Overview
Title: Three Pieces for Solo Clarinet
Composer: Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
Composition Year: 1919
Instrumentation: Solo Clarinet in A & Bb
Extended Techniques: None
Difficulty Level: 3/5
Finally, something familiar! Today we’re taking a break from the esoterica to talk about probably the most famous unaccompanied piece in the clarinet solo rep: Igor Stravinsky’s Three Pieces! This piece is one that every serious clarinetist tackles at some point in their schooling, and for good reason; not only are the Three Pieces good for developing technique and rhythm, but they’re also a good gateway into contemporary music and modern styles of playing (although Stravinsky is hardly considered “contemporary” today). Since this piece is so prominent in our rep, and because it fits in with the theme of my analysis articles, I knew I would have to cover it one day. Today is that day!
Chances are you know a bit about Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) already, but for those who don’t, he was a Russian-born composer who also lived much of his life in France and the United States - he died in New York City. He’s mostly remembered for his “Big Three” ballets: The Firebird (1910), Petrushka (1911), and the Rite of Spring (1913). Some of his other more notable works include his Violin Concerto (1931), the Symphony of Psalms (1930), the Symphonies of Wind Instruments (1920), and L’Histoire du Soldat (1918).
L’Histoire is partially the reason we have the Three Pieces. Its creation was funded by a Swiss philanthropist named Werner Reinhart, who was also, incidentally, a noted amateur clarinetist. After L’Histoire’s premiere, Stravinsky thanked Reinhart for his support by writing the Three Pieces for Solo Clarinet and dedicating them to him.
(Side Note: L’Histoire also exists as a trio for violin-clarinet-piano and is a staple of the clarinet chamber rep!)
Analysis
Each of the Three Pieces has its own set of challenges:
I:
Movement I is by far the easiest of the bunch; it’s slow and resides entirely within the chalumeau register. The only question as far as this movement is concerned is how literally you want to interpret Stravinsky’s little direction at the top of the page, where he tells you that, “The breath marks, accents, and metronome marks indicated in the 3 Pieces should be strictly adhered to.” Regarding Movement I, I’ve had people tell me to adhere to this note as much as possible - so Movement I is totally monotone with absolutely no rubato or extra space during rests/breaths - and I’ve had others tell me to take it with a grain of salt. Personally, I like to stay mostly, but not completely loyal, to Stravinsky here. I don’t like doing any big (unmarked) dynamic changes or using rubato with this movement; that said, it still needs to breathe and sound musical, so a little wiggle room is needed.
Give a tiny crescendo before starting any of the hairpin decrescendos so you have somewhere to go when you reach them. You can take a brief pause before starting the ⅝ bar on the fifth line since it briefly explores a new idea that isn’t found anywhere else in the movement - a little silence beforehand gives it an elevated sense of relevance. I wouldn’t take too much time during the breath in the ¾ bar of the sixth line, even though that’s what a lot of people do in recordings. Stravinsky had a reason for writing it the way he did.
Regardless of what you decide to do with Movement I, maintaining a tranquilo atmosphere is the most important thing. This is the kind of piece I’d describe as “atmospheric” or “introspective.” It’s not like, say, a sonata, where you have musical ideas being introduced and then they’re constantly spinning forward and being developed and transformed until eventually arriving at some end point. It doesn’t really build to anything - instead, the music starts, builds a bit on itself, and then stops, only to start up again using more or less the same material, and it follows this pattern almost its entire duration. Look at the music: See how many rests and breath marks are preceded by a whole step motion (mostly F#-G# or C#-D#)? See how often the same gestures and note groupings are recycled? There’s a lot of start-and-stop in this movement. If we try to play this piece like we would, say, the Mozart Concerto, it won’t work; you can’t tell a coherent story just by revisiting the same ideas over and over again and giving them minimal development. For this reason, I see this music as focusing less on story and more on atmosphere. The point of this movement is to entrance the listener, lull them into a false sense of security… and then surprise them with the final measure!
II.
From this point on, I am strictly adhering to Stravinsky’s instructions regarding accents, tempo, and breath marks.
Movement II is the hardest movement in the piece. Movement III might look just as daunting at first, but that one is just a matter of counting and subdivision; in terms of finger technique, it’s not nearly as hard as Movement II.
If you’re confused at all by the metronome marking, just know that the tempo is eighth note = 168 and that three sixteenths = one eighth. Fortunately, the music is notated in a way that makes the placement of the beat easy to find. For the group of 7 on line 2 and the group of 9 on line 3, you can feel them as 3+4 and 4+5, respectively, but make sure they’re as smooth and even as possible. For the group of 9, it’s okay to take a quick moment between the first two notes to adjust your settings so the low F comes out clearly. Use side keys 1 and 2 for that Gb. I like to take a breath after the quarter note C on that same line because I hear everything after that as a separate phrase. In general, take just enough time during all breath marks to take a good breath - don’t take too much time or you risk disrupting the flow of the music.
The “narrative” for Movement II, from what I’m told, is “bird, frog, bird,” as in, the beginning and closing sections are a bird in flight and the middle section is a big frog jumping around. Some people like to take the middle section at a slower tempo than the rest of the movement; personally, I don’t like that decision since it goes against Stravinsky’s instructions. To evoke the “frog” character, make the low notes really full and make the grace notes quick and short (put them on the beat, not before). Observe the different rest values (or lack thereof) underneath each breath mark. Take a bit of time at the breath mark on the second-to-last line to get a good breath in, and make that final lick as smooth as you can - don’t rush it! For the altissimo Gs on the last line, I like to use T R 1-3 ⃒12- Ab/Eb. The subito meno f should sound like a mp+. Start the ritardando on the A natural in that line. Make it feel relaxed and secure.
III.
Movement III is all about subdivision and rhythmic placement. This movement is Stravinsky’s take on ragtime music, which is all about emphasizing syncopation and offbeats. If you’re not familiar with ragtime, listen to The Entertainer (or just about anything else by Scott Joplin). Really bring out the syncopations with this piece - Stravinsky helps out with his use of accents.
The real challenge with this movement is the rhythmic placements. For all the complex meters like 5/8 and 5/16, split them into smaller chunks based on how the notes are grouped (m. 4 is felt as 3+2, for example, and m. 16 is 2+3). A good trick for breaking down these kinds of complex rhythms is to break everything down into 2s and 3s and then draw vertical lines ( ⃒) and triangles (△) over the note groupings to help you remember the subdivisions (where ⃒ = 2 and △ = 3. You see drummers do this a lot). So, for example, if you had a 5/16 bar that you were going to break into 2+3, you’d draw ⃒ over the group of 2 notes and △ over the group of 3. For measures where it’s just five notes grouped together, it’s up to you on how to divide them. In some cases, like in m. 4, the composer’s use of slurs is a good indicator of how the notes should be grouped. Other times, though, it’s more ambiguous. For the measures marked as 3/8 (6/16), I would advise feeling them as 6/16 measures; △ △ instead of ⃒ ⃒ ⃒. For the 5th-to-last measure, I would feel that as 2+3.
The most important thing to remember is that all the note values stay the same regardless of how you group them. You are not changing the tempo, you are changing where the beat is placed.
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