Florida State University

Libraries
Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School

2019

An Exploration of Two Twenty-First

Century American Works for Clarinet
and Orchestra: Daniel Freiberg's Latin
American Chronicles Frank Proto's
Paganini in Metropolis
Katsuya Yuasa

Follow this and additional works at the DigiNole: FSU's Digital Repository. For more information, please contact lib-ir@fsu.edu
 FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF MUSIC

AN EXPLORATION OF TWO TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY

AMERICAN WORKS FOR CLARINET AND ORCHESTRA:

DANIEL FREIBERG’S LATIN AMERICAN CHRONICLES

FRANK PROTO’S PAGANINI IN METROPOLIS

By

KATSUYA YUASA

A Treatise submitted to the

College of Music
in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Music

2019
Katsuya Yuasa defended this treatise on April 5, 2019.
The members of the supervisory committee were:

Deborah Bish
Professor Co-Directing Treatise

Jonathan Holden
Professor Co-Directing Treatise

Richard Clary
University Representative

Eva Amsler
Committee Member

The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and
certifies that the treatise has been approved in accordance with university requirements.

ii
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I am indebted to several people for their support while finishing my studies. First and
foremost, I would like to thank my graduate committee for their guidance and constructive
feedback during my final semesters at Florida State University. I would like to give my utmost
gratitude to my professors Deborah Bish and Jonathan Holden for helping me become the
musician and person I am today. Thank you for your patience and kindness throughout my
apprenticeship.

iii
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of Figures ..................................................................................................................................v

Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... vi

1. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................1

2. DANIEL FREIBERG .................................................................................................................3

Compositional Style – Latin Jazz Music .............................................................................6
Latin American Chronicles ..................................................................................................7

3. FRANK PROTO .......................................................................................................................13

Paganini in Metropolis .......................................................................................................16

4. CONCLUSION .........................................................................................................................21

References ......................................................................................................................................23

Biographical Sketch .......................................................................................................................26

iv
 LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1 LAC, Movement I, mm. 148-167; Spanish flamenco ....................................................8

Figure 2.2 LAC, Movement I, mm. 231-281; Jazz improvisation ...................................................9

Figure 2.3 LAC, Movement II, mm. 15-24, Quena flute effect ....................................................10

Figure 2.4 LAC, Movement III, mm. 1-28; vals criollo and polyrhthms ......................................11

Figure 2.5 LAC, Movement III, mm. 197-261; Jazz improvisation with orchestra and drum .....12

Figure 3.1 Virtuosic opening mm. 1-21 .........................................................................................16

Figure 3.2 Theme from Paganini’s Caprice No. 24. Music courtesy of Wikipedia (2018) ..........18

Figure 3.3 Caprice No. 24 theme mm. 25-40. Repeated by orchestra after letter B ......................19

Figure 3.4 Free jazz improvisation mm. 369-396 ..........................................................................20

v
 ABSTRACT

I became interested in discovering new clarinet concertos after signing a three-year artist

contract with the Mu Phi Epsilon Foundation to present new works. My background and passion

for classical, jazz, and new music led me to explore pieces that combined these stylistic influences.

Two pieces captured my imagination and became the focus of my research: Daniel Freiberg’s

Latin American Chronicles and Frank Proto’s Paganini in Metropolis.

This treatise (in conjunction with two lecture recitals presented in Fall 2018 and Spring

2019) will focus on the lives and music of Daniel Freiberg and Frank Proto. My hope is to

provide a spotlight for these composers and their works, and the potential of these pieces to break

boundaries between jazz and classical styles in the clarinet community.

Daniel Freiberg was inspired to write his concerto for the principal clarinetist of

Westdeutscher Rundfunk Köln (WDR) Radio Orchestra, Andy Miles. Known in Europe as a

crossover artist, Miles has an unusual resume as a saxophonist in rock bands, tin whistler in folk

bands, and clarinetist in jazz band and orchestras. At the time he reached out to Freiberg, Miles

was making an album titled “Symphonic Jazz with Andy Miles,” with other notable composers

Jorge Calandrelli and Jeff Beal. Looking to find more pieces, he reached out to Freiberg. Latin

American Chronicles was commissioned in 2015 by the WDR Symphony Orchestra from

Cologne, Germany, directed by Wayne Marshall. Comprised of three movements, the work

explores classical, jazz, and South American folk music. On February 22, 2019, to commemorate

the commission and celebrate the seventieth birthdays of the jazz legend Paquito D’Rivera and

WDR orchestra, Freiberg once again collaborated with them, arranging his Latin American

