What was the role of the clarinet in a classical orchestra of the
early 20th century? What about in jazz music from the same time?

---

Request for Question Clarification by tlspiegel-ga on 01 Nov 2005 17:21 PST

Hi khadgal,

Please let me know if this would be a fully satisfactory answer to your question.


Jazz vs. Classical Music
http://www.cyberessays.com/Arts/39.htm

"In Classical music, both large orchestras and small ensembles are used. 
But generally, the greatest and most prominent compositions are for 
the larger symphony orchestra. The largest part of the orchestra is 
the string section consisting of violins, violas, cellos and string 
basses. These instruments were invented very early in medieval times 
but really matured into their present form during the late 18th 
century. The wind instruments, comprised of brass and woodwinds, took 
longer to mature. The brass section in particular did not posses the 
ability to play chromatically (in all keys) until the advent of valves 
which allowed the length of the instrument to be changed while 
playing. This occurred around the middle to late 19th century. 
Consequently, the brass instruments are less prominent in the music of 
Bach, Mozart and Beethoven along with their contemporaries. Late 19th 
and early 20th century composers make use of a very large orchestra 
with all the fully developed wind instruments."

=========

Passagen - The clarinet history by Erin Bray
http://hem.passagen.se/eriahl/history.htm

"The clarinet, still in its infant stages through the Baroque and much
of the Classic periods, did not come to the fore in literature until
the early 19th century. There were many improvements to be made on the
clarinet before it could perform the demands that players and
composers alike desired."

=========

Evolution of the Orchestra in the Classical Period 
http://dorakmt.tripod.com/music/orchest.html
 
"Clarinet became popular from the second half of the 18th century and
established a place in the orchestra. Its potential as a solo
instrument was recognised in opera, symphony, concerto and oratorio.
When the clarinet first began to occupy a place in the score, it was
not so much side by side with the oboes as in place of them. Clarinets
step into the place vacated for the time being by the oboes. It is
interesting to note that when Mozart added the clarinet part to
Symphony No. 40 (K550), he rewrote the oboe parts so that they never
play together except in tuttis. Clarinets were found to be better
partners for horns than oboes. Mozart was the first to exploit the
rich lower register of the clarinet."

=========

The Hindu
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mp/2002/10/24/stories/2002102400070300.htm

Star of the woodwind family 

"Although the clarinet found its life and soul in the classical
orchestras and chamber ensembles, the immense popularity of the
instrument rose by leaps and bounds with the advent of jazz."

=========

Answers.com - orchestra and orchestration
http://www.answers.com/topic/orchestra-and-orchestration

The Eighteenth-Century Classical Orchestra

"During the latter half of the 18th cent. the classical orchestra was
gradually established through the disuse of the continuo and the
acceptance of the clarinet. The abandonment of the continuo led to
much greater independence in the string parts, which now had to fill
the harmony unaided. Instead of both violin parts doubling the melody
and the violas, cellos, and basses doubling the bass, there were now
four distinct parts. The clarinet, like the flute, first appeared as
an alternate for the oboe, but in the late works of Haydn and Mozart
the orchestra was standardized, with pairs of flutes, oboes,
clarinets, bassoons, French horns, trumpets, and kettledrums in
addition to the strings. All the wind instruments, especially the
woodwinds, could carry the melody, providing desired changes of
color."

=========

Characteristics of Early Jazz Why Did Jazz Originate in New Orleans Around 1900?
http://www.kzoo.edu/music/jazz/early.html

I.  Characteristics of Early Jazz (@1900-1930) 

 A.  Featured collective improvisation (trumpet, clarinet, and trombone) 
     1. The role of the trumpet was to play the melody with embellishments 
     2. The role of the clarinet was to ornament the melody above the trumpet  
           

 B.  Performed by a small jazz combo of 6 ? 7 players  
     1. Front Line consisted of one trumpet, one clarinet, and one trombone 

[edit]
 
?Early Jazz?  
(@1900-@1935)

"As already stated in the origins of jazz, New Orleans musicians at
the turn of the 20th century had to rely on improvisation to keep
their patrons happy.  In other words, they had to find some way to
keep the music going for hours on end so the patrons could enjoy
themselves."

[edit]

"Necessity dictated the size of the ensemble.  Because the brothels
and bars were so small, only a few musicians could be accommodated in
the ?stage? area.  Thus the standard Dixieland combo was from 5-7 in
number.  (Trumpet, clarinet, trombone, drums, piano/guitar/banjo, and
tuba.)"

