This year has been a significant one for women bassoonists. Nancy Goeres, a student of Dick Lottridge and Sherman Walt, has been selected to replace Otto Eifert in the Cincinnati Symphony for the 1982-83 season. Congratulations, Nancy! Kim Walker, a student of Sol Schoenbach and Roger Birnstingl will leave her position as principal bassoon of the Biel (Switzerland) Symphony to assume the same position with the Turin Radio Symphony Orchestra of Italy. (Kim, who was also originally chosen as a Gillet Performance Competition semi-finalist before professional commitments in Switzerland forced her to withdraw from the competition, is playing on a Soulsby bassoon.) Combine this with the excellent articles on Judy LeClair, the new solo bassoonist with the New York Philharmonic, in such magazines as People and American Way (October 1981, pp. 122-127) it would appear that women are going to popularize the bassoon in the 20th Century beyond our fondest beliefs. Bravo to all of you!
From Gunther Angerhofer, bassoonist with the Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra, comes the following news of a new recording of the Konzert für Fagott und Orchester Op. 41 by Victor Bruns (1980). The three movement work (Allegro animato, Andante tranquillo and Allegro con moto) is recorded on Ven Deutsche Shallplatten Nova, Berlin DDR, (Stereo 8 85 185) by Herbert Heilman, Bassoon soloist with the Grosses Rundfunk Orchester, Berlin, with Heinz Rogner conducting. And for the friends of the contrabassoon, Victor Bruns has composed Two Pieces for Contrabassoon and Piano Op. 57. (Andante, and Tempo di Valse grazioso). Both pieces were recently performed on Berlin Radio by Otfried Bienert, contrabassoonist with the Staatskapelle, Berlin. Unfortunately they are not yet published.
Gunther Angerhofer himself, will participate in an interesting seminar at the Mozarteum in Salzburg from January 25-29, 1982 on "Instrument Making of the Romantic Period." Subjects he will cover include the development of the bassoon from the Classic to the Romantic period, bassoon makers in the 19th Century; studies from important bassoon methods of the 19th Century by Almenraeder, Neukirchner, and Weissenborn, a study of important bassoon chamber music and orchestral passages of the 19th Century, and the care, restoration and making of 19th Century bassoon reeds. The seminar costs 1,500 Austrian schillings for active participant and 400 for an observer. I have a brochure I can send to anyone who might be interested in participating.
Dr. Michael Nagy: An active bassoonist and musicologist from Vienna presented a paper on "Bassoon Making in Vienna" at the Fourth Conference of the International Society for the Investigation and Promotion of Wind Music, which met in Uster near Zurich, Switzerland, September 24 through 27, 1981. Hopefully Dr. Nagy will publish a paper on his report in the near future.
Milan Turkovic, noted Viennese bassoonist, continues his active solo career. In April, 1981, he performed the Mozart Concerto in Poznan, Poland; and taped the Bozza Concertino with the Munich Radio. In May, 1981, he gave the world premiere of the Bassoon Concerto by Paul Walter Furst (published by Doblinger) and the Strauss Concertino for clarinet and bassoon with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra in Linz. In June, 1981, he performed the Villa-Lobos Ciranda des sete notas and the Mozart Sinfonia Concertante (with Leister, Schellenberger, and Baumann) at the Bad Harzburg Music Festival, and the Vivaldi E Minor Concerto (On a Deper bassoon, 1720) with Concentus Musicus in Salzburg and Innsbruck. And in August 1981, he again performed the Vivaldi and the Villa-Lobos with the Zagreb Soloists at the Salzburg Festival. Moreover, he has appearances coming up in December, 1981, playing the Mozart Concerto in Barcelona and Munich, and the Weber Concerto in January and February 1982, in Munich and Cannes. He then has concert dates in May, 1982, in St. Louis and New York, and in June back in Vienna performing the Vivaldi A Minor Concerto with Concentus Musicus. It is gratifying to see the music profession more and more supporting a bassoon soloist (especially one of Milan's calibre) rather than only pianists, violinists or an occasional flutist. Congratulations to Milan on his successful career.
William Waterhouse carried out a second Lecture- Recital tour of U.S. university campuses between February 22 and March 12, 1981. Following his successful visit in 1979 to the Pacific Northwest, this time he played in Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan. Accompanied on keyboard by his wife Elisabeth Ritchie, he presented a program entitled "Four Centuries of Bassoon": consisting of appropriate items on five different instruments ranging from two eighteenth century bassoons to tenoroon. In addition he appeared with the Midland Symphony as soloist in Jacob's Concerto and von Weber's Hungarian Rondo. In Kalamazoo he took part in a day's "Total Immersion in Bassoon" which was attended by some 60 bassoonists. In between dates he managed to fit in a visit to the "Look of Music"; exhibition in Vancouver, where 300 of the most significant musical instruments of the world were on show.
Concerning the "Total Bassoon Immersion Day" (3/14/81) at western Michigan, sponsor Bill Allgood writes: "Approximately 60 bassoonists from Michigan and Indiana attended the afternoon sessions, which dealt with topics such as reed compatibility (Hugh Cooper), reed trimming and adjustment, (Ed Kirk); extended performance techniques, such as double and triple tonguing, high notes, and multiphonics (William Allgood); and a very good presentation by Bob Williams and Phil Austin related to problems of working as a section. We also presented a concert of works for bassoon ensembles (the panel played various quartets in rotation, as well as a movement from the Bach First Orchestral Suite arranged by me for octet) and enjoyed immensely a sight-reading session for the students attending, during which the large ensemble was conducted by various members of the panel. The concert by Bill Waterhouse topped off the day perfectly; and there was general agreement among the members of the panel that we should try to make this an annual event. In fact, tentative plans have been made to move from Kalamazoo to East Lansing next year, and to feature Brian Pollard, principal bassoonist of the Concertgebouw Orchestra."