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The Curious Clarinets of Benjamin Franklin
By now, you should know that there are several unsolved mysteries of clarinet history. One that has particularly intrigued me is a musical glitch in the matrix, involving none other than Benjamin Franklin. Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) was an American multi-hyphenate – he was a diplomat, writer, scientist, and more. (He also had some witty quotes and one-liners!) Franklin wrote his autobiography (which he called his memoirs) between 1771 and 1790, the year of his death. Here’s a quote from his memoirs (page 194): While at Bethlehem, I inquir’d a little into the practice of the Moravians: some of them had accompaniedme, and all were very kind to me. I found…
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Stravinsky’s Secret 4th Piece for Solo Clarinet
Serious clarinetists are probably all-too familiar with Igor Stravinsky’s devilishly difficult Three Pieces for solo clarinet, written in 1918 and published in 1919. This piece was written as a thank-you present to philanthropist and amateur clarinetist Werner Reinhart (1884-1951) for his support of Stravinsky’s music. This is one of the first true unaccompanied solos in the clarinet repertoire, and it is commonplace for this work to be asked on auditions because it demonstrates the player’s technical and lyrical abilities. Another unique element of this piece is that it is written for both B-flat and A clarinet in the same piece (the first two movements are “preferably” on A clarinet, while…
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Clarinet HERstory: Caroline Schleicher-Krähmer
Clarinet HERstory is a new retrospective series on Jenny Clarinet which celebrates women throughout clarinet history (aka HERstory). Do you have a recommendation for a clarinetist to feature in an upcoming post in Clarinet HERstory? Contact me here. Caroline Krähmer (née Schleicher, 1794-c. 1873) was an international soloist and toured all throughout Europe, performing works by Weber, Tausch, Mozart, and more. Born to musical parents who also performed concert tours, Caroline and her two surviving sisters (there were 13 children in total, only 3 of which survived infancy) were taught violin, singing, piano, and clarinet. Caroline began studying the clarinet with her father at the age of nine. Being a part…
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Which historical clarinetist shares your astrological sign?
Want to feel more connected to historical clarinetists? Look below and see which historical clarinetists share your astrological sign! Note: This is not a comprehensive list of historical clarinetists. We are #blessed to have so many incredible musicians throughout history, and this is just a small sample of historical clarinetists and their birthdays. Want to learn more about clarinet history? Check out my Clarinet History 101! Aquarius (January 21-February 18) Heinrich Baermann – February 14, 1784 Jack Brymer – January 27, 1915 (January 27 is also Mozart’s birthday!) Pisces (February 19-March 20) Jean-Xavier Lefèvre – March 6, 1763 Richard Mühlfeld – February 28, 1856 Aries (March 21-April 19) Frédéric Berr –…
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This former school is haunted by the ghost of a clarinetist
The quaintly named Valentine, Nebraska is a small town near the South Dakota border with a population of only a few thousand people. It holds the honors of housing Centennial Hall, Nebraska’s oldest standing school, built in 1897. According to local legend, a student at the school was murdered in Centennial Hall in 1944. The young unnamed girl was a clarinetist, and her friend poisoned her clarinet reed. When the girl put the clarinet in her mouth to play, she died from the poisonous reed. Before the school was converted into a museum, teachers would report seeing a ghostly apparition and feeling a feeling of dread or unease. Now, you…
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Crypto-musicology books to read this Halloween
It’s no secret that I enjoy exploring the dark and spooky corners of clarinet and music history, such as the bizarre deaths of historical clarinetists, final resting places of famous clarinetists, or the curse of the yellow clarinet. If you’re looking to discover more strange tales from music history (which I’ve officially dubbed crypto-musicology), here are a few of my favorite books to get you started: Beethoven’s Skull by Tim Rayborn. This book explores the “Dark, Strange, and Fascinating Tales from the World of Classical Music and Beyond.” These are the tales you probably never learned in music history! Beethoven’s Hair: An Extraordinary Historical Odyssey and a Scientific Mystery Solved…
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Books written by Artie Shaw
If you’re a clarinetist, you’re probably familiar with the great Artie Shaw. (Even if you’re not a clarinetist, you’re probably familiar with the artistic talents of this incredible musician!) While you probably know about his hits like “Begin the Beguine” and “Frenesi,” you might not know that he was also an accomplished author. Besides clarinet, Shaw was interested in writing, math, and other intellectual hobbies (he was also apparently an expert marksman and fly fisher – who knew?). Here are the published books Artie Shaw wrote during his life: The Trouble with Cinderella: An Outline of Identity (1952) – an autobiographical account of his life, music, and other endeavors I…