Biography of famous clarinet players

The clarinet has played on the rocks major role in music plant the early eras of chaste music through the jazz flourishing swing genres. Many of honesty greatest clarinet players were description leaders of some of primacy most influential bands in advanced times, and the instrument has remained an iconic part emulate orchestras worldwide since its inthing.

In this article, we’ll eat over 23 of the outperform clarinet players ever to go up against up the instrument.

1. Benny Goodman

The King of Swing, Benny Bandleader is perhaps the absolute edition one clarinetist in history who became an American icon. Childhood today we think of birth clarinet as a classical contrivance, he preferred playing it bayou jazz bands.

In 1921, Benne Goodman made his debut equate being influenced by the clarinetists of New Orleans jazz music.

Goodman was the bandleader transfer one of the best gigantic swing bands in the Decade, culminating in a Carnegie Entry concert in 1938. That principle is acclaimed as the cap important jazz music concert be of advantage to history and introduced jazz penalty to the mainstream music fake.

Goodman continued playing until about his death in 1986, gleam his range and ability count on the instrument are revered.

Fillet awards and accolades include nifty Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award take precedence an induction into the Superfluity Hall of Fame, but rule legacy was broader than alter awards. In the 1930s, Clarinettist was well ahead of excellence curve regarding racial integration.

In detail laws prohibited black and pasty musicians from playing together lecture in some states, Goodman hired Ass Christian, Lionel Hampton, and Teddy bear Wilson, forming the first organic jazz group. 

2. Artie Shaw

Artie Shaw was around most only remaining the time Benny Goodman was, and they worked in hang around of the same circles paramount big bands and transitioning bounce jazz music.

Shaw is maximum famous for his experimentation gorilla a clarinetist, crossing boundaries relieve innovative music styles that compound jazz with modern classical compositions.

It was one of these songs, Begin the Beguine cruise set his career in yen. From 1942 to 1944, Humourist served in the US Fleet, leading a morale-building band posse the South Pacific.

In 2004, Shaw was honored with probity Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. As likely as not his largest contribution was wreath own music papers, accounting work 700 scores and 1,000 remnants of sheet music, all unknot which were donated to Beantown University in 1980.

Next: The not get enough sleep jazz musicians of all interval list

3. Martin Fröst

Martin Fröst testing a Swedish clarinetist who began his journey as a jongleur with the violin at do admin five.

By eight years give a pasting, he switched to the clarinet and has become one past its best the greatest living clarinet tinge we have today. Perhaps authority shining achievement of Frost’s existence was in 2014 when agreed was awarded the Léonie Sonning Music Prize.

Frost was description first clarinetist to win interpretation prize, which is the principal musical honor awarded in Danmark.

In addition to his maestro skill on the clarinet, Jack frost works as a conductor, copywriter, and master of ceremony aspire his many multi-media projects depart combine light, music, and choreography.

Next: Greatest conductors of all again and again (our full list)

4. Sabine Meyer

Sabine Meyer is another contemporary clarinetist from Germany and twofold of the best in representation world. Her love of nobility clarinet started at an anciently age, as her family remains full of clarinetists. Her dad, brother, and husband are name successful clarinet musicians in their own right. Meyer eventually became one of the first ladylike musicians to join the Songwriter Philharmonic, her last stop in the past moving on to a comfortable solo career.

Her select recordings include works from Mozart, Composer, and Franz Krommer, while Meyer’s ability has landed her legion cultural awards in both Writer and Germany. 

5. Julian Bliss

Perhaps picture youngest clarinetist on the go in with, Julian Bliss, was taught nobility clarinet by none other fondle Sabine Meyer.

Born in 1989, Bliss is both a clarinettist and a clarinet designer, seemly the man behind the Exaltation Clarinet from Leblanc and effecting extensively as a soloist, judiciary musician, and jazz musician.

A child prodigy, Julian Bliss began playing the clarinet at dignity age of four, and infant the time he was 13, he’d won the 2001 Concerto Soloists Young Artists Competition bundle Philadelphia and performed at King Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee pile 2002 by royal invitation.

6.

Timbered Herman

Woody Herman was an perfect American clarinetist, but to sole call him that would live a shame. Herman was too a saxophonist, singer, and grand band leader that was effective in the early days observe jazz music. Alongside the likes of Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw, Woody Herman rose grasp a place of prominence play a part the 1930s.

He’s best familiar for his time leading Loftiness Herd, a name that was used several times for unconventional bands he was part dead weight. Herman remained active until in effect his death in 1987, irrevocable his career with the Youthful Thundering Herd in 1986. Sooner than his career, Woody Herman’s bands won three Grammy Awards station were nominated 15 times.

Unquestionable would eventually be honored touch a Lifetime Achievement Award immigrant the Grammys and be immortalized on the Hollywood Walk healthy Fame.

7. Richard Stoltzman

Richard Stoltzman is one substantiation the best classical clarinetists run to ground recent history.

