I have received a number of inquiries in recent years concerning reprints of some of the covers of the Double Reed. Since there seems to be a potential interest in this, I will look into the possibility of reproducing some at poster size and let you know what can be done in a future issue.

The Seventh Annual John Miller Bassoon Camp will take place once again at Towson State University, Maryland, from June 24 to 30,1990. This year's guest artists will be David McGill, principal bassoon of the Cleveland Orchestra (and former I.D.R.S. Gillet Performance Competition winner, 1983); Alan Fox; and New York musicologist Dennis Rooney.

Besides the usual program of recitals, master classes, orchestral excerpts, etc., Alan Fox will lecture on his latest findings in woods for bassoons, and Dennis Rooney, who writes for the Strad and other journals, will present a history of American bassoon playing through recordings. Those in terested in obtaining further information can write or call camp director

Gene Griswold
Music Department
Towson State University
Towson, MD 23204
Tel: (301) 830-2839 (w) or 252-5775 (h).

This year's Mark Popkin-Loren Glickman Bassoon Camp at Wildacres, North Carolina, will be from June 1 through 8, 1990, and features James Laslie and Paul Nordby for bassoon repair and restoration; Bruce Moss as staff accompanist; Jack Spratt and Gail Warnaar presiding over stores of tools, supplies, and music; Alan Fox discussing acoustics and construction of the bassoon; and guest bassoonists Carl Nitchie, principal bassoon of the Atlanta Symphony, and Will Roberts, principal bassoon of the Dallas Symphony, as well as regulars Mark Popkin and Loren Glickman. Those who want more information can write or call the

Glickman-Popkin Bassoon Camp
740 Arbor Road
Winston-Salem, NC 27104
Tel: (919) 725-5681.

Mark Kelly and Norbert Nielubowski, bassoonists with the Minnesota Orchestra, will present the Second Annual Kelley-Nielubowski Workshop on June 9 and 10, 1990 at Northwestern College, St. Paul Minnesota. Along with performing and giving Master Classes, they will cover such topics as reed making and adjusting, performance techniques, and choosing instruments. Further information can be obtained by writing to:

Kelley-Neilubowski Workshop
4665 Cottonwood Lane N
Plymouth, MN 55442

The San Francisco Early Music Society will sponsor five workshops on early music this summer:

Baroque Music, June 17-30; a Recorder Workshop,
June 24-30; Renaissance Music, July 1-7; Instrument
Building, July 15.28; and Medieval Music, July
29-August 4. Further information on these
workshops can be obtained from Eileen Hadidian
1721 Rose Street
Berkeley, CA 94703 Tel: (415) 524-5661.

The College Band Directors National Association is in the process of updating and compiling a survey of solos with wind band/wind ensemble accompaniment in manuscript form. Those who have information to provide for this listing can write to:

Roberta R. Winemiller
Associate Director of Bands
Temple University
Philadelphia, PA 19122
Tel: (215) 787-8321

Bassoonist Nancy Bondurant has been invited to give a solo recital as part of the European International Festival produced by Concerts Atlantique. The festival takes place in Geneva, Switzerland. Miss Bondurant will be performing July 11, 1990, in the Palais de l'Athenee. Featured works on the program will be the European premier of Duet in Two Movements for Bassoon and Piano by Philadelphia composer Anthony Ferrara, a work commissioned by Miss Bondurant, and the world premier of Animale Swete, a new work for bassoon and piano composed by Miss Bondurant.

In addition to active freelance playing, primarily for the Charlotte and Charleston Symphonies, Miss Bondurant is artistic director for Topaza, an eclectic musical ensemble which is based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Topaza is comprised of a visual artist, a dancer, and four core musicians: flute, violin/viola, bassoon and harp. Concerts are structured from a multi-media format. The ensemble plays traditional and contemporary music.

The Tidewater Chamber Players, musicians in residence at St. Mary's College of St. Mary's City, Maryland, made their New York debut on Thursday, March 1, at 8 p.m. in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Their performance was a New York premiere of works by major American composers William Thomas McKinley, Leslie Bassett, John Harbison and Vivian Adelberg Rudow.

Thomas McKinley's new work, When the Moon is Full, was commissioned by St. Mary's College of Maryland in commemoration of its 150th anniversary in 1990.

Also, three other works by American composers were given their New York premiere: Leslie Bassett's Concerto da camera for trumpet and chamber instruments; Vivian Adelberg Rudow's Kaddish for solo bassoon; and John Harbison's Variations for clarinet, violin and piano.

The Double Reed member of the Tidewater Chamber Players is bassoonist Deborah Greitzer, who has twice won the Artists International Prize for Chamber Music. She was formerly principal bassoon with the Jerusalem Symphony, the New York City Opera National Co., and the RAI.

The American Festival of Microtonal Music recently gave performances of bassoonist/composer Johnny Reinhard's ballet Left on February 4 through 6 and March 11 through 13 at the Kitchen, 519 West 19th Street, New York. Johnny Reinhard is a specialist in microtonal music for the bassoon as well as other instruments.

