The French Clarinet, 19th & 20th Century Music for Clarinet & Piano

- The 19th century saw a great development in technical improvements of musical instruments, thus creating more possibilities for virtuoso display and melodic expression.

- This original program of works for clarinet by French romantic composers use the full resources of the innovations brought to the clarinet, by then a popular solo instrument. Some of the works were written as a test piece for competitions.

- Presented are Claude Debussy: Petit pièce (1910), Gabriel Pierné: Canzonetta in E-flat Op.19 (1888), Henri Rabaud: Solo de concours Op.10 (1901), Jules Semler-Collery: Rêverie et scherzo, Arthur Honegger: Sonatine (1921-2), Arthur Coquard: Mélodie et Scherzetto in B-flat Op.68 (c.1904), Paul Pierné: Andante scherzo, Louis Cahuzac: Cantilène, Paul Jeanjean: Arabesques in E-flat.

- Played by Aldo Botta, one of the foremost Italian clarinet players, who collaborated as soloist and orchestra player with all the important Italian orchestras.

Claude Debussy (1862-1918) , Gabriel Pierne (1863-1937) , Henri Rabaud (1873-1949) , Jules Semler-Collery (1902-1988) , Arthur Honegger (1892-1955) , Arthur Coquard (1846-1910) , Paul Pierne (1874-1952) , Louis Cahuzac (1880-1960) , Paul Jeanjean (1874-1928) , Andre Messager (1853-1929)

• Cahuzac: Cantilène
• Coquard: Mélodie et Scherzetto (op. 68)
• Debussy: Petite Pièce
• Honegger: Sonatina for Clarinet and Piano, H 42
• Jeanjean: Arabesques
• Messager: Solo de concours
• Pierné, G: Canzonetta, Op. 19
• Pierné, P: Andante-Scherzo
• Rabaud: Solo de concours, Op. 10
• Semler-Collery: Rêverie et scherzo