadway.

In June 2007, it was announced that Allen would make two more creative debuts in the theater, directing a work that he did not write and directing an opera – a re-interpretation of Puccini's ''Gianni Schicchi'' for the Los Angeles Opera – which debuted at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on September 6, 2008. Commenting on his direction of the opera, Allen said, "I have no idea what I'm doing." His production of the opera opened the Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy, in June 2009.

Marriages and relationships

Harlene Rosen

At age 19, Allen married 16-year-old Harlene Rosen. The marriage lasted from 1954 to 1959. ''Time'' stated that the years were "nettling" and "unsettling."

Rosen, whom Allen referred to in his standup act as "the Dread Mrs. Allen," later sued Allen for defamation due to comments at a TV appearance shortly after their divorce. Allen tells a different story on his mid-1960s standup album ''Standup Comic.'' In his act, Allen said that Rosen sued him because of a joke he made in an interview. Rosen had been sexually assaulted outside her apartment and according to Allen, the newspapers reported that she "had been violated." In the interview, Allen said, "Knowing my ex-wife, it probably wasn't a moving violation." In a later interview on ''The Dick Cavett Show'', Allen brought the incident up again where he repeated his comments and stated that the amount that he was being sued for was "$1 million."

Louise Lasser

Allen married Louise Lasser in 1966. They divorced in 1969, and Allen did not marry again until 1997. Lasser starred in three Allen films after the divorce – ''Take the Money and Run'', ''Bananas'', and ''Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask)'' – and made a brief appearance in ''Stardust Memories''.

Diane Keaton

In 1970, Allen cast Diane Keaton in his Broadway show, ''Play It Again, Sam.'' During the run she and Allen became romantically involved and although they broke up after a year, she continued to star in a number of his films, including ''Sleeper'' as a futuristic poet and ''Love and Death'' as a composite character based on the novels of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. ''Annie Hall'' was very important in Allen and Keaton's careers. It is said that the role was written specifically for her as Diane Keaton's given name is Diane Hall. She then starred in ''Interiors'' as a poet, followed by ''Manhattan''. In 1987, she had a cameo as a night-club singer in ''Radio Days'' and was chosen to replace Mia Farrow in the co-starring role for ''Manhattan Murder Mystery'' after Allen and Farrow began having troubles with their personal and working relationship while making this film. Keaton has not worked with Allen since ''Manhattan Murder Mystery.'' Since the end of their romantic relationship, Keaton and Allen have remained close friends.

Stacey Nelkin

The film ''Manhattan'' is said by the Los Angeles Times to be widely known to have been based on his romantic relationship with the actress Stacey Nelkin. Her bit part in ''Annie Hall'' ended up on the cutting room floor, and their relationship, though never publicly acknowledged by Allen, reportedly began when she was 17 years old and a student at New York's Stuyvesant High School.

Mia Farrow

Around 1980, Allen began a relationship with actress Mia Farrow, who had leading roles in several of his movies from 1982 to 1992. Farrow and Allen never married and kept separate homes but they adopted two children, Dylan Farrow (who changed her name to Eliza and is now known as Malone) and Moshe Farrow (now known as Moses); they also had one biological child, Satchel Farrow (now known as Ronan Seamus Farrow). Allen did not adopt any of Farrow's other family, including Soon-Yi Farrow Previn (the adopted daughter of Farrow and André Previn, now known as Soon-Yi Previn). Allen and Farrow separated in 1992, after Farrow discovered nude photographs that Allen had taken of a then 20-year-old Soon-Yi. In her autobiography, ''What Falls Away'' (New York: Doubleday, 1997), Farrow says that Allen admitted to a relationship with Soon-Yi.

After Allen and Farrow separated, a long public legal battle for the custody of their three children began. During the proceedings, Farrow alleged that Allen had sexually molested their adopted daughter Dylan, who was then seven years old. The judge eventually concluded that the sex abuse charges were inconclusive but called Allen's conduct with Soon-Yi "grossly inappropriate." She called the report of the team that investigated the issue "sanitized and therefore, less credible" and added that she had "reservations about the reliability of the report." Farrow won custody of their children. Allen was denied visitation rights with Malone and could see Ronan only under supervision. Moses, who was then 14, chose not to see Allen.

In a 2005 ''Vanity Fair'' interview, Allen estimated that, despite the scandal's damage to his reputation, Farrow's discovery of Allen's attraction to Soon-Yi Previn by finding nude photographs of her was "just one of the fortuitous events, one of the great pieces of luck in my life. . . It was a turning point for the better." Of his relationship with Farrow, he said, "I'm sure there are things that I might have done differently. . . Probably in retrospect I should have bowed out of that relationship much earlier than I did." In a report June 22, 2011, Reuters quoted Allen as saying, "What was the scandal? I fell in love with this girl, married her. We have been married for almost 15 years now. There was no scandal, but people refer to it all the time as a scandal and I kind of like that in a way because when I go I would like to say I had one real juicy scandal in my life."

