Klytemnestra!

Performance*notes,*instructions*and*considerations*
! !Intended!Approach! A!clarinet!player!of!almost!any!standard!can!perform!the!piece.!Many!elements!of! the!piece!are!impossible!to!achieve!to!a!technically!good!standard,!without! instrumental!modification.!The!pertinent!aspect!of!these!elements!is,!therefore,! not!in!perfect!execution,!but!rather!the!resulting!and!inevitable!failure!of!the! instrumentalist!to!do!what!the!score!appears!to!require!of!them.!With!that!in! mind,!I!ask!that!no!alterations!be!made!to!the!instrument!in!order!to!make!any! attempt!more!achievable,!but!instead!that!every!effort!is!put!into!each!attempt!as! though!it!is!reasonably!possible.! Pulse,!metre!and!tempo!considerations! The!piece!has!no!strict!metre,!and!no!attempts!should!be!made!to!accent!any! particular!parts!of!a!measure.!In!order!to!emphasize!this,!I!have!not!included!bar! lines!on!the!scores.!The!piece!should!be!played!at!about!60!beats!per!minute.!The! player!should!ensure!that!relative!note!durations!are!at!least!roughly!maintained.! Interpreting!the!score! The!score!contains!some!nonstandard!notation,!which!will!be!explained!here.! Square'Brackets'indicate!sections!to!be!played!with!a!large!degree!of!flexibility! in!timing.!These!are!usually!placed!around!technically!impossible!elements!of!the! piece!(see!Intended!Approach)!so!that!the!best!attempt!might!be!made!in!the! performers!own!time.!Rhythmic!values!indicated!by!notes!within!the!brackets! indicate!only!loose!suggestions.! Alternative'dynamic'markings'include:! DISTORT!!To!be!played!so!loud,!the!timbre!of!the!clarinet!is!distorted!beyond! recognition.! St!N!Subtone!!To!be!played!at!a!volume!level!barely!audible!to!the!player,! regardless!of!the!size!of!the!performance!space.!! Bracketed'noteheads'!Generally!understood!to!be!out!of!the!clarinets!range.! The!intended!sound!is!not!of!that!particular!not!being!played,!but!of!the!player! attempt!to!reach!it!(see!Intended!Approach).!I!recommend!that!the!performer! plays!the!highest!note!that!can!reach!in!the!altissimo!range,!and!then!bends!the! note!upwards!with!the!lips!as!much!as!possible,!being!careful!to!avoid!cutting!air! off!completely!for!glissandos!to!higher!notes.!For!glissandos!to!lower!notes,!play! the!lowest!note!you!can!sound!accurately,!and!continue!to!relax!the!jaw!as! though!you!might!reach!the!note!indicated.!

Asterisk'marks:' 1!!The!section!between!repeat!symbols!is!to!be!repeated,!starting!at! roughly!60!beats!per!minute,!and!gaining!speed!and!intensity!with!each! repetition.!When!the!phrase!becomes!incomprehensible!to!the!listener,! the!player!may!wish!to!repeat!it!a!few!more!times!before!moving!on.!! 2!!The!phrase!in!large!round!brackets!contains!noteNheads!representing! rough!pitch!areas!(C!=!High,!A!=!Low).!It!is!at!the!players!discretion!as!to! exactly!how!they!may!be!interpreted!in!terms!of!pitch,!although!they! should!try!to!maintain!some!consistency.!To!perform!this!section,!the! player!must!use!the!mouthpiece!only,!disconnected!from!the!rest!of!the! instrument.! 3!!This!phrase!requires!the!player!to!remove!the!mouthpiece,!and!blow! across!the!barrel!in!a!fluteNlike!manner,!while!fingering!the!note!indicated.! 4!!Make!indicated!noises!using!your!vocal!chords,!whilst!attempting!to! play!the!note!indicated!simultaneously.! Colour'trill!!The!indicated!trill!requires!you!to!trill!between!two!different! fingerings!(those!indicated)!for!the!same!note.! !Teeth;on;reed'!To!literally!play!the!notes!with!the!teeth!on!the!read,!creating!a! disembodied,!highNpitched!and!inaccurately!intoned!whistle.! Air'only'!N!Play!the!diamondNshaped!noteheads!by!breathing!air!through!the! clarinet!without!sounding!a!note.!