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.
The 9 Short Sonatas and Chaconne by J.B. Boismortier (1691-1755) were originally composed for two 'celli, two bassoons, or two gambas. They are masterfully crafted short pieces for two bass instruments, and are wonderfully effective in transcription for bass clarinet duet. Each Sonata consists of several short dance movements, while the final Chaconne is a bit longer and more challenging. While the work could be performed as a set, each individual Sonata and the Chaconne also stand on their own as valuable pieces for teaching, solo & ensemble, or recital purposes.
Boismortier was a French composer of the Baroque era, known for his prolific output of accessible solo and chamber music for various instruments. His compositional language is largely imitative, so that the two duo parts are largely equal in difficulty and range. Original keys have been maintained for the most part, except where decisions were made to transpose for ease of reading. Definitions are provided for Boismortier's French tempo markings.
Extended-range instruments NOT required. Duo score: 36 pages.
PDF Edition
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Listen to a sampling of the pieces in their original instrumentation:
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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