Soon-Yi Previn

After ending his relationship with Mia Farrow in 1992, Allen continued his relationship with Soon-Yi Previn. Even though Allen never married Mia Farrow and was never Previn's legal stepfather, the relationship between Allen and Previn has often been referred to as a father involved romantically with his stepdaughter since he had been perceived as being in Previn's life in a father-like capacity. For example, in 1991, ''The New York Times'' described Allen's family life by reporting, "Few married couples seem more married. They are constantly in touch with each other, and not many fathers spend as much time with their children as Allen does." Despite assertions from Previn that Allen was never a father figure to her, the relationship became a scandal. In 1991, when the relationship started, Allen was 56 and Previn was 21. Asked whether their age difference was conducive to "a healthy, equal relationship," Allen said equality is not necessarily a requirement in a relationship and said, "The heart wants what it wants. There's no logic to those things. You meet someone and you fall in love and that's that."

Allen and Previn married on December 24, 1997, in the Palazzo Cavalli in Venice. The couple have adopted two daughters, naming them Bechet and Manzie Tio after jazz musicians Sidney Bechet, Manzie Johnson and Lorenzo Tio, Jr.

Allen and Farrow's biological son, Ronan Seamus Farrow, said of Allen: "He's my father married to my sister. That makes me his son and his brother-in-law. That is such a moral transgression. I cannot see him. I cannot have a relationship with my father and be morally consistent... I lived with all these adopted children, so they are my family. To say Soon-Yi was not my sister is an insult to all adopted children."

Clarinetist

thumb|250px|Woody Allen with Jerry Zigmont and Simon Wettenhall performing at Vienne Jazz Festival, [[Vienne, Isère|Vienne, France, September 20, 2003]] Allen is a passionate fan of jazz, which is often featured prominently in the soundtracks to his films. He began playing as a child and took his stage name from clarinetist Woody Herman. He has performed publicly at least since the late 1960s, notably with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band on the soundtrack of ''Sleeper''. One of his earliest televised performances was on ''The Dick Cavett Show'' on October 20, 1971.

Woody Allen and his New Orleans Jazz Band have been playing each Monday evening at Manhattan's Carlyle Hotel for many years (as of 2011, specializing in classic New Orleans jazz from the early twentieth century). The documentary film ''Wild Man Blues'' (directed by Barbara Kopple) documents a 1996 European tour by Allen and his band, as well as his relationship with Previn. The band has released two CDs: ''The Bunk Project'' (1993) and the soundtrack of ''Wild Man Blues'' (1997).

Allen and his band played the Montreal Jazz Festival on two consecutive nights in June 2008.

Significant works about Woody Allen

Apart from ''Wild Man Blues'', directed by Barbara Kopple, there are a number of other documentaries featuring Woody Allen, including the 2002 cable-television documentary ''Woody Allen: a Life in Film'', directed by ''Time'' film critic Richard Schickel, which interlaces interviews of Allen with clips of his films, and ''Meetin' WA'', a short interview of Allen by French director Jean-Luc Godard. In 2011 the PBS series American Masters co-produced a comprehensive documentary about him, ''Woody Allen: a Documentary'' directed by Robert B. Weide.

From 1976 to 1984, Stuart Hample wrote and drew ''Inside Woody Allen'', a comic strip based on Allen's film persona.

Psychoanalysis

Allen spent at least 30 years undergoing psychoanalysis. Many of his films contain references to psychoanalysis. Even the film ''Antz'', an animated feature in which Allen contributes the voice of lead character Z, opens with a classic piece of Allen analysis shtick.

''Moment Magazine'' says, "It drove his self-absorbed work." John Baxter, author of ''Woody Allen – A Biography'', wrote, "Allen obviously found analysis stimulating, even exciting."

Allen says he ended his psychoanalysis visits around the time he began his relationship with Previn. He says he still is claustrophobic and agoraphobic.

Filmography

Allen's films span six decades, starting with 1965's ''What's New Pussycat?''. He has written, directed, and starred in many of them, including films such as ''Annie Hall'' (1977), ''Hannah and Her Sisters'' (1986), and ''Husbands and Wives'' (1992), all of which earned major awards. Originally known for his comedies, his early successes were followed by his first purely dramatic work, ''Interiors (1978).

Theater works

In addition to directing, writing, and acting in films, Allen has written and performed in a number of Broadway theater productions.

