BWW Interviews: The Legendary Clarinetist Stanley Drucker Appears with David Bernard and the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony

The Park Avenue Chamber Symphony will be kicking off its 15th anniversary season with a pair of concerts featuring the world renowned clarinetist Stanley Drucker in a performance of Mozart's Clarinet Concerto. The concerts will be held on Saturday, November 8th at 8PM and Sunday, November 9th at 3PM at All Saints Church, 230 East 60th Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenues in New York City.

Recently, David Bernard, the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony's music director, sat down with Stanley Drucker to discuss his illustrious career, Mozart and life after 60 years with the New York Philharmonic.

David Bernard: As a clarinetist growing up in the New York City area, I so fondly remember your performances with the New York Philharmonic, both live, and simulcast on TV. What are your most memorable experiences over your 60 years with the New York Philharmonic?

Stanley Drucker: There were so many. Performing the world premiere of the Corigliano Clarinet Concerto with Leonard Bernstein, recording both the Corigliano Concerto and the Nielsen Concertos, touring with the orchestra around the world. Perhaps the most memorable was performing Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in Berlin when the wall came down. That was incredible.

DB: I've listened to your Corigliano and Nieslen recordings frequently. They are inspiring. What were the greatest influences on your playing?

SD: It was Benny Goodman who inspired me to take up the clarinet when I was 10 . It wasn't so much the Jazz itself, but simply the sound that Goodman got from the instrument grabbed me from the first time I listened to his playing. When I joined the New York Philharmonic at such a young age, I was somewhat overwhelmed by the incredible musicians around me. Working with Concertmaster, John Corigliano, Sr., Principal Oboist Harold Gomberg and Principal Horn James Chambers, each rehearsal and performance was its own masterclass for me. The experience of working with the greatest orchestral musicians and conductors of my time had a huge influence on my growth as a musician.

DB: The list of conductors you have worked with is astounding. Please share your thoughts on the conductors who have led the New York Philharmonic during your tenure.

SD: I had the privilege of working with many great conductors. Zubin Mehta was an excellent conductor who was always prepared and made great eye contact with the musicians of the orchestra. Dimitri Mitropoulos was a great performer, musical mind, and humanitarian. Pierre Boulez was wonderful-he taught us how to play music we had never seen before. And then there was Leonard Bernstein. Lenny was truly remarkable. Everything he touched was a brilliant success-inspired, eventful, warm and exciting, as both a conductor and a composer.

DB: Did Lenny ever discuss writing a clarinet concerto for you?

SD: While Lenny was just too busy to write a clarinet concerto, he did arrange for John Corigliano to write one, and then insisted on conducting the premiere! I think that the Corigliano Concerto is the hardest piece ever written for the clarinet. The Nielsen concerto has been considered the hardest. But the Corigliano has passages of great technical difficulty, very fast staccato passages and high notes played super soft. And in the slow movement, it seems like you're playing forever without breathing. It takes a lot of strength-but it always gets a standing ovation.

DB: Clarinetists are so fortunate to have the Mozart Clarinet Concerto in their repertoire. It is the crowning achievement of Mozart's prolific concerto canon-a sublime, introspective work that never fails to please. Most clarinetists encounter this work relatively early in their career, and it becomes a mainstay of their musical lives. What were your earliest experiences with the Mozart Concerto and what are your thoughts on how the work should be approached?

SD: My first performance was when I was 15 years old with the National Orchestral Association conducted by Leon Barzin. One Summer in the 1980s I performed the Mozart Concerto in all Five Boroughs of New York City as part of the New York Philharmonic outdoor concerts! In terms of interpretation, there's no absolute right or wrong. I want to see the audiences' faces and hear the applause. It is important to have the sensitivity and imagination to determine what a piece should sound like, to try to create some kind of atmosphere, but to never play it through twice exactly the same way. You try for the impossible, a chemistry that will express something you want to express.

