Bagatelles for Clarinet and Viola - Recording of first performance now available
Bagatelles has now had its first performance. It you’d like to hear it, you’ll find it right here. It was performed in Eastpor,t Maine in late August of 2024. Performers were Brian Schuth on clarinet and Anne Black on viola.
It’s a tricky piece to perform. The rhythms of the dance movements intermingle in such a way that they’re propulsive, but don’t quite fit into a regular meter. The cantos are slow, quiet and often written without meter at all. Bagatelles requires a strong sense of ensemble— and no small amount of rehearsal — which is very much in evidence in this very first performance.
Concert Announcement: Premiere
Announcement of premiere performance
I’m happy to announce that my Bagatelles for Clarinet and Viola will be getting its first performance in lovely Eastport, Maine on August 24, 2024. Performers will be Brian Schuth, clarinet and Anne Black, viola. I’m looking forward to meeting Brian in upcoming virtual conference, but I’ve known Anne for ages. She’s a stalwart of new music in Boston (as well as early music). You can learn more about the concert here. It will also feature music of Stravinsky, Hovhaness, Clarke and Maconchy.
I’ve written a little about Bagatelles in previous posts. It was composed for Russell and Leslie Harlow, both excellent musicians, in Park City. Sadly, Leslie (viola) died before they were able to perform the piece. Russell has given his blessing to this performance and I appreciate his generosity of spirit. I think that the description of the music on the concert site is spot on and captures just what my intentions were:
“Utah composer Michael Carnes’ Five Bagatelles, for clarinet and viola, will receive its World Premiere performance at EAC, interspersing a more contemporary set of light, playful dance movements with two haunting, chant-like pieces.”
If you’re in that part of the world, I hope you can attend.
Update on a Duet
Just a few months ago, I announced a new duet, Bagatelles for Clarinet and Viola. I had written the piece for two old friends in Park City, Russell and Leslie Harlow. Only a couple of weeks after I delivered the piece, Leslie learned she had an aggressive lung cancer. She fought as well as she could, but only survived a little way into the new year.
Leslie founded the first chamber music series in Park City and made music there for something like 40 years. Early on, she was joined by her husband Russell (who had founded Nova Chamber Music, his own series in Salt Lake City). I never saw her when she wasn’t cheerful and funny—even when she was doing so much of the work needed to keep a chamber music series going. The last few phone conversations the three of us had were full of laughs and musical insight.
In time, Russell and I will sort out what’s to become of the piece in terms of performance. In any case, it will bear a permanent dedication to both of them. In the mean time, I invite you to listen to an audio rendering of the piece.. It’s sunny and playful (and quite tricky), not unlike Russell and Leslie.