About the Music

We thank Dr. David Cook for sharing this note about his transcription of Hindemith's Kanonische Sonatine for two clarinets.

Paul Hindemith composed his Kanonische Sonatine (Sonatine in Canon Style), op. 31 no. 3 for two flutes in 1923. Like much of his music, this piece features Hindemith’s characteristic non-diatonic tonality: the use of all twelve pitches of the chromatic scale freely while retaining centric pitches as points of emphasis and resoluation. Hindemith dedicated the original version of this piece to flutist Paul Hagemann (1882–1967), flutist of the Copenhagen Wind Quintet who had previously studied with Paul Taffanel and Adolphe Hennebains.

As the title implies, the three movements rely heavily on canonic imitation between the two clarinets. In the first movement, Hindemith has the second voice enter at the interval of a major third, with the second and third movements featuring the interval of a major second and perfect fifth, respectively. In this transcription, I have retained the tonal centers from Hindemith’s original, making it possible to perform the Kanonische Sonatine as a flute-clarinet duo by combining this publication with the original version for flute and adjusting appropriately for balance between the different instruments.

--David Cook

Duo Score: 13 pages, spiral bound.

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About the Arranger

Critically praised for “brilliant and stunning” performances, “terrific virtuosic playing,” and “a fine sense of drama,” David Cook is Associate Professor of Clarinet and Chair of Instrumental Performance Studies at Millikin University, 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, the Lieurance Woodwind Quintet, and the wind quintet Fiati Five, David has also performed with the Chicago Sinfonietta, Oistrakh Symphony of Chicago, Illinois Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonia da Camera, Northbrook Symphony Orchestra, Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra, Heartland Festival Orchestra, Oklahoma City Philharmonic, Norman Philharmonic, and the Texas Music Festival Orchestra. As a chamber musician, David has performed at Chamber Music Campania, with the Brightmusic Chamber Ensemble, and with the From the Edge Chamber Music Series.

David has been recognized in numerous competitions including The American Prize for Instrumental Performance, the American Virtuoso International Music Competition, the Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music, the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Young Artist Competition, the Oklahoma Community Orchestra Young Artist Competition, and the White Lake Chamber Music Festival Solo Competition. Past appearances include the International Clarinet Association’s ClarinetFest^®, the College Music Society National Conference, the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors Conference, the Midwest Clinic, the American Single Reed Summit, the Amicitia Clarinet Extravaganza, the Clarinet Colloquium at Texas A&M University-Commerce, the KNOB New Music Festival, and recitals across the United States and abroad. In 2022, David’s book Clarinet Conditioning: Warm-Ups and Perspectives, featuring contributions from clarinetists including members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band, was published by Conway Publications. His research appears in Clarinet, NACWPI Journal, and Instrumentalist.

David holds Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Music Education degrees from Central Michigan University, Master of Music degrees in clarinet performance and chamber music from the University of Michigan, and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in clarinet performance and the Master of Music degree in music theory from the University of Oklahoma. His 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, performing exclusively on Buffet Crampon clarinets and Silverstein Works ligatures.