The best-known New Orleans musicians at this time were: 

[Edit]

"Sidney Bechet (clarinet/soprano saxophone), Johnny Dodds (clarinet)" 

[edit]

Early Jazz in Comparison with Swing

Early Jazz (Dixie/Dixieland) @1900-1230 
Main Woodwind Instrument: clarinet

Swing (Big Band) @1900-1930 @1925-1950 
Main Woodwind Instrument: sax

=========

Wikipedia - Clarinet
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarinet

Jazz

"Clarinets are also commonly found in jazz, especially in its earlier
forms such as the Big Band music of the 1930s and 1940s.

The clarinet was a central instrument in early jazz starting in the
1910s and remaining popular through the big band era into the 1940s.
Larry Shields, Ted Lewis, Jimmie Noone and Sidney Bechet were
influential in early jazz. The B flat soprano was the most common, but
a few early jazz musicians such as Louis Nelson Deslile and Alcide
Nunez prefered the C soprano, and many New Orleans jazz brass bands
have used E flat sopranino.

Swing clarinetists such as Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, and Woody Herman
led perhaps the most successful popular music groups of their era.

With the decline of big bands' popularity in the late 1940s, the
clarinet faded from its prominent position in jazz, though a few
players (Buddy DeFranco, Jimmy Giuffre, Perry Robinson and others)
used clarinet in bebop and free jazz."

=========


Best regards,
tlspiegel

---

Clarification of Question by khadgal-ga on 30 Nov 2005 06:49 PST

Dear tlspiegel,
Thank you so much for your answer. I think you can post it as an
answer since it covers my question and is very informative.
Khadgal

Hi khadgal,

Thank you for a very interesting question and also for requesting I
post in the answer box.

Jazz vs. Classical Music
http://www.cyberessays.com/Arts/39.htm

"In Classical music, both large orchestras and small ensembles are used. 
But generally, the greatest and most prominent compositions are for 
the larger symphony orchestra. The largest part of the orchestra is 
the string section consisting of violins, violas, cellos and string 
basses. These instruments were invented very early in medieval times 
but really matured into their present form during the late 18th 
century. The wind instruments, comprised of brass and woodwinds, took 
longer to mature. The brass section in particular did not posses the 
ability to play chromatically (in all keys) until the advent of valves 
which allowed the length of the instrument to be changed while 
playing. This occurred around the middle to late 19th century. 
Consequently, the brass instruments are less prominent in the music of 
Bach, Mozart and Beethoven along with their contemporaries. Late 19th 
and early 20th century composers make use of a very large orchestra 
with all the fully developed wind instruments."

=========

Passagen - The clarinet history by Erin Bray
http://hem.passagen.se/eriahl/history.htm

"The clarinet, still in its infant stages through the Baroque and much
of the Classic periods, did not come to the fore in literature until
the early 19th century. There were many improvements to be made on the
clarinet before it could perform the demands that players and
composers alike desired."

=========

Evolution of the Orchestra in the Classical Period 
http://dorakmt.tripod.com/music/orchest.html
 
"Clarinet became popular from the second half of the 18th century and
established a place in the orchestra. Its potential as a solo
instrument was recognised in opera, symphony, concerto and oratorio.
When the clarinet first began to occupy a place in the score, it was
not so much side by side with the oboes as in place of them. Clarinets
step into the place vacated for the time being by the oboes. It is
interesting to note that when Mozart added the clarinet part to
Symphony No. 40 (K550), he rewrote the oboe parts so that they never
play together except in tuttis. Clarinets were found to be better
partners for horns than oboes. Mozart was the first to exploit the
rich lower register of the clarinet."

=========

The Hindu
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mp/2002/10/24/stories/2002102400070300.htm

Star of the woodwind family 

"Although the clarinet found its life and soul in the classical
orchestras and chamber ensembles, the immense popularity of the
instrument rose by leaps and bounds with the advent of jazz."

=========

Answers.com - orchestra and orchestration
http://www.answers.com/topic/orchestra-and-orchestration

The Eighteenth-Century Classical Orchestra

"During the latter half of the 18th cent. the classical orchestra was
gradually established through the disuse of the continuo and the
acceptance of the clarinet. The abandonment of the continuo led to
much greater independence in the string parts, which now had to fill
the harmony unaided. Instead of both violin parts doubling the melody
and the violas, cellos, and basses doubling the bass, there were now
four distinct parts. The clarinet, like the flute, first appeared as
an alternate for the oboe, but in the late works of Haydn and Mozart
the orchestra was standardized, with pairs of flutes, oboes,
clarinets, bassoons, French horns, trumpets, and kettledrums in
addition to the strings. All the wind instruments, especially the
woodwinds, could carry the melody, providing desired changes of
color."