Congratulations to Richard Beene who has succeeded Hugh Cooper as bassoonist at the University of Michigan. The I.D.R.S. wishes him many years of success in his new position.

Congratulations are also in order to Willard Elliot, principal basson of the Chicago Symphony who has recently been appointed to the Woodwinds and Brass Faculty of the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago.

The Ramey Trio toured New Mexico in February 1990, performing in cities including Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Las Vegas, Roswell, Portales, and Clovis. Works presented were the Sonata sopra La Monica, y Boddecker, the Duo for Clarinet and Bassoon by Kurt Kunert, Fantaisie Concertante by Villa-Lobos, Dance Preludes by Witold Lutoslawski, the Sonata for Clarinet and Bassoon by Poulenc, and the Clarinet Trio in A minor, Op. 114, by Brahms. Members of the trio are Maxine Ramey, clarinet; Richard Ramey, bassoon; and Kevin Rhodes, piano.

The Trio will also perform at Eastern New Mexico University, Portales, New Mexico, on May 16, 1990. Works scheduled are the Trio Pathetique by Glinka, Paganini Variations for Solo Bassoon by Farago, Variations concertantes by Ida Gotkovsky, and the Trio, Op. 38, by Beethoven.

A recent program cover of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra featured a fine photo of bassoonist Mark Pancereu, who has been a member of the orchestra since 1957. The cover is reprinted here for your enjoyment. (Thanks to fellow orchestra member David Sogg for sending me the picture).

Bassoonist Bonnie Wolfgang of the Phoenix Symphony won rave reviews for her performance of the Weber Concerto with the orchestra on Thursday, October 26, 1989. In the Arizona Republic of Saturday, October 28, critic Dimitri Drobatschewsky wrote:

Bonnie Wolfgang, principal bassoonist with the Phoenix Symphony for 12 years, was the bright spot in the orchestra's Chamber Series concert Thursday.

Performing Weber's Bassoon Concerto in F, Wolfgang gave ample evidence that the Phoenix Symphony does, indeed, count among its members musicians who need play second fiddle to no one.

The Weber is an ear-pleasing bel canto piece in which the solo player explores the length and breadth of the bassoon's sonorities, from its lowest bass range to its highest treble notes.

Wolfgang, who has few opportunities to appear as soloist because of the limited repertoire for her instrument, impressed with her stylish phrasing, flawless technique and astounding breath control. She was unfazed by devilish embellishments and staccato runs, all of which she negotiated without sacrificing the work's inherent humor.

Of particular beauty was the bassoon's enchanting interplay, in the slow movement, with the French horns, all playing in an endearing pianissimo. Later, Wolfgang merrily sauntered across the octaves in the virtuosic final movement.

The annual meeting of the Minnesota Bassoon Association on February 4, 1990, featured a lecture/demonstration entitled The Macintosh, the Synthesizer and Vivaldi, by Charles Ullery, principal bassoonist of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. The meeting also featured selections by the South Minneapolis Bassoon Quartet.

John Miller, principal bassoonist of the Minnesota Orchestra, who is always a champion of new and/or less well-known bassoon music, performed the very obscure Divertimento Breve, Opus 6, for bassoon, two violins, viola, and piano, by Alexander Spitzmuller-Harmersbach (1894-1962) on October 29, 1989, as part of the Walker Art Center Chamber Series Concerts in Minneapolis. Also, he recently gave the World Premiere performances of the Con - certo for Bassoon and Orchestra, a work written especially for him by Conal D. Boyce, on January 24, 26 and 27, 1990. In reviewing the Boyce in. the Star Tribune of Friday, January 26, critic Michael Anthony wrote:

Structured in one movement of about 15 minutes in length, the music evolves in organic fashion from a brooding, dour opening statement by the strings to an agitated section in which the bassoon engages in dialogue with other woodwind instruments and goes on to a finale propelled by jazz rhythms and a solo line that sounds effectively like an improvised jazz solo. Putting a bassoon in a jazz context turned out to be a lively idea, and Miller played the part with apt spontaneity as well as his customarily suave tone.

Homer Pence, bassoon professor at Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana, and author of the Teacher's Guide to the Bassoon, presented a Master Class Workshop and demonstrated his "Computereed" diagostic program for computer application at Glassboro State College, New Jersey, on April 6, 1990. For the last two years, Homer has designed a computer program for diagnosing bassoon reeds. Bassoonists in attendance included Larry Stewart, bassoon professor at Glassboro State, as well as Frank Ruggieri, retired from the Boston Symphony, and former I.D.R.S. President and Honorary Member Sol Schoenbach.

Bassoonists Michel Jolivet and Dan Kerlee, both from Seattle, performed the Johan Vanhal Concerto for Two Bassoons and Orchestra in F major with the Wenatchee Valley Symphony, Mike Lee, conductor, in Wenatchee, Washington, on February 25, 1990. Concerning the performance, Michel Jolivet wrote:

We had a great time playing, although the second movement almost killed me because I had only one complete measure of rest!! (Vanhal was a cellist.) Dan and I stood on opposite sides of the conductor to try and accentuate the antiphonal aspects of the piece. The audience really seemed to enjoy hearing this rarely performed piece.