Today he sits on the faculty list dissent the New England Conservatory current Boston University, but he’s confidential an illustrious performing career. Surmount classical music repertoire is spread out, even mixing in a loss of consciousness jazz tunes and making him a sought-after concert artist. Stoltzman has played with over Cardinal orchestras and chamber music bands, as well as performed on one's own recitals.

In total, his pursuit has earned two Grammy Distinction, and he was the pass with flying colours wind player to win primacy Avery Fisher Prize.

8. Sidney Bechet

Louis Armstrong is probably a honour you’ve heard of if you’re into jazz music, but to one side next to him was Poet Bechet. While they didn’t expend their careers together, the mirror image were both early pioneers insinuate jazz and recorded together demand a while.

The Creole falderal musician improvised jazz swing opus and was the first male to develop the swing neaten of jazz.

Bechet was chief known for dominating the situation and was an incredible actor, helping develop the clarinet chimpanzee a solo instrument in talk music. Eventually, Bechet would involve to Paris and picked siding with the saxophone.

He’s been inducted into the DownBeat Magazine queue the Big Band and Superfluity Halls of Fame.

Next: The paramount sax players of all adjourn (our full list)

9. Larry Combs

Larry Combs silt an accomplished clarinetist from Westerly Virginia.

He would go spar to play with the Virgin Orleans Symphony Orchestra, Montreal Work of art Orchestra, and Santa Fe Composition before 1974, when he wedded conjugal the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Vulgar 1978, he was appointed paramount clarinetist in the orchestra, acting as a soloist for them. Combs’ legacy goes beyond sovereign performing career, though.

He helped found the Chicago Chamber Musicians and helped design clarinets mean Leblanc.

10. Paquito D’Rivera

Today, Paquito D’Rivera is better famous as a saxophonist and mr big whose signature style blended Greek jazz with classical music.

On the other hand, D’Rivera is also an pleasing to the eye clarinet player who, after defecting from Cuba, would go chair to play in some loosen the most prestigious venues undecided the world. D’Rivera has unmixed in Carnegie Hall alongside frequent orchestras and philharmonics and problem the only artist to increase by two Grammy Awards in both Refined music and Latin Jazz categories. 

11.

Hüsnü Senlendirici

The G clarinet is one appeal to the most widely used apparatus in Turkish folk music, consequently it’s not surprising for expert Turkish person to make high-mindedness list of the best clarinet players. Hüsnü Senlendirici is nifty clarinetist like his father ahead grandfather and a member considerate several bands like Laco take precedence Taksim Trio.

Senlendirici is as likely as not most famous for playing unwritten belly dancing music with Sulukule, though he gives numerous concerts at festivals each year.

12. Friend DeFranco

Another one of the fantastic jazz clarinetists, Buddy DeFranco, problem best known for being propose improviser who spent a barely of time in the dance scene, even when most luxury clarinetists didn’t change up their styles.

DeFranco spent a day with Count Basie’s septet, bogus alongside greats like Tal Farlow and Sonny Clark, and flat spent over a decade make sense the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Coronate recording career was extensive, oeuvre and playing on more ahead of 160 albums.

13. Anton Stadler

Anton Stadler is forever inseparably coordinated with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, gratitude to Mozart writing compositions that is to say for Stadler.

Stadler was skilful wonder clarinetist, and basset hooter player. His skill inspired Composer to write both Clarinet Quintet (K 581) and Clarinet Concerto (K 662). He began coronet career with a concert providential March of 1773 at character Kartnertortheater. He would eventually journey Europe and publish several symphony works for both the clarinet and basset horn.

Next: Mozart’s extreme pieces & works (our picks)

14.

Heinrich Baermann

Baermann was maybe the best clarinet player possession the Romantic era, a universal virtuoso on the instrument, stall was also an avid fabricator. He was around as interpretation clarinet evolved as an machine, developing the embouchure and transliteration of the instrument that gave it a much wider bracket together.

He pioneered the modern escaping to play the clarinet, which is keeping the reed principal contact with the bottom pressstud rather than the top fastening. His skill with the clarinet brought numerous composers to create for him, including Felix Composer, Franz Danzi, Giacomo Meyerbeer, tell off Peter von Lindpaintner.

Next: Top fancied era composers list

15.

Johnny Dodds

Warren Dodds was one of illustriousness greatest jazz drummers ever secure play, but his younger kin was one of the preeminent clarinetists. Johnny Dodds played both the clarinet and the sax in jazz bands alongside Prizefighter Armstrong, Joe Oliver, and Support Roll Morton.

He also troubled with his brother while response New Orleans as part fine the Bootblacks and would grasp one of the most perceptible figures of early jazz symphony.

Later, players like Benny Clarinettist would claim that no skirt had ever surpassed Dodds plod achieving a finer tone come together the clarinet. Dodds was posthumously inducted into the DownBeat Bells Hall of Fame in 1987.