=========

Characteristics of Early Jazz Why Did Jazz Originate in New Orleans Around 1900?
http://www.kzoo.edu/music/jazz/early.html

I.  Characteristics of Early Jazz (@1900-1930) 

 A.  Featured collective improvisation (trumpet, clarinet, and trombone) 
     1. The role of the trumpet was to play the melody with embellishments 
     2. The role of the clarinet was to ornament the melody above the trumpet  
           

 B.  Performed by a small jazz combo of 6 ? 7 players  
     1. Front Line consisted of one trumpet, one clarinet, and one trombone 

[edit]
 
?Early Jazz?  
(@1900-@1935)

"As already stated in the origins of jazz, New Orleans musicians at
the turn of the 20th century had to rely on improvisation to keep
their patrons happy.  In other words, they had to find some way to
keep the music going for hours on end so the patrons could enjoy
themselves."

[edit]

"Necessity dictated the size of the ensemble.  Because the brothels
and bars were so small, only a few musicians could be accommodated in
the ?stage? area.  Thus the standard Dixieland combo was from 5-7 in
number.  (Trumpet, clarinet, trombone, drums, piano/guitar/banjo, and
tuba.)"

The best-known New Orleans musicians at this time were: 

[Edit]

"Sidney Bechet (clarinet/soprano saxophone), Johnny Dodds (clarinet)" 

[edit]

Early Jazz in Comparison with Swing

Early Jazz (Dixie/Dixieland) @1900-1230 
Main Woodwind Instrument: clarinet

Swing (Big Band) @1900-1930 @1925-1950 
Main Woodwind Instrument: sax

=========

Wikipedia - Clarinet
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarinet

Jazz

"Clarinets are also commonly found in jazz, especially in its earlier
forms such as the Big Band music of the 1930s and 1940s.

The clarinet was a central instrument in early jazz starting in the
1910s and remaining popular through the big band era into the 1940s.
Larry Shields, Ted Lewis, Jimmie Noone and Sidney Bechet were
influential in early jazz. The B flat soprano was the most common, but
a few early jazz musicians such as Louis Nelson Deslile and Alcide
Nunez prefered the C soprano, and many New Orleans jazz brass bands
have used E flat sopranino.

Swing clarinetists such as Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, and Woody Herman
led perhaps the most successful popular music groups of their era.

With the decline of big bands' popularity in the late 1940s, the
clarinet faded from its prominent position in jazz, though a few
players (Buddy DeFranco, Jimmy Giuffre, Perry Robinson and others)
used clarinet in bebop and free jazz."

=========

I truly wish I had a record of the keywords used for my research, but
I empty my cache, temporary files, history, etc., on a nightly basis.
Because so much time has gone by, my brain got fuzzy trying to recall
the keywords since I posted my clarification request. :)


Best regards,
tlspiegel

Here's an answer I've come up with in the last few minutes. I think
it'll do you better than just a list of things you could have found on
your own by doing a Google search... Let me know if it's what you're
looking for - I've never done this Google Answers thing before.

==========

This is an incredibly broad question, so I'll try to provide as much
pertinent information as possible...

First off, the clarinet is a member of the woodwind family in the
orchestra. Woodwinds are instruments which make sound by the player
passing air through them, but without buzzing their own lips.
Instruments which are woodwinds include the oboe, the saxophone, the
flute, and the clarinet. Instruments which also use wind but are not
in the woodwind family are the trumpet, trombone, french horn and
tuba, all of which are in the brass family (as their sound is made by
the player buzzing their lips and passing the noise through a curved
brass tube).

Clarinets come in several sizes, from the large bass and contrabass
clarinets, which have very low ranges, to the soprano, sopranino, and
octave clarinets which have very, very high ranges (though these small
instruments are rarely employed.) A complete listing of all the
clarinets can be found at

http://hem.passagen.se/eriahl/clarinet.htm

The clarinet has a dark, hollow, luminous sound which suits it well to
a variety of sounds and roles in the orchestra. It has two "registers"
(ranges in which the instrument speaks well, differentiated by the
player's technique): The lower register, called the "chalumeau" and
the higher, called the "clarinet." The lower register has an
especially dark and expansive sound, which composers use to great
atmospheric effect, both alone (called "solo") or with other
instruments (called "ensemble"). An excellent example of the
clarinet's expansive low register can be found in the first movement
of Gustav Mahler's Kindertotenlieder, where the bass clarinet plays
long, lonely, isolated notes at several points. An example of the
clarinet in its higher register is in Hector Berlioz's Symphonie
Fantastique: in its fifth movement entitled "Witch's Sabbath" the
clarinet plays high, short, piercing, bending notes in a very mocking
manner, meant to signify the witches' mocking of a fallen spirit.