DB: After 60 years with the New York Philharmonic, including 10 music directors, 191 solo appearances and 10,200 concerts, you deserve a rest--- But you keep a busy schedule! What is next for you?

SD: I am very busy performing both solo and chamber music concerts and teaching master classes. I am enthusiastic about teaching, as a way to give back to the next generation of students. I try instill in my students the importance of listening. All musicians should listen to themselves and the others around them. To play in an orchestra, you have to have concentration, When you actually play in performance you have to forget about fingerings, mouthpieces, reeds and all the other mechanics. You have to focus on making music and interacting with your fellow musicians.

Stanley Drucker appears with the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony led by David Bernard on Saturday, November 8th at 8PM and Sunday, November 9th at 3PM at All Saints Church, 230 East 60th Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenues. Advance tickets are available online here: http://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?showcode=newB05&ss=1

About Stanley Drucker

At the conclusion of the 2008-2009 Season, New York Philharmonic Principal Clarinet Stanley Drucker celebrated 60 years as a member of the Orchestra. In honor of this milestone anniversary, he became an honorary member of the Philharmonic Society of New York, the first orchestral musician so honored.

The Philharmonic estimates that he has performed in 10,200 concerts, which is approximately 70% of the total number of their concerts since 1842. He has been Principal Clarinetist for a record 48 years, making close to 200 appearances as soloist and chamber musician with the orchestra. He played under 9 Music Directors, among them Bruno Walter, Dmitri Mitropolous, Leonard Bernstein, Pierre Boulez and Zubin Mehta. He has performed in 60 countries on tour. He is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as "Longest Career as a Clarinetist."

Mr. Drucker maintains an active solo career, appearing with ensembles throughout the world. He has been nominated twice for Grammy Awards in the category of Best Instrumental Soloist/Classical with Orchestra: In 1992 for his recording of the Copland Concerto with the Philharmonic and Leonard Bernstein, and in 1982 for John Corigliano's Concerto with the Philharmonic and Zubin Mehta. Mr. Drucker is featured on a number of other Philharmonic recordings: under the direction of Leonard Bernstein in Debussy's Premiere Rapsodie; in Nielsen's Clarinet Concerto; and in the World-Premiere live performance (1977) of the Corigliano Clarinet Concerto, which is a part of the Orchestra's acclaimed CD box set, The Historic Broadcasts: 1923-1987. Mr. Drucker's other recordings include New York Legends: Recitals with Principals from the New York Philharmonic;

Schumann's Complete Works for Winds and Piano; the Mozart Quintet for Clarinet and Strings in A, K.581, and a two-CD set of the two clarinet sonatas, Trio in A minor, and Quintet in B minor of Johannes Brahms entitled Drucker Plays Brahms. He is also heard on the World-Premiere broadcast of William Bolcom's Clarinet Concerto, part of the New York Philharmonic Special Editions boxed set An American Celebration.

In recognition of his highly respected and widely acknowledged musical excellence and dedication, he was named Musical America's 1998 Instrumentalist of the Year.

Mr. Drucker began clarinet studies at age ten with Leon Russianoff, his principal teacher, and later attended the High School of Music and Art and The Curtis Institute of Music. He was appointed Principal Clarinetist of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra at age 16, of the Adolf Busch Chamber Players at age 17, and of the Buffalo Philharmonic at age 18.

About David Bernard

Known as the energetic and incisive Music Director of New York City's Park Avenue Chamber Symphony, David Bernard has performed in more than 20 countries on four continents, including a nine-city tour of the People's Republic of China with the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony and guest conducting appearances with the China Conservatory Orchestra, the Long Island String Festival, the Massapequa Philharmonic, the New York Symphonic Arts Ensemble, the Putnam Symphony and the South Shore Symphony. Bernard has previously served as Music Director of the Stony Brook University Orchestra, the Gilbert and Sullivan Light Opera Company of Long Island and Theater Three. He also held the post of Assistant Conductor of both the Jacksonville and Stamford symphony orchestras.