Chronicles for two clarinets with orchestra for Andy Miles who initially created this opportunity,

and his mentor Paquito D’Rivera.

vi
 Frank Proto collaborated with Eddie Daniels, a high school classmate, to write his

concerto. Arguably, one of the most influential jazz clarinetists in recent years, Eddie Daniels

has had a profound impact on this genre, inspiring composers such as Jorge Calandrelli and Jeff

Beal to write jazz-inspired concertos for him. Between 1994 and 2001, Proto explained those

years to be the series of “Paganini Pieces.” He had written Capriccio di Niccolo for Doc

Severinson in 1994, followed by Nine Variants on Paganini for Francois Rabbath in 2002. While

Daniels was on tour, the University of Texas Wind Ensemble led by Jerry Junkin, wanted

something new and special to perform, which led to the commission of Paganini in Metropolis in

2002. The premiere was a rousing success, leading to another commission of Paganini in 2003

with the Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra, Eddie Daniels, and conductor David Wroe.

In this treatise, I will provide a brief background for Daniel Freiberg and Frank Proto,

historical information about each piece, and how they integrate different stylistic elements,

ultimately leading to the expansion of the boundaries of classical music.

vii
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

I became interested in discovering new clarinet concertos after signing a three-year artist

contract with the Mu Phi Epsilon Foundation to present new works. My background and passion

for classical, jazz, and new music led me to explore pieces that combined these stylistic influences.

Two pieces captured my imagination and became the focus of my research: Daniel Freiberg’s

Latin American Chronicles and Frank Proto’s Paganini in Metropolis.

This treatise (in conjunction with two lecture recitals presented in Fall 2018 and Spring

2019) will focus on the lives and music of Daniel Freiberg and Frank Proto. My hope is to

provide a spotlight for these composers and their works, and the potential of these pieces to break

boundaries between jazz and classical styles in the clarinet community.

Daniel Freiberg was inspired to write his concerto for the principal clarinetist of

Westdeutscher Rundfunk Köln (WDR) Radio Orchestra, Andy Miles. Known in Europe as a

crossover artist, Miles has an unusual resume as a saxophonist in rock bands, tin whistler in folk

bands, and clarinetist in jazz band and orchestras. At the time he reached out to Freiberg, Miles

was making an album titled “Symphonic Jazz with Andy Miles,” with other notable composers

Jorge Calandrelli and Jeff Beal. Looking to find more pieces, he reached out to Freiberg. Latin

American Chronicles was commissioned in 2015 by the WDR Symphony Orchestra from

Cologne, Germany, directed by Wayne Marshall. Comprised of three movements, the work

explores classical, jazz, and South American folk music. On February 22, 2019, to commemorate

the commission and celebrate the seventieth birthdays of the jazz legend Paquito D’Rivera and

WDR orchestra, Freiberg once again collaborated with them, arranging his Latin American

1
Chronicles for two clarinets with orchestra for Andy Miles who initially created this opportunity,

and his mentor Paquito D’Rivera.

Frank Proto collaborated with Eddie Daniels, a high school classmate, to write his

concerto. Arguably, one of the most influential jazz clarinetists in recent years, Eddie Daniels

has had a profound impact on this genre, inspiring composers such as Jorge Calandrelli and Jeff

Beal to write jazz-inspired concertos for him. Between 1994 and 2001, Proto explained those

years to be the series of “Paganini Pieces.” He had written Capriccio di Niccolo for Doc

Severinson in 1994, followed by Nine Variants on Paganini for Francois Rabbath in 2002. While

Daniels was on tour, the University of Texas Wind Ensemble led by Jerry Junkin, wanted

something new and special to perform, which led to the commission of Paganini in Metropolis in

2002. The premiere was a rousing success, leading to another commission of Paganini in 2003

with the Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra, Eddie Daniels, and conductor David Wroe.

In this treatise, I will provide a brief background for Daniel Freiberg and Frank Proto,

historical information about each piece, and how they integrate different stylistic elements,

ultimately leading to the expansion of the boundaries of classical music.

2
 CHAPTER 2

DANIEL FREIBERG

Originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, Daniel Freiberg is a New York based, award

winning composer, arranger, pianist and music producer. He has spent most of his musical life at

the intersection of classical, jazz, rock, and Latin American music. From the age of four,

Freiberg was surrounded by Argentine, Brazilian, rock, and Uruguayan and Peruvian folk music.

