INTERESTING PERFORMANCES

The Benjamin Trio (Double Reed) -- William Benjamin, oboe, and Alice Benjamin, bassoon, with Edwin Goodwin, piano. Victoria, B.C. Canada/California.
5/78 - Two concerts were given in the San Francisco Bay area. Mr. Benjamin is assistant prof. of oboe at the University of Victoria where Alice Benjamin has been instructor of bassoon. Edwin Goodwin is Professor of Religion at Stanford University, California, as well as extremely active as a professional pianist and accompanist. The programs included:
Gerald Corey, Ottawa, Canada.
6/78 - The first performance of a new chamber/solo work by the very active Canadian composer, Talivaldis Kenins. I asked Mr. Kenins to write this work for me because his scoring for bassoon in a solo found in the Violin Concerto is one of the most expressive and effective I have ever heard or played. Also, because there are so many more solo concerti and works for bassoon and piano, I urged the composer to plan a work for bassoon integrated with a string quintet (normal quartet plus bass, to deepen the sound and to furnish notes in the octave below bassoon range). The piece is intended for performance on both German bassoon and French bassoon (with enough time for switching) to exploit the different tonal characteristics of the two instruments. However, a note explains that the two sections for solo French bassoon may certainly be performed on a German bassoon (hopefully with a contrasting reed having a lighter, more flexible tone quality . . . but not buzzy). The piece is in one uninterrupted 13 1/2-minute flow. Several sections are clearly contrasted, however, and a modern fugue plus a very difficult cadenza make the work quite challenging. My quintet included members of the National Arts Centre Orchestra, John Gaszi and Marcia Weinfeld, violins; Peter Webster, viola; David Hutchenreuther, 'cello; and David Currie, bass. The Sextet for Bassoon and String Quintet (1978) was made possible through a generous grant from the Canada Council (national arts council) and may be ordered directly from the Canadian Music Centre (see New Music, Books). l highly recommend this new chamber/solo work to all bassoonists as a beautiful and satisfying addition to the literature.
D. Keith McClelland, University of Tennessee Bassoon Prof., Knoxville, Tennessee. (and students: James Lotz and Christine Osborne)
11/77 and 3/ 78 - Mr. McClelland performed Mozart's Concerto Kv. 191 with the Oak Ridge Symphony (cadenzas by J. Walter Guetter). The Oak Ridge Civic Music Association also held two special competitions in 1977, one for high school bassoonists from East Tennessee and one for college age bassoonists from the entire state or studying anywhere in Tennessee. Keith McClelland's Univ. of Tennessee student James Lotz was the winner of the college division, and his high school student, Christine Osborne, who lives 120 miles away, won the high school division. Both winners played Mozart's Concerto (all or first movement) with the Oak Ridge Symphony during regular concerts of the orchestra. Additionally, in March, 1978, Keith McClelland performed the not-frequently-played "Ciranda das sete notas" with strings by H. Villa-Lobos.
Lawrence D. Reed, Baylor University Bassoon Prof. Waco, Texas.
3/78 - Bassoon recital program assisted by bassoonist Richard Beene; David Albee, harpsichord/ piano; Robert Murray, violin; Jan Murray, viola; and Harry Lantz, 'cello:

TAFELMUSIK(Baroque Ensemble), Toronto Ontario, Canada. Performances this spring and summer in Toronto. Members are: Kenny Solway (Baroque oboe, Recorders), Susan Graves (Baroque bassoon) and Dan Armstrong (Baroque bass). Assisted by Elizabeth Keenan (Harpsichord). Composers represented have included: Telemann, Boismortier, Handel, Fasch, van Eyck Fiala, Corrette, and Vivaldi. Susan Graves' performance was especially well-received in one concert by Toronto critic, John Kraglund, ". . .the (baroque) bassoon made one of the most charming contributions in J.F. Fasch's Sonata in C. . ."

Rino Vernizzi, Solo bassoon, RAI Symphony, Torino (Turin) Italy.
3/78 - Performed on Heckel bassoon the demanding Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra of André Jolivet -- from memory, with the RIA Symphony, Daniel Oren conducting. The performance was "a great success . . . the first performance of this difficult work in Italy" and received a most favorable review.

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