A multiple First Prize Winner of the Orchestral Conducting competition of The American Prize, David Bernard was described by the judges as "A first rate conductor. With no score, an animated and present Maestro Bernard led a phenomenal performance of incredibly difficult repertoire --masterly in shaping, phrasing, technique and expressivity. A great pleasure to watch and listen to."

Devoted to the music of our own time, Bernard has presented world premières of scores by Bruce Adolphe, Chris Caswell, John Mackey and Ted Rosenthal, while distinguished concert collaborators include Carter Brey, David Chan, Catherine Cho, Pedro Díaz, Bart Feller, Whoopi Goldberg, Judith Ingolfsson, Christina Jennings, Jessica Lee, Kristin Lee, Jon Manasse, Spencer Myer, Todd Phillips and James Archie Worley.

David Bernard is passionately committed to elementary and secondary school music education, continuously developing new talent and providing solo performance experience to exciting young artists. His leadership in fundraising for music education programs has bolstered outreach, community music schools and conservatory preparatory programs - most notably the Harmony Program (a New York City initiative modeled after Venezuela's "El Sistema") and the Lucy Moses School. Mr. Bernard and the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony have also established the Parent's Association Endowed Scholarship Fund at The Juilliard School Pre-College Division.

Bernard is an alumnus of The Juilliard School, Curtis Institute of Music, Stony Brook University, Tanglewood and Saratoga Performing Arts Center.

David Bernard's discography includes 17 albums spanning music from Vivaldi to Copland, and released on Amazon.com, iTunes, Napster and Rhapsody of which Fanfare Magazine acclaimed "David Bernard is an exceptional conductor. His performances are marked by a strong sense of the music's structure, an outstanding feeling for orchestral texture and phrasing, and a dynamic rhythmic propulsion that makes itself felt even in quiet passages. Bernard's interpretations are splendidly proportioned; from the first note to the last the listener feels that this is the way the whole work must go...balances are expertly judged and wonderfully blended...overall, distinguished and elegant music making."

About the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony

Since its founding in 1999, the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony has built a loyal following, both in New York City and worldwide through its extensive catalog of recordings on iTunes, Naxos/ClassicsOnline, Amazon and Spotify. In 2011 the orchestra toured the People's Republic of China performing in 9 cities including Beijing, Qingdao, Dalian, Chaoyang, Jinzhou, Shenzhen, Shenyang and Xi'an.

A multiple First Prize Winner of The American Prize Competition in Orchestral Performance, the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony's performances were described by the judges as "extremely impressive, well-shaped. This ensemble is good enough to surpass many professional orchestras, performing incredibly difficult repertoire on a professional level." New York Critics have acclaimed Park Avenue Chamber Symphony performances as "Triumphant...polished...exquisite...with a strong sense of style and commitment...with the depth and fervor of the old school European orchestras."

The ensemble regularly features important soloists including Carter Brey (principal cellist, New York Philharmonic), David Chan (concertmaster, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra), Jon Manasse (clarinet soloist) and Whoopi Goldberg (Oscar Winning Actor and Entertainer), as well as emerging artists from Juilliard, Manhattan School of Music and Mannes. The Park Avenue Chamber Symphony performs at All Saints Church on the Upper East Side of NYC, with additional performances at Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall and Avery Fisher Hall.

Through its fundraising efforts, the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony has helped establish a new Scholarship Fund for students at the Juilliard School's Pre-College Division, as well as support The Harmony Program-a New York City organization that provides music lessons to economically disadvantaged children and is modeled after Venezuela's world-famous model of music education, "El Sistema".

For tickets to this performance: http://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?showcode=newB05&ss=1

For more information about this performance: http://chambersymphony.com/web/events.aspx?date=11%2f8%2f2014

For more information about the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony: http://chambersymphony.com/web/home.aspx

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