As with all instruments in the orchestra, the clarinet is most often
used along with a number of other instruments playing simultaneously
to form a chord (a collection of notes sounding at the same time). As
its range is neither the highest nor the lowest in the orchestra, it
is most often playing a note somewhere in the middle of the chord, but
without these "inner" notes, no chord would be possible.

Another capacity in which composers employ the clarinet is as a solo
instrument. It has a haunting, sonorous, beautiful quality when used
properly. An prime example of a beautifully-written clarinet solo can
be found in the third movement of Sergei Rachmaninoff's second
symphony, where the instrument plays its own melody, accompanied in
the background by the quiet, serene sounds of other woodwinds and
strings.

The clarinet only came in to widespread use during the 1780s, though
it had been around for much longer. Up until that point (which was
toward the end of Wolfgang Mozart's life, as he died in 1791) the
instrument was seen as little more than a novelty, though a delightful
one. Composers quickly learned, however, that its presence in an
orchestra lent a desirable, "glowing" quality to their music, and it
grew in employment quickly thereafter. One can hear the difference the
clarinet makes, where Mozart uses it in his Piano Concerto No. 23 K.
488, as he had not previously used it in a piano concerto setting. The
sound of the orchestra in that work has a markedly rounder, fuller,
more "special" quality than was previously heard from that composer's
piano concertos. He wrote about his affinity for the instrument soon
thereafter, and said that he would use it much more often from there
on out, which he did. Mozart actually wrote a seminal work in clarinet
literature, the Concerto for Clarinet, K. 622. It is arguably the
first major concerto for the instrument.

The capacities which I have named above did not change from the 1780s
to the present, it is still used as a supporting instrument in an
ensemble, and is still used to pull at the heartstrings of the
audience in solo formats. The differences in its employment are only
very specific to certain composers, and are notable only in their
orchestrational/theoretical process which involves knowledge and
concepts beyond the scope of this question.

In the Jazz realm, the clarinet has been in use since the term "Jazz"
has been able to be applied to a specific genre of music. Any early
form of Jazz, called "Dixieland" saw widespread use of the clarinet as
ornamentation to the sounds the other instruments in the band
(trumpet, trombone, banjo, tuba) were playing. It was described as
"the lace" of the Dixieland sound, for it danced around using fast,
middle-to-high notes to complement and decorate everything else that
was going on in the sound. The high, bent notes that sounded mocking
in Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique in the Jazz setting some decades
later now sounded jubilant and ecstatic.

The clarinet saw its intersection as a Jazz and classical instrument
on February 12, 1924 at the premiere of Geroge Gershwin's "Rhapsody in
Blue" performed by the Paul Whiteman Jazz Orchestra. This symphonic
work/piano concerto written for an expanded Jazz ensemble used some of
the sonorities of Jazz in a classical concert setting. Throughout the
work, the instrument is used in both its solo and ensemble capacities,
in both its registers, to many effects. To wit, the entire work starts
with a solo clarinet feature, which spans the instruments range and
repertoire of effects within a few seconds.

In the following decades, the clarinet was made famous by other Jazz
bandleaders such as Artie Shaw and Benny Goodman. They wrote big band
charts for the groups they lead, and often gave themselves featured
roles in those songs. The popularity of the clarinet among the masses
skyrocketed at this time, and amateur, professional and academic bands
of both the classical and Jazz varieties sprung up across the nation,
with clarinets playing a vital role in the music they produced.

Today you can hear the clarinet in Dixieland revival groups, used in
Jazz bands (though not as often as the saxophone, as the clarinet
players generally call saxophone their first instrument, and the parts
are performed by the same players) and in symphonic music for the
concert hall. It continues to be a vital element in the makeup of
Western music, and will continue to be as such for as long as there is
instrumental music to be made.

The above comment is certainly full of information, but considering
that it supercedes Tlspiegel's posting by a few days and also refers
to a site mentioned there, it seems a little inappropriate to start by
suggesting that the questioner could have found the links him/herself.
 That is what GA is for.
But let me temper this with respect to it's being a first comment.  :)

Khadgal-ga,
 
Since this is your first question, perhaps you haven't recognized that
a Researcher's request for clarification is NOT an answer and should
be responded to.  I hope that you find TL's information to be adequate
as an answer or will request further information.

Regards, Myoarin

Thanks myoarin... perhaps the customer will want me to post the answer.  :)

Best regards,
TL

Hey, I like that, Khadgal!  It makes us all feel good when we see a
Researcher get credit for an answer.
Regards, Myoarin