I promised QC, that I would give a more thorough relisten to his work, along with the score, which he kindly gave me to look at (thanks M.)
I will have to say that I'm amazingly surprised at something: I don't see the things I posted in my first post here!!!! I see a clear direction actually and I enjoyed thoroughly both the preludium and the scherzo. Maybe having the score helped a lot here. But I see the amazing potentil of the music, in the score. I am trained and used to seeing score, even without the music, which can sometimes be bad as well... :-/ (that's why the comments on GPO...)
I just feel that I have wronged Michel somehow, with my remarks, which are now proven to have been wronged! Especially for the preludium which is the base to everything else (and now with the 3rd listening it is more than apparent).
so scrap my first post, which I will leave as a refference and lets take it again:
PART I.
The preludium is a great piece of music! It has certain very etheral moments (where the piano plays the highs), and works great in every way! The 2 themes interleave between them at points, and the counterpoint between the piano and the clarinet works in all possible ways and combinations.
The scherzo is a very energetic piece of music (I especially enjoyed the moments between 4/4 and 6/8, with that doted 8th! What a nice idea!) The whole movement has some resemblance to Prokofiev, but it needs to be said that it is Michelian (as I said in my previous post QCian) as much as everything else I've heard of you!
Part II
Nocturne: Brilliant piece, and I think that I am covered by my previous post (at least I didn't change my mind to everything!)
The march is brilliant! I don't understand how RC Clarinet does not see it! From start to finish it is a great march! A great dynamic march (not the American way of course, but it is never the less the march, from the very first 4 notes in the piano left hand!)
PART III
Arioso:
quite lovely (once again repeating myself here).
The rondo now! Another movement that I had trouble initially. Well I'll blame it all to me again, cause this 3rd time it worked! You are not copy pasting (simplified term of course), but are using material to create new stuff, which sound familiar though! And it works, it worked this time!
I am ready to admit that certain parts of my first review where wrong (or initial impressions if you will). I would urge people who have posted here, Matt, Mano, etc, to have a quite, calm relisten and see if they change the way they feel about this work. I will be quite honest to say that I'm really looking forward to the live recording, and how I wish that I was in Canada on the premier! (maybe a video? along with the recording?)
I think that there are some occasions, that the first listen (never mind 2 minutes of a work, Saul, who are gone now though), is not enuogh to review a piece. I just found out that now, no matter how well educated or experienced, or whatever you are. There are some thing that are higher than others, and higher than us! It takes effort and energy to enjoy some things, but the rewards are just great!
Michel, this sonata, for me, stands next to the cello sonata! Good luck with the live premier!