Freiberg states:

I was around thirteen when I discovered modern jazz. My mother was into traditional and
swing jazz. I took lessons with local teachers in Buenos Aires which grabbed my
attention. At sixteen, I began to work as a professional keyboard player in pit orchestras
in Argentina and Chile, all across South America. At the same time, I studied on my own
because I could not afford school. Once I received Dave Brubeck’s album “Time Out” as
a birthday present, I was “hooked” and decided to move to New York at the age of
twenty-one.1

Freiberg added that Argentina’s military dictatorship (the “Dirty War” in 1976) also

contributed to his decision to move to New York and pursue his dream as a young jazz musician.

He was reluctant to engage in political discourse, which may have helped him avoid the fate of

activist schoolmates and friends who were detained by the military government. When he moved

to New York in January 1979, it was a particularly bad winter with a lot of snow. He had $300

in his pocket, which was gone within a week from buying a coat and other living expenses. As he

was new to the US with few English skills and connections, he went to work as a messenger,

mail delivery boy, and other side jobs to make money. Virtually all of his earnings went toward

living expenses. He managed to save just enough to take extension classes for non-full time

students for orchestration, theory, and contemporary music at the Juilliard School. He attended

classes and studied jazz arranging, film scoring and piano with established jazz musicians

1 Daniel Freiberg, Interview, December, 2018.

3
including Don Sebesky, Earl Hagen, Jacky Byard, Hal Galper, and Andy Laverne. One of the

private teachers was also a Berklee graduate named Matias Pizarro who helped him adapt to the

culture of the United States by coaching and mentoring him. Aside from these studies, he never

attended a university or conservatory as a full-time student and does not have a college degree.

Ten months after arriving in New York, Freiberg began to meet other members of the

Latin American community. At this time, he started to work more as a musician, mostly in a jazz

combo playing Latin music in Queens (where he first lived) in night clubs, bars, and restaurants.

He also became the music director for the local Latin orchestra in New York, where he arranged

pop and jazz music for the group. This led to invitations to perform in Broadway shows, calls as

a recording artist, and the development of his musical career through word-of-mouth. Although

he was thrilled to work full-time as a jazz musician, it gave him little chance to continue classical

music.

Five years later, in 1984, thanks to a recommendation by master jazz drummer Ignacio

Berroa, Freiberg was invited to join the Paquito quintet for five years as their piano player. He

took the position of piano legend Michelle Kamilo who had left, and he toured all over Europe

and the US, performing at venues and events such as: Montreal Jazz Festival, JVC Jazz Festival,

Charlie Parker Jazz Festival, Clifford Brown Jazz Festival, Berlin Jazz Festival, the Blue Note,

The Village Gate, and Jazz at Lincoln Center and Town Hall.2 As a result of this experience and

D’Rivera’s influence, Freiberg’s composition style changed drastically.

Paquito D’Rivera is extraordinarily skilled at mixing various genres and styles both as a

performer on single reed instruments and composer. He is a fourteen-time Grammy award

winner in the Latin jazz and classical music categories. Freiberg was influenced by D’Rivera’s

Freiberg, Daniel. “DANIEL FREIBERG.” Last modified 2018. Accessed December,

2

2018. http://www.danielfreiberg.com/.
4
multi-faceted approach to music genres. Freiberg, being Argentinean himself, saw D’Rivera as a

strong role model, not only playing music of his own culture, but also expanding into other

genres. From the time he immigrated, Freiberg’s compositions were mostly Argentinean and jazz

improvisation in a small combo. D’Rivera’s influence led to adding mixed meters, hemiolas,

more technical virtuosity, and using other influences including pop, rock, and classical music.

Freiberg’s jazz arrangements have been performed by Stephane Grapelli, Dizzy Gillespie

All Stars Big Band featuring D’Rivera, the Wynton Marsalis Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra,

Regina Carter, Claudio Roditi Wuintet, WDR Big Band, and the Swiss Big Band and Jorge Dalto

featuring Eddie Gomez. His notable composition “For Lenny” is included on D’Rivera’s album

“Song for Maura,” which was chosen as a winner of the 2014 Grammy Award for Best Latin

Jazz Album of the Year. Freiberg won the Latin Grammy Award for his contributions as a

composer, pianist and sound mixer for the recording.3 Freiberg taught himself the skills of an

audio engineer – including audio effects, mixing, reproduction, and adjusting sound – simply by

working in the recording industry as a performer. His mixing work can be heard on albums by

popular artists Marc Anthony, Jose Feliciano, Chayanne, Jose Jose, Cristian Castro, Olga Tanon,

Ednita Nazario, Cheo Feliciano, Jerry Rivera and Willie Colon, to name a few.

