Clarinet Metamorphoses / A.Paulová clarinet / PRSO / T.Brauner

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Clarinet Concerto in A Major, K 622 / Koncert pro klarinet a orchestr A dur, KV 622

1. I. Allegro 11:58

2. II. Adagio 6:44

3. III. Rondo. Allegro 8:27

4. Claude Debussy - Premiere rhapsodie pour orchestre avec clarinette principale / Premiere Rhapsodie pro klarinet a orchestr 7:49

5. Carl Nielsen - Clarinet Concerto, Op. 57 / Koncert pro klarinet a orchestr, op. 57 23:43

Anna Paulová clarinet / klarinet

Prague radio Symphony Orchestra / Symfonický orchestr Českého rozhlasu v Praze

Tomáš Brauner conductor / dirigent

Did you select the pieces for your debut album yourself?

The management of the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra approached me to record some pieces with the orchestra. I sent them a draft of the repertoire along with my preferences - Mozart’s and Nielsen’s clarinet concerto. The orchestra chose both of the proposed pieces plus Debussy’s Premiere Rhapsodie. However, the original idea was not to record the pieces on CD, the recordings were merely conceived for radio purposes. I am all the more pleased with the album.

The selection of pieces is varied. Nielsen, Mozart, Debussy...

Yes. Each piece was written for a different clarinet. Nielsen’s concerto for the A clarinet, Mozart’s concerto for the basset clarinet and Debussy’s rhapsody for the Bb clarinet. Also, the pieces were written in different time periods – romanticism, classicism, impressionism. On the album the clarinet can thus present itself in different means of expression.

You recorded the pieces under the baton of Tomáš Brauner. How was it?

It was a wonderful collaboration with Tomáš Brauner and I really appreciate him taking on this project. We shared the same views on the interpretation of the pieces, and our personalities clicked too. The atmosphere during the recording with the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra was very pleasant. The whole process of recording with the music director Markéta Janáčková and sound engineer Iva Darebná was very inspiring to me.

Were there any difficult moments during the recording?

Not necessarily difficult but, for example, in Debussy we would have to make one important decision – should I play the notes D-Eb-G or D#-E-G in the very last triplet of Debussy’s Rhapsody? In fact, I had encountered different opinions during my studies. In Debussy’s manuscript this section is difficult to read. We recorded both versions, but in the end we opted for the D-Eb-G triplet, which is more in keeping with Debussy’s compositional style and builds on the previous bars in the inversion.

You are one of the few players in our country who plays Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto on the basset clarinet.

While studying in Lübeck I took part in the Possehl-Musikpreis competition. A patron came to me after the competition, which I won, and offered to buy me a new instrument. At that time I already had good instruments, both the A and the Bb clarinet. I talked to my teacher Sabine Meyer about it and she stated unequivocally: “You play Mozart a lot, so you have to play it in the original version!“ I agreed, and together we went to the Buffet Crampon factory in Mantes and picked my new basset clarinet. Just one month later I performed Mozart’s concerto on the new instrument with the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra.

Was it hard to get used to the new instrument?

Yes, the basset clarinet is quite different from the regular clarinets. It is about ten centimeters longer and much heavier. I have to use a strap to hold it, otherwise it would be too hard to carry the instrument. The basset clarinet also has more keys, for example, for the bass c note the right thumb is used, which on the A clarinet only serves as a support for the clarinet. In general, all the keys on the instrument are closer to one another, so at first I had to be careful not to accidentally touch the other keys while playing. The basset clarinet also has a more subtle sound. It doesn’t allow one to go into such strong dynamics, it has a completely different timbre that blends nicely with the strings.

How did you approach the cadenzas in Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto?

The cadenzas in Mozart are very short, more like ornaments. I think they should sound natural, as if they were improvised. In the exposition and recapitulation of the first movement I have tried different versions. In the second movement though I think it is best to stick to the traditional cadenza which is derived from Mozart’s clarinet quintet. When exploring the different options for cadenzas I was also influenced by Sabine Meyer. She believed that the cadenzas should stylistically match the overall style of the piece.