{|class="wikitable" |- ! style="width:33px;"| Year ! Title ! Credit ! Venue |- | style="text-align:center;"| 1960 | ''From A to Z'' | Writer (book) | style="text-align:center;"|Plymouth Theatre |- | style="text-align:center;"|1966 | ''Don't Drink the Water'' | Writer | style="text-align:center;"|Coconut Grove Playhouse, Florida |- | style="text-align:center;"| 1969 | ''Play It Again, Sam'' | Writer, Performer (Allan Felix) | style="text-align:center;"|Broadhurst Theatre |- | style="text-align:center;"| 1975 | ''God'' | Writer | style="text-align:center;"|— |- | style="text-align:center;"| 1975 | ''Death'' | Writer | style="text-align:center;"|— |- | style="text-align:center;"| 1981 | ''The Floating Light Bulb'' | Writer | style="text-align:center;"|Vivian Beaumont Theatre |- | style="text-align:center;"| 1995 | ''Central Park West'' | Writer | style="text-align:center;"|Variety Arts Theatre |- | style="text-align:center;"| 2003 | ''Old Saybrook'' | Writer, Director | style="text-align:center;"|Atlantic Theatre Company |- | style="text-align:center;"| 2003 | ''Riverside Drive'' | Writer, Director | style="text-align:center;"|Atlantic Theatre Company |- | style="text-align:center;"| 2004 | ''A Second Hand Memory'' | Writer, Director | style="text-align:center;"|Atlantic Theater Company |- | style="text-align:center;"| 2011 | ''Honeymoon Motel'' | Writer | style="text-align:center;"|Brooks Atkinson Theatre |}

Bibliography

Published plays

''Don't Drink the Water: A comedy in two acts'' (1967), ASIN B0006BSWBW

''Play It Again, Sam'' (1969), ISBN 0-394-40663-X

''God: A comedy in one act'' (1975), ISBN 0-573-62201-9

''The Floating Light Bulb'' (1981)

''Three One-Act Plays: Riverside Drive / Old Saybrook / Central Park West'' (2003), ISBN 0-8129-7244-9

''Writer's Block: Two One-Act Plays'' (2005), ISBN 0-573-62630-8 (includes ''Riverside Drive'' and ''Old Saybrook'')

''A Second Hand Memory: A drama in two acts'' (2005)

The one-act plays ''God'' and ''Death'' are both included in Allen's 1975 collection ''Without Feathers'' (see below).

Short stories

''Getting Even'' (1971), ISBN 0-394-47348-5

''Without Feathers'' (1975), ISBN 0-394-49743-0

"The Whore of Mensa" (1974)

''Side Effects'' (1980), ISBN 0-394-51104-2

''Mere Anarchy'' (2007), ISBN 978-1-4000-6641-4

Anthologies

''Complete Prose of Woody Allen'' (1992), ISBN 0-517-07229-7. (Collection of Allen's short stories first published in ''Getting Even'', ''Without Feathers'' ''and Side Effects''.)

''The Insanity Defense: The Complete Prose''. New York: Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2007, ISBN 978-0812978117.

Chapbook

''Lunatic's Tale'' (1986), ISBN 1-55628-001-7 (Short story previously included in ''Side Effects''.)

See also

Woody Allen filmography

List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen

Cinema of the United States

References

Further reading

Stardust Memories: Visiting Woody Michael Žantovský recalls a memorable meeting between two giants, Woody Allen and Václav Havel

Essay by Victoria Loy on Woody Allen's career

''The Essential Woody Allen''; Lauren Hill

''Fun With Woody, The Complete Woody Allen Quiz Book (Henry Holt)'', Graham Flashner

''The Importance of Being Famous: Behind the Scenes of the Celebrity Industrial Complex'' by Maureen Orth p233 ISBN 0-8050-7545-3

''Woody Allen – A Biography''; John Baxter (1999) ISBN 0-7867-0666-X

''Woody Allen: Conversations with Filmmakers Series'', ed. R. E. Kapsis and K. Coblentz, (2006) ISBN 1-57806-793-6

''Woody Allen''; Stephan Reimertz, (rororo-Monographie), Reinbek (2005) ISBN 3-499-50410-3 (in German)

''Woody Allen: Eine Biographie''; Stephan Reimertz, Reinbek (2000) ISBN 3-499-61145-7 (in German)

''Woody Allen On Location'', by Thierry de Navacelle (Morrow, 1987); a day-to-day account of the making of ''Radio Days'' (1987)

''Woody Allen on Woody Allen: In Conversation With Stig Bjorkman'' (1995), ISBN 0-8021-1556-X

''Woody Allen: Profane and Sacred''; Richard A. Blake (1995) ISBN 978-0-810-82993-0

External links

The Official Site of Woody Allen

in 2009

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