When I was coming up, the instrument of choice for young reed players was the clarinet. Imagine my surprise when I learned much later that it is among the most difficult to play. While its size makes it easier for small hands to hold, the keys are further apart for young fingers to reach and there are both holes to cover and keys to depress. I guess it’s like swinging a heavy bat before stepping to the plate. There have been no fewer than four clarinet players in my family, ranging in age from eight to adult. One musician told me that it's discouraging to see how many young players drop out after trying clarinet. The recently-retired, Guinness record-holding Stanley Drucker of the New York Philharmonic, like our subject Buddy DeFranco, virtually played nothing else.
Others have brought the clarinet back from oblivion. After the Swing Era, where the instrument was the defining sound— think Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Woody Herman, and the Glenn Miller Reed section sound—it fell into disuse as a solo instrument. There are more celebratory doublers now than in recent memory: Eddie Daniels, Paquito D’Rivera, Anat Cohen, Ken Peplowski, and, among the traditional players, Bob Wilber. Then there’s Don Byron, who plays klezmer and contemporary jazz on the instrument.
Photo: Suzanne Cerny
See also on JAZZofilo march, 15
Complete on: http://jazz.com/features-and-interviews/2009/10/16/octojazzarian-profile-buddy-defranco
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