Fantasy For Clarinet And Piano
Piano Reduction of Fantasy for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra by the Composer
by Howard Hanson
Clarinet Solo - Sheet Music

Chamber Music Clarinet, Piano

SKU: CF.W2591

Piano Reduction of Fantasy for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra by the Composer. Composed by Howard Hanson. Edited by K. Kerstetter. Piano-SWS. Masters Edition. Classical. Set of Score and Parts. With Standard notation. 8+2 pages. Carl Fischer Music #W2591. Published by Carl Fischer Music (CF.W2591).

ISBN 9780825852749. UPC: 798408052744. 9 X 12 inches. Key: C major.

Written in 1978, as an addition to a ballet for the Chautauqua Institution, Fantasy for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra is one of Howard Hanson's last compositions. The piano reduction by the composer has been edited by Dr. Kerstetter. Professor of Clarinet at Kansas State University. The music of Fantasy has Hanson's characteristic lyrical flavor and is beautifully flowing and expressive. It will be a very enjoyable and gratifying work to play and provide recitalists with something new that is sure to delight any audience.
In 1978, Howard Hanson wrote two works for solo woodwind and chamber orchestra: a Scherzo for Bassoon and Orchestra and a Fantasy for Clarinet and Chamber orchestra. Apparently, a commission for a ballet from Hanson by the Chautauqua Institution has resulted in these two compositions being incorporated into a work entitled Nymph and Satyr. This ballet is rarely performed, and consequently the two solo woodwind movements have become relatively unknown.During the summer of 2000, my colleague Bruce Gbur was visiting friends in the Rochester, New York area and paid a visit to the Sibley Library at the Eastman School of Music. Bruce, who is a bassoonist, was looking for a copy of Nymph and Satyr score with the idea of possibly doing a piano reduction of the Scherzo. He was astonished to discover that a manuscript of the piano reduction already existed, written by Hanson himself.The holograph was housed in the Special Collections area of the Sibley Library. The Special Collections Librarian, David Petter Coppen, allowed Bruce to examine the holograph, and put him in touch with Dr. James Undercofler, Director of the Eastman School, and by extension, head of the American Music Institute at Eastman. Bruce contacted Dr. Undercofler to request permission to obtain a photocopy of the holograph and permission to perform the bassoon and piano version. Dr. Undercofler enthusiastically granted permission, and copies were prepared the following day at no cost.Much to Bruce's surprise, the librarian photocopied the reduction of the entire ballet, including the Fantasy movement for clarinet. In the fall of 2000, Bruce presented me with a copy of Hanson's reduction of the Fantasy, and I was immediately interested in performing it myself. After hearing how well the Fantasy works with piano, I felt compelled to share with other clarinetists the opportunity to perform this work in the clarinet and piano version.I engraved the score myself, making a few minor changes based on the Nymph and Satyr version. I also made some editorial decisions in reading the manuscript oft he piano part with the advice of William Wingfield, our staff accompanist here at Kansas State University (and incidentally a graduate of the Eastman School). The Fantasy for Clarinet is a beautifully flowing and expressive work, representative of Hanson's lyrical style. It is a thoroughly enjoyable work to play, and provides a beautiful diversion on any recital program.I extend my thanks to Bruce Gbur, James Undercofler, David Peter Coppen, William Wingfield, the Eastman School of Music, and the Carl Fischer company for their help in this project.