On January 31, 1990, the compact disc The Music of Francis Johnson and his Contemporaries: Early 19th century Black Composers was released on the Musical Heritage Society label, Musicmasters. The music is performed on original instruments by the Chestnut Brass Company joined by Diane Monroe, violin; James Kilik, Bb and C clarinets; Allison Herz, Eb Clarinet; Mary Berk, fife; Elissa Barardi, flute; Charles Holdeman, bassoon; and Tamara Brooks, conductor.

The career and musical legacy of Francis Johnson (1792-1844) represents a singular achievement in the history of American music. At a time when the fulltime musicians were a rarity in the United States, Johnson fashioned a career of extraordinary importance and variety. He was a renowned performer on the keyed-bugle and violin and led one of the best bands of his time.

Susan Nigro, contrabassoonist from the Chicago area, will be performing a Solo Recital and a Master Class (both on contrabassoon) as a guest artist at Clarion University of Pennsylvania in September 1990. The recital premiered by Ms. Nigro: Harold Laudenslager's Concertato Contra, and Vazgen Muradian's Opus 86 Contrabassoon Concerto, in addition to various other selections. The program will conclude with first performances of 2 pieces by Harold Laudenslager which have been arranged specifically for this occasion by Joel Phillip Friedman. Persons interested in attending this recital and/or master class can get pertinent information by contacting Dr. Donald F. Black, chair of the Department of Music at Clarion University (814-226-2000).

Whoever "D.P.S." is, he or she is a person of incredibly poor taste. In a recent review in High Fidelity-Stereo Magazine (July 1989) of a recording of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto (K. 622), which is coupled with the Clarinet Quintet (K. 581), the critic D.P.S. pans the latter work, but concludes: "Even so, the quintet is preferable to the work usually coupled with Mozart's Clarinet Concerto, his early Bassoon Concerto, a pathetic trifle in comparison" Anyone care to join my "D.P.S." is a Jerk Club?

From bassoonist Alice Hekster of Enschede, Holland, (and apologies to you, Alice, for spelling your last name with an extra "c" in previous issue), comes some interesting (and rare) bits of bassoon memorabilia. From a Reader's Digest article concerning people with remarkable memory came the following quote:

In St. Louis one evening, minutes before a concert, Toscanini was approached by a distraught orchestra member-the second bassoon player. "Maestro," the bassoonist said, "the lowest key on my instrument just broke" Toscanini stood in total silence for a few minutes. Then he told the bassoonist not to worry: "There is no G-flat for second bassoon in any of the pieces on tonight's program. ("Rajan's Monster Memory," in Reader's Digest, Jan. 1990, pp. 103-104)

(I'm sure we can blame Reader's Digest, not Toscanini, for not knowing that the B flat, not G flat is the lowest note on the bassoon!)

Also, Alice sent along a remarkable picture of the inside of the Heckel factory in Biebrich, Germany, ca. 1940. Notice the metal bassoon! Also, can any of the readers identify the bearded man at the workbench in the right background? This is a fascinating glimpse at the preWorld War II Heckel company.

And finally in conclusion, I give you a bit of sardonic philosophy from hornist Bill Scharnberg. Originally printed in the Newsletter of the International Horn Society (Vol. 19, No. 4, June 1989), it is reprinted here with the kind permission of the editor, Paul Mansur. Although it is written with the horn in mind, much of what he writes can directly apply to the plight of the bassoonist in action as well. I leave you with his sage words:

I offer these three theories to any hornists who are interested:

1) Theory of displaced water: in any given performance, the water will be in your horn, in your bladder, and on your hands, but not in your mouth.

2) Theory of misplaced pitches: a given hornists never "misses" any pitches; some simply become "rearranged" during his/her lifetime. Example: occasionally during a Mozart concert one might include a pitch(es) from a Schoenberg work. At the end of your career you will have played all the correct pitches; just in the wrong order.

3) Theory of misplaced perception: no one tries to play poorly, i.e., out-of-tune, with a lousy sound, with poor rhythm, too loudly or softly, etc.

Theory number three relates, I believe, to your argument for using the tall stick for piano accompaniment and Gary L. Reeves' rebuttal in the April 1989 Hom Call. It seems to me that you are both correct: from the perspective of the audience, the piano lid probably affects the tone of the instrument more than the loudness, but from the perspective of the performers, the pianist and hornist will hear more sound with the lid up. Each set of performers must solve these issues given different acoustical surroundings, different pieces, different bell directions, size of the piano, different technical strengths and weaknesses, and different balance concepts. One hopes the audience also will be pleased with the results! Here is an issue that I have pondered for years: why is it that two hornists with excellent and similar tones, and with virtually the same hand position and mouthpiece size, have main tuning-slide positions that may vary as much as three inches when they are both in-tune? Also, does anyone know where I can buy a giant bottle of aural white-out?

Yours, Bill Scharnberg

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