clarinet recital features unique music
By Kathleen Walker
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John Warren |
On Tuesday, Sept. 9, Kennesaw State artists-in-residence Ted Gurch and John Warren will perform an evening of compositions for two clarinets at the Dr. Bobbie Bailey & Family Performance Center. The recital features five different pieces highlighting a variety of different musical styles, arrangements and types of clarinet.
"We tried to select music that the audience doesn't get to hear very often," Warren says. Because the clarinet is the youngest of the woodwind instruments, finding pieces that are "off the beaten path" can be challenging, but they were able to uncover a few gems. "The audience may know the composers, but not that they wrote this type of music," Warren says.
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Ted Gurch |
Two of the duet pieces were created by Felix Mendelssohn as gifts for some of his friends, and "Clarinet Sonata," the solo piece performed by Warren, was written by Nino Rota, most known for writing the score for the movie "The Godfather." The piece Gurch will perform as his solo, "Cinco Bocetos" by Roberto Sierra, features Latin rhythms and is played on the smaller E-flat clarinet.
Although Warren and Gurch have known each other for more than 20 years and have performed together in ensemble concerts and with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the recital will be the first time the two have performed together in such an intimate environment and both are looking forward to the opportunity.
"The new performance hall is a fun place to play and a great place to listen to a concert," Gurch says. "The recital also gives students the chance to hear their teachers in a different context." Warren adds, "We hope the audience really likes the concert and that they get to hear something they might not have expected."
The Sept. 9 concert begins at 8 p.m. in the Bailey Performance Center. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.kennesaw.edu/arts or call 770-423-6650.