The Loren Kitt Memorial Fund was established after the passing of clarinetist Loren Kitt in 2017 through an initial donation from Mr. Anthony Cecere, a French hornist and colleague of Loren’s in the American Chamber Players. This fund was established to recognize excellence in chamber music, an area of performance for which Loren Kitt was highly regarded. This fund will be used for an annual scholarship for a chamber ensemble that has been invited to perform at each summer’s ClarinetFest®️. Each year, the Loren Kitt Memorial Scholarship will be awarded to an up-and-coming chamber ensemb ..read more

ICA Composer of the Month April 2024 Daniel Dorff Feature: Links to the upcoming premiere of Daniel Dorff’s Concerto No. 2 for B-flat Clarinet and Orchestra. Christopher Hill will be the soloist with Delta David Gier conducting the South Dakota Symphony in the premiere, and it will be livestreamed – which is the most wonderful surprise for any composer to learn about! This is happening April 13, 2024,  7:30pm (Central time). For the livestream of the concert: Home page of the SDS website: https://www.sdsymphony.org/ And the SDS Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SDSymphony Fea ..read more

Clarinetist and Teacher William E. Powell Has Passed Away The ICA is saddened to learn of the passing of William E. Powell. A tribute will appear in a future issue of The Clarinet. William E. Powell (1946-2024), received the Artist’s Diploma in Clarinet Performance from the Juilliard School in New York City where he studied with Stanley Drucker, principal clarinetist of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. After additional studies in New York with Leon Russianoff, he moved to California to study with the principal clarinetist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Michele Zukovsky, at ..read more

Originally published in The Clarinet 51/2 (March 2024). Copies of The Clarinet are available for ICA members. Audio Reviews March 2023 Two of a Kind. Radovan Cavallin, clarinet; Kristine Dizon, clarinet. G. Lewin: Two of a Kind; Views of the Blues; F. Poulenc: Sonata for Two Clarinets, FP 7; N. Bacri: Mondorf Sonatina No. 1; P. Harvey: Satiric Suite; R.R. Bennett: Crosstalk; E. Mandat: Ritual; B. Cabrera: Una sobre el mismo mar; N. Díaz: Ocho Pajazzadas; Roque Nublo. Modern Artist Project. Total Time: 56:00. There is so much new and wonderful music for two clarinets that pushes the boundaries ..read more

Originally published in The Clarinet 51/2 (March 2024). Copies of The Clarinet are available for ICA members. BOOKS Charlotte Kennedy. Manuel Gómez: “The Best Clarinet Player in the World.” Published by Charlotte Kennedy Domínguez, 2023. $21.61 The Spanish clarinet school has a rich tradition going back to the 19th century. The most significant players who represent this history and its continuation into the 20th century are Antonio Romero, Miguel Yuste, Julián Menéndez, Carmelo Bernaola, and Vicente Peñarrocha. Manuel Gómez Patudo (1859-1922), the subject of this book, was not less important ..read more

Originally published in The Clarinet 51/2 (March 2024). Copies of The Clarinet are available for ICA members. The Clarinet Choir by Margaret Thornhill An Interview with Alexis Ciesla French Version English Version Un entretien avec Alexis Ciesla Margaret Thornhill Le clarinettiste et compositeur Alexis Ciesla est professeur de clarinette au Conservatoire à Rayonnement Communal de Saint-Priest, commune dans la Métropole de Lyon en région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes dans le sud-est de la France. Alexis a fait ses études de clarinette à Lyon, Genève et Paris où il a obtenu un premier prix de clarinette ..read more

Originally published in The Clarinet 51/2 (March 2024). Copies of The Clarinet are available for ICA members. International Spotlight Intervista: Salvatore Schembari, Primo Clarinetto della Banda dell’Esercito Italiano by Luca Saracca Italian Version English Version L’accesso ad un Presidio Militare ha le sue regole, consegnati i documenti e ritirato il pass d’ingresso per la Città Militare della Cecchignola (ROMA) mi accoglie, nella sede della Banda Militare dell’Esercito Italiano, il Primo Clarinetto e Primo Maresciallo Luogotenente Salvatore Schembari che mi introduce direttamente all’inte ..read more

Originally published in The Clarinet 51/2 (March 2024). Copies of The Clarinet are available for ICA members. International Spotlight Interview: Salvatore Schembari, First Clarinet of the Italian Army Band by Luca Saracca English Version The Italian Version Access to a military garrison has its own rules. Once I have delivered the documents and collected the entry pass for the Città Militare Cecchignola (Cecchignola Military Compound) in Rome, I am welcomed, in the headquarters of the Military Band of the Italian Army, by the first clarinet and First Marshal Lieutenant Salvatore Schembari, wh ..read more

Originally published in The Clarinet 51/2 (March 2024). Copies of The Clarinet are available for ICA members. The Jazz Scene by Tim Bonenfant and the ICA Jazz and World Music Committee Top Jazz Clarinet Recordings, Part 1   Would you like to start playing jazz as a clarinetist, but you don’t know where to start? The best thing to do is to start listening to the great jazz clarinetists. But which ones? We, the members of the ICA Jazz and World Music Committee, would like to recommend what we consider to be some of the more interesting examples of jazz and world clarinetists on record. The ..read more

Originally published in The Clarinet 51/2 (March 2024). Copies of The Clarinet are available for ICA members. The Clarinet Choir by Margaret Thornhill An Interview with Alexis Ciesla English Version French Version Clarinetist and composer Alexis Ciesla is professor of clarinet at the Conservatory of Saint-Priest, a town in the Metropolis of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alps region in Southeast France. Alexis studied clarinet in Lyon, Geneva, and Paris, and received the premier prix in clarinet and bass clarinet. In parallel, he was clarinetist in the Orchestre Francais des Jeunes and soloist in ..read more