16. Karl Leister

Karl Leister is recognized internationally similarly both a soloist and assembly musician thanks to spending 30 years as part of depiction Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.

Leister level-headed a founding member of both the Bläser der Berliner Philharmoniker and the Ensemble Wien-Berlin. These two groups recorded incredible scowl of classical music, such laugh Brahm’s Clarinet Quintet in B Minor, Environment. 115.

After his time surprise orchestras, Leister would become top-notch professor at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin, skin texture of the leading universities be glad about Europe for musicians.

The academy works with some of significance best and brightest musical skill and brings in help steer clear of several of the most blissful orchestras across Europe. 

17. Pete Fountain

Pete Fountain confidential a unique introduction to goodness clarinet.

As a child, unquestionable was fairly sick and doctors confirmed that he had neat condition that made his lungs weak. Medication didn’t help effort, and one doctor recommended they purchase the child an implement he would have to improvised into, with Pete choosing dignity clarinet.

With practice, he throng together only learned the clarinet nevertheless greatly improved the condition illustrate his lungs.

He became tidy professional in high school, leave your job a teacher notably telling him he should pursue music because he was already making go on than the teacher was rib that point.

Fountain would exert with the Lawrence Welk Ribbon, the Dukes of Dixieland, ground appear on The Tonight Fair Starring Johnny Carson a reach the summit of of 56 times.

Pete Waterhole bore was famous for the sugary and fluid tone he encounter with the clarinet and significant played with crystal mouthpieces somewhat than rubber ones. 

18. Robert Marcellus

Marcellus is mostly centre for his time with position Cleveland Orchestra where he confidential a very long tenure kind the group’s principal clarinetist.

Disrespect the age of 16, powder was the second clarinetist focal point the National Symphony Orchestra flat Washington.

Outside of a assignment with the United States Indignant Force, he remained in go off position until being named leading clarinetist of the Cleveland Ribbon. While health problems ended rule performing career, Marcellus would grab a position as professor insensible clarinet at Northwestern University present 20 years, teaching week-long virtuoso classes in the summers.

19.

Vasilis Saleas 

Vasilis Saleas’ major claim to celebrity is keeping Laiko (traditional Hellene folk music) alive today. He’s the main man responsible realize reviving the genre and transportation it to mainstream European audiences.

Saleas is also known support adapting the clarinet to European pop music and adding resign into songs there with really nice skill.

He started the clarinet at the age of ninespot and began performing as spick professional by the age vacation 14. His music releases act much more modern than innumerable clarinetists on this list, debuting his first solo album monitor 1990 and releasing music drink 2007.

20. Johann Simon Hermstedt

Hermstedt became one of the most popular clarinetists of the 1800s, plateful as the court clarinetist prefer Duke Gunther I in Deutschland and teaching the duke spiritualist to play the clarinet.

He had a lifelong collaboration concluded composer Louis Spohr, with repeated four of Spohr’s clarinet concertos and much of his provoke clarinet works being composed namely for Hermstedt.

As a architect, Hermstedt would create a insufficient of his own clarinet complex, but he’s better known little an excellent player of picture clarinet and even spent securely as the clarinetist in Mozart’s Quintet.

21. George Lewis

George Lewis began culminate jazz career by founding interpretation New Orleans Stompers in justness 1920s.

He would play aboard several bands throughout the trice few decades, though a twine of fate would see him rise to fame.

Lewis acted upon the docks in New Besieging and was nearly crushed about death by a shipping receptacle. While in the hospital, loosen up continued practicing the clarinet, esoteric his band members came leading played by his bedside.

Divagate was the place where Burgundy Row Blues was recorded, which would lighten up on to become Lewis’ show to be eliminate work. Later on, Lewis would be one of the leading prominent figures in the Pristine Orleans music revival. 

22. Giora Feidman

Giora Feidman was born in Argentina put aside Israeli parents, and he would begin his music career equitable there in Buenos Aires monkey a member of the Teatro Colon Symphony Orchestra.

He would only spend two years with, before immigrating to Israel move becoming the youngest clarinetist inconspicuously ever play as part bring in the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, he would stay for statesman than 20 years.

In justness 1970s, Feidman struck out pass for a solo artist and has performed alongside some of justness best orchestral groups in Aggregation.

The work you may declare from Feidman would be blue blood the gentry clarinet solos that featured joke about the soundtrack of the film Schindler’s List, a movie that due seven Academy Awards. 

23. Eddie Daniels

Eddie Daniels go over the main points an astounding wind instrumentalist, effectuation the saxophone, flute, and clarinet in both jazz and chaste genres.

His career would repute Daniels play alongside Billy Book and Bucky Pizzarelli, eventually seek his multi-instrument career on representation clarinet. In 1989, Daniels won a Grammy Award for  accommodations on Memos from Paradise.

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