SKU: ST.C143

ISBN 9790570811434.

Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov (1865-1936) trained under Rimsky- Korsakov and became the most illustrious Russian composer and conductor immediately succeeding Tchaikovsky. Glazunov’s close affinity with the Saint Petersburg Conservatory, of which institution he would later become Director for more than two decades, placed him ideally to assist in the Institute’s transition to the Petrograd Conservatory in the immediate wake of the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. For the last six years of his life, Glazunov left the USSR, feeling hemmed in by propagandist restrictions and at the same time out of kilter with the Modernist movement.

He lived in exile for a time, touring the USA, before eventually settling in Paris, though his stoical brand of Russian Romanticism never waned. Despite being partly remembered for having taught Shostakovich, Glazunov was never known as a revolutionary composer, more inclined to align himself with 19th century ideologies than with the thrusting new compositional paths forged by Prokofiev and others. Indeed, the nationalistic movement so successfully espoused by Balakirev found a new energy in Glazunov’s hands, and he discovered an opulence of scale which leaned more in the direction of Borodin.

There can be no doubting Glazunov’s technical mastery, which successfully drew together contrapuntal, lyrical and virtuosic skills, and which were admired by the likes of Liszt. Glazunov steered a steady course at a time when it was most sorely needed; one need only hear the marvellous Violin Concerto in A minor to experience the full power and authority of his writing, though he possessed an enviable touch with more intimate forms too, such as those readily to be heard in these three charming Miniatures Op.42, originally composed for piano.
Clarinet and Piano
Transcribed by Mark Tanner
Grades 6 & 7 (Trinity Grades 6 & 7 syllabuses)
Former Spartan Press Cat. No.: SP1360.

SKU: HL.48186547

UPC: 888680795733. 9.0x12.0x0.077 inches.

Gabriel Pierne (1863-1937) was a French composer, conductor and organist. Despite being predominantly remembered as a conductor, his Canzonetta remains a recognised piece in the Clarinet repertoire. Pierne studied at the Paris Conservatoire before taking up the position of chief conductor for the concert series, Concerts Colonne in 1910. He remained in the post until 1933, and during this time, he notably conducted the world premiere of Igor Stravinsky's The Firebird. Pierne composed for a variety of instruments, Canzonetta for Clarinet with Piano accompaniment being one of four solo works by the composer. This Pierne piece for Clarinet contains many characteristics typical of the French style, such as lyrical melodies, a significant number of performance directions, flourishes of semiquavers, chromaticism and many changes in dynamics. Canzonetta is a varied piece, essential to the repertoire of aspiring clarinetists..