Name: Beach: Three Compositions Op.40 (Hard Copy)
SKU: ALEA1307
Price: 20 USD
Availability: InStock

This site is home to Alea Publishing & Recording, specializing in music for the bass clarinet.
We offer a growing catalog of creative, artistic transcriptions and new works for bass clarinet solo & ensemble.

Beach: Three Compositions Op.40 (Hard Copy)

ALEA1307

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Review

We thank Lacey Golaszewski for her review of this publication in The Clarinet (September 2022), which reads in part:

"The 9-minute collection is charming and would make a lovely addition to a clarinetist’s library, particularly for a performer searching for a relatively short, harmonically lush, 19th-century recital work."

We thank Lori Ardovino for her review of this publication in the NACWPI Journal (Spring 2022, Volume 69, Issue 3), which reads in part:

"Three Compositions, Op. 40 is a welcome addition to the clarinet and bass clarinet repertoire. The first two pieces (La Captiva and Berceuse) could be performed by an advanced high school student, grade level 3. Mazurka is more demanding but could be included with the mix. ... This is a beautiful set, skillfully arranged by Dr. Cook. I would program this work on a recital as I’m sure many other professional clarinetists would."

About the Music

Amy Cheney Beach published her Three Compositions op. 40 for violin and piano in 1898, with a subsequent version for cello and piano published in 1903. In transcribing these pieces for clarinet (Bb and A) or bass clarinet and piano, I attempted to remain faithful to both the violin and cello versions.

There are some small differences in notes, rhythmic values, articulations, and the placement of dynamic markings and expressive markings between the published violin and cello parts. Additionally, some descriptive text is different between parts for the two instruments, such as ritardando versus rallentando. I believe each version reflected Amy Cheney Beach’s preference at the time of publication, but may also reflect some of the inherent differences in performance between the two string instruments. I have retained these differences in this edition, with the clarinet and bass clarinet parts mirroring the violin and cello parts, respectively. The score is notated in C and includes the clarinet part in the instrumental line. The piano part is identical for both versions.

My editorial suggestions not included in Beach’s original notation are printed with dotted lines, such as the ties in mm. 33–35 of the Mazurka. The most substantial deviations from the original versions for violin or cello occur in the Clarinet in B-flat part for the Mazurka. The B-flat part is identical to the A part except for mm. 13–14, m. 51, and mm. 92–94, where low concert C-sharps are out of range on the B-flat instrument. In mm. 13–14 and m. 51, I slightly altered the pitch content while retaining the same register as the A part; the pitches from the A part (and Beach’s original) are transposed an octave higher and indicated parenthetically. The performer can choose which option they find preferable. The melodic content calling for concert C-sharps in mm. 92–94 is simply transposed an octave higher. Less notably, I included a key change in mm. 93–109 of the Mazurka in the Bb clarinet and bass clarinet parts so the performer will read in A-flat major instead of the less familiar G-sharp major. This change is purely notational and does not change the sounding pitches.

I would like to extend special thanks to Marian & Edward MacDowell Inc., also known as “MacDowell”, for their generous assistance and for granting permission to Amy Cheney Beach’s compositions.

--David Cook

Hard Copy Edition

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We also offer this piece via PDF download: click here to choose that option.

Piano score: 20 pages, spiral bound; parts: 5 pages each, spiral bound. Extended-range instrument NOT required for bass clarinet part.

Listen to the arranger's own performance of the first two pieces:

About the Arranger

David Cook is Principal Clarinet of the Millikin-Decatur Symphony Orchestra and clarinetist for the Appian Duo (with Emily Grabinski, piano) and the Greyline Duo (with Alexandra Rodriguez, flute). Previously a member of the Wichita Symphony Orchestra, the Lawton Philharmonic Orchestra, Fiati Five, and the Lieurance Woodwind Quintet, David has also performed with the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra, Heartland Festival Orchestra, Oklahoma City Philharmonic, Norman Philharmonic, and Texas Music Festival Orchestra. David has commissioned and premiered new works from composers including David Maslanka, Pierre Jalbert, David Biedenbender, Whitney E. George, Cody W. Forrest, Cody Criswell, Garrett Gillingham, and Andy Francis.

Past performances include ClarinetFest®, the College Music Society National Conference, the NACWPI Conference, the American Single Reed Summit, the Clarinet Colloquium at Texas A M University-Commerce, and the KNOB New Music Festival. His research has been published in The Clarinet, the NACWPI Journal, and The Instrumentalist.

David is currently Assistant Professor of Clarinet and chair of instrumental performance studies at Millikin University and a clarinet faculty member at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. David holds BM and BME degrees from Central Michigan University, MM degrees in clarinet performance and chamber music from the University of Michigan, and the DMA degree in clarinet performance and the MM degree in music theory from the University of Oklahoma. David’s principal teachers include Suzanne Tirk, Chad Burrow, Theodore Oien, and Kennen White. David is a Buffet Crampon USA Performing Artist and a member of the Silverstein Works PRO Team.

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About Us

Kim Davenport

President

Duo Alea, the father-daughter duo of Michael and Kimberly Davenport, began performing music for bass clarinet and piano in 1996. As performers searching for new repertoire and teachers working with students eager to develop as performers, it quickly became clear that there was a need for more repertoire featuring the bass clarinet. Filling this need became the mission of Alea Publishing & Recording.

Since our first publication in 1997, the Alea catalog has now grown to include over 300 titles. We pride ourselves on the accuracy and quality of our sheet music, as well as our ability to ship directly to customers around the world.

We are proud of the diversity of our catalog in terms of the inclusion of works by composers and arrangers from around the world. We are interested in continuing to expand this diversity, representing musical ideas from around the world.

Following Michael's passing in 2019, Kim has taken over solo management of Alea Publishing. In 2020, Alea established the Dolphy Prize, an annual composition award for new works for bass clarinet by black composers.

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Welcome!

Welcome!

This site is home to Alea Publishing & Recording, specializing in music for the bass clarinet.
We offer a growing catalog of creative, artistic transcriptions and new works for bass clarinet solo & ensemble.

Beach: Three Compositions Op.40 (Hard Copy)

Welcome!

Welcome!

This site is home to Alea Publishing & Recording, specializing in music for the bass clarinet.We offer a growing catalog of creative, artistic transcriptions and new works for bass clarinet solo & ensemble.

Beach: Three Compositions Op.40 (Hard Copy)

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This site is home to Alea Publishing & Recording, specializing in music for the bass clarinet.
We offer a growing catalog of creative, artistic transcriptions and new works for bass clarinet solo & ensemble.