A post-competition party at
Roger Birnstingl's (center left). Others in the picture include
Kim Walker, U.S.A., peeking through the door (left); and (left
to right, back row) Sergei Krasavin, U.S.S.R.; Edino Krieger,
Brazil; Sol Schoenbach, U.S.A.; (second row) Fritz Finsch, R.D.A.;
Holger Staube, D.D.R., third prize winner; Franco Fisch, General
Secretary; Louis Davidson, Indiana University; and Celeste Roy,
Juilliard School of Music. Second Prize Winner, Alexander Gourianov,
U.S.S.R., is kneeling to the right of Birnstingl. Missing is first
prize winner Anders Engstrom from Sweden. (The dog and the wine
are unidentified!)
Although I was deeply honored by the invitation to serve on the jury for the 43rd Geneva Competition which involved the bassoon, rumors of problems had reached me in advance, so that I approached the contest with some trepidation. Complaints had been registered that the juror representing France could not be fair to the French "basson", as he had switched to the German System. After a review of the entire subject by the Competition Commission, it was decided to invite an additional French juror who was totally dedicated to the "Basson". The other difficulty that emerged was the rejection of the "Morceau Impose" or compulsory work.
The composition arrived 5 months late and was written in an idiom that would create difficulties for the players as well as the jurors. Another composition, Ballade for Bassoon and Piano by Michel Hostetler, was hastily commissioned and served the contest ably to test the candidates. This piece plus Weber's ever-present Andante and Hungarian Rondo, op. 35 served as the first hurdle. Both were ably met by all 48 candidates from many countries. Of the 48, 16 played the French "Basson" and 32, the German System. I must admit that the French "Basson" sounded most seductive on those opening bars of the Weber. But my mind kept drifting back to Las Vegas and Mark Eubank's never to be forgotten jazz version of the same Hungarian "Goulash".
Using a system of voting new to most of us, 9 semi-finalists were chosen to play the next round. This was a 35' program selected from various categories and we were treated to some stunning demonstrations of bassooning. Although it would have been easy to choose 5 or 6 finalists, we were restricted to three, and they each played a pair of Vivaldi concertos (different in each case) and the Villa-Lobos Ciranda das seta Notas (in honor of the composer's 100th anniversary). They were accompanied by an excellent chamber orchestra from Grenoble, conducted by Marc Tardue. First prize went to Anders Engstrom from Sweden, second to Alexander Gourianov from U.S.S.R., and third to Holger Strube from East Germany. A special Swiss prize was awarded to Gustavo Nunez from Venezuela from his masterful presentation of Nussio's Variations on a Theme of Pergolesi'.
Members of the jury were: Stanley Pope, Chairman; jurors: Pietro Antonini (conductor), CH; Roger Birnstingl, GB; Fritz Finsch, RDA; Sergei Krasavin, U.S.S.R.; Edino Krieger (composer), Brazil; jean Marie LaRoque, FR; Sol Schoenbach, USA; Amaury Wallez, FR.
In retrospect, many thoughts come to mind. The playing of all was at the highest level I have ever heard. Difficulties seem to vanish as these young bassoonists played a wide repertoire of works that demanded every technical resource. The limits have been raised once more by this generation far beyond what we accomplished. A cursory survey of Geneva Competition pieces commissioned each 5 years since 1939 reveals the composers attitudes which have changed so radically over the years. It was fascinating to hear candidates that I have heard in Munich, Toulon, Gillet competitions, and Tokyo, and note their development.
The next objective should be an International
Bassoon contest in the U.S.A.
The following is a list of works performed for the Geneva
Competition:
C.M. von Weber, Andante et Rondo hongrois op. 35 (Lienau
ed., Berlin)
F. Devienne, Sonata in F major, op. 24, No. 3 (Musica Rara ed.)
F. Devienne, Sonata in G minor, op. 24, No. 5 (Musica Rara ed.)
W.A. Mozart, Sonata KV 292, arr. for bassoon and piano, (Chester ed.)
A. Reicha, Sonata in B flat major (Schott ed.) F. Berwald, Konzertstuck op. 2 (Svenska Musikforlaget ed.)
F. David, Concertino op. 12 (I.M.C. ed.)
E. Elgar, Romance op. 6 (Novello ed.)
C. Saint-Saens, Sonate, (Durand ed.)
G. Jacob, Partita (Oxford Univ. Press ed.)
Yun Isang, Monologue (Bote and Bock ed.)
Krivitzky, Improvisation and Toccata
M. Hostetler, Ballade
A. Boutry, Interference I (Chappel ed.)
Dutilleux, Sarabande et Cortege (Leduc ed.)
0. Nussio, Variations sur un theme de Pergolesi (Universal ed.)
J.F. Zbinden, Ballade op. 33 (Breitkopf und Hartel ed.)