Three Etudes (2000)
for clarinet and piano
My Three Etudes are “concert” etudes modeled somewhat in the tradition of the genre established by Chopin, Debussy, and more recently, Ligeti. The first is an abstraction based on corrente. The second is somewhat folk-like in places, although there are no actual quotations of folk music. The almost constant sound of fifths was inspired by the timbre of the organ stop quintadena, which has a very prominent twelfth above the fundamental. This organ stop seemed intriguing and appropriate to me in this context since the clarinet also has this prominent third partial that defines its distinctive timbre. The last etude is an obsession comprised of a few short motives that suggest a jazz improvisation.
The work was commissioned by Esther Lamneck, and is dedicated to her and pianist Rosemary Caviglia.
—Robert Gibson
duration: ca. 13:00