Daniel Freiberg is currently an active film and television composer working for HBO,

Netflix, Summit Entertainment-Lions Gate, National Geographic, Discovery and independent

movies.4 He is a wonderful example of an international artist with an entrepreneurial mind and

attitude.

3 Ibid.
4 Ibid.
5
 Compositional Style – Latin Jazz Music

When the term Latin music (Portuguese and Spanish: música latina) is mentioned, we

often think of specific dance forms such as rhumba, calypso with steel drums, mambo,

chachacha and charanga in the mid-1950s, bolero in late-1950s, and boogaloo in the 1960s.

These are used by the music industry as a “catch-all” term for music that comes from Spanish-

and Portuguese-speaking areas of the world, namely Latin America, Spain, and Portugal.5

Many people believe that Latin jazz music emerged in 1947, in particular from two

musicians who were interested in combining jazz and Latin music: Dizzy Gillespie and Mario

Bauza. Mario had introduced Dizzy to a famous Cuban percussionist named Chano Pozo, and

started to perform with them in various locations including Boston’s Symphony Hall, Carnegie

Hall, and the Apollo Theater in New York City. It was a unique mix of big band with Latin

rhythms. This was when the term Latin jazz, or Cubop6 started to emerge.

Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New

Orleans in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and developed from roots in blues and ragtime.

One may argue that Latin jazz goes much farther back to the late nineteenth century.7 New

Orleans was one of the biggest port cities in the United States, and it would trade with South

America and the Caribbean, prompting an exchange of people and culture. In early versions of

jazz, there are hints of not only the blues, North American popular song, and brass band in New

Orleans; but also Caribbean and Latin American rhythms. A great example of this can be heard

5 Morales, Ed. The Latin Beat: The Rhythms and Roots of Latin Music from Bossa Nova
to Salsa and beyond. Cambridge: Da Capo Press, 2003, 171.
6 Dizzy Gillespie started calling Latin jazz as “Cubop” which was the word “Cuba” and

“Bebop” mixed together to really show this equal weight between the two different styles.
7 Morales, Ed. The Latin Beat: The Rhythms and Roots of Latin Music from Bossa Nova

to Salsa and beyond. Cambridge: Da Capo Press, 2003, 280.

6
on Jelly Roll Morton’s solo piano reading of “King Porter Stomp.” There is a strong habanera

rhythm. Another example is Jelly Roll Morton’s “New Orleans Bump.”

As jazz spread around the world, it drew on different national, regional, and local musical

cultures, which gave rise to many distinctive styles. New Orleans jazz began in the early 1900s,

combining earlier brass-band marches, French quadrilles, biguine,8 ragtime and blues with

collective polyphonic improvisation. In the 1930s, heavily arranged dance-oriented swing big

bands, Kansas City jazz, a hard-swinging, bluesy, improvisational style and Gypsy jazz were the

prominent styles. Bebop emerged in the 1940s, shifting jazz from danceable popular music

toward a more challenging "musician's music" which was played at faster tempos and used more

chord-based improvisation. Cool jazz developed near the end of the 1940s, introducing calmer,

smoother sounds and long, linear melodic lines. In Freiberg’s music, there are several styles

including cool jazz, Spanish, Peruvian, Andean, and pop.

Latin American Chronicles

Andy Miles, a German clarinetist known for his bridge building between classical and

jazz music and as a “Marco Polo of the clarinet,”9 commissioned Latin American Chronicles in

2015 with the WDR Funkhaus Orchestra. According to Freiberg, Miles had been working to

record two other clarinet concertos with the goal of converging two genres. He was in search of

clarinet literature and happened to come across Mr. Freiberg’s name through Paquito D’Rivera

and Don Sebesky. Below is a quote that Freiberg shared, which sounds like a short poem for this

adventurous music:

8 Rhythm-centric style of music that originated in Guadeloupe and Martinique from the
nineteenth century.
9 Miles, Andy. “ANDY MILES.” Last modified 2019. Accessed December, 2018.

https://www.andymiles.de/.
7
 … [Latin American Chronicles] has soaring melodic quality. Call of the birds and the
breathing forest. Bird flying and looking from high in the sky of the forest and river of
South America.10

From the very opening of the piece, the triplet rhythm passes from one instrument or

section to another. The clarinet (along with the flute as the counter melody in this movement)

and the orchestra pass along the triplet rhythm, which provides a South American folk music

character. The pianist begins the polyrhythm figures, which are joined by the strings in b minor.

As the same rhythmic lines recur, the ensemble grows dynamically. This driving motion

continues until the climactic section when the rhythm section takes over and diverts the winds to

play legato lines while the strings soar with triplets to sixteenth notes. There are also turns and

rasgueado11 characteristic (Figure 2.1) of Spanish flamenco music. An example of this is played

first by the soloist. Their use in passages of this concerto is reminiscent of techniques used in

flamenco guitar.

Figure 2.1 LAC, Movement I, mm. 148-167; Spanish flamenco.

10 Daniel Freiberg, Interview, December, 2018.

11 Rapid strumming patterns executed using the back of the fingernail on multiple fingers
in a fast tempo.
8
 At the climactic section, Mr. Freiberg gives the soloist an opportunity to improvise in the

“ad libitum” section. He provides two written versions for “non-jazz” musicians to read. One is

included with purchase (Figure 2.2) while the other may be provided by request, which is a

transcription of Andy Miles’ improvisation.

Figure 2.2 LAC, Movement I, mm. 231-281; Jazz improvisation.

In the second movement, he describes a lament to mother earth:

The image I had in mind was a native Peruvian lady on top of the Cusco mountains
looking at the sky which is very close to the earth.12

This movement was inspired by two life events: the birth of his second daughter, and life

under military rule (he described being approached as a young man by trench-coat-wearing, gun-

wielding characters at the Colegio Nacional de Buenos Aires).13

12 Ibid.
13
Lutz, Phillip. "Daniel Freiberg Brings New Tunes and New Group to the White Plains
Jazz Festival." The New York Times. December 21, 2017. Accessed October 2018.
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/20/nyregion/daniel-freiberg-brings-new-tunes-and-new-
group-to-the-white-plains-jazz-festival.html.
9
 Following an opening with the strings, the woodwinds are introduced, and the clarinet

melody is reminiscent of the Quena Flute,14 a traditional instrument made of wood used in

Andean Music. One of the techniques clarinetists use to get that effect are appoggiaturas in the

melody, especially the ones with larger intervals (Figure 2.3).

Figure 2.3 LAC, Movement II, mm. 15-24, Quena flute effect.

The third movement starts in 3/4 beginning with the clarinet playing the melody, which is

then countered with the rhythm section playing a hemiola. The orchestra emphasizes the first and

fourth eighth notes while the clarinet emphasizes the first, third, and fifth eighth notes to provide

a clear hemiola of two-against-three.

The tempo marking begins at quarter note equals 185, forcing the conductor to lead the

ensemble in two instead of three, which can be difficult for the soloist. This, however, helps

bring out the specific jazz elements including jazz rhythms and melodic combinations that

Freiberg is fond of.

This movement is more like a dance, celebration, and Afro-Peruvian waltz that uses a lot

of polyrhythmic elements from South America: two against three. In Argentina and other Latin

14Traditional
flute of Andes (or Andean mountains) with six finger holes and a
thumbhole made of cane or wood.
10
American countries they call this waltz vals criollo (Figure 2.4).15 The line builds as the string

section joins the melody while the clarinetist plays almost continuously, followed by the winds.

As the music nears the improvisation section (Figure 2.5), what started off as a lyrical, playful

one (3/4 time signature) switches to 6/8 and the dotted quarter note changes to the feel of a half

note in 4/4 time. The rhythms become syncopated and the time signature changes into cut time

with incredible speed. The “ad libitum” is similar to the first movement, where Freiberg offers

two written versions, starting as early as mm. 191 all the way to 261, mostly in the key of e

minor.

Figure 2.4 LAC, Movement III, mm. 1-28; vals criollo and polyrhthms.

15
Peruvian waltz (Spanish: vals peruano), is an adaptation of the European waltz brought
to the Americas during colonial times by Spain.
11
Figure 2.5 LAC, Movement III, mm. 197-261; Jazz improvisation with orchestra and drum.

After the improvisation section (following the quarter note triplets with the drum), the

orchestra joins after re-introducing the theme. This provides a sense of returning home, but the

vals criollo is synchronized with more dynamic contrast, ending the piece with a “bang.”

12
 CHAPTER 3

FRANK PROTO

American composer and bassist Frank Proto was born July 18, 1941, in Brooklyn, New

York. He began piano studies at the age of seven and the double bass at the age of sixteen while

a (jazz) student at the High School of Performing Arts in New York City. Mr. Proto states:

All the guys my age (at the school) were jazzers. We knew all about jazz and nothing
about classical music. But when I got in to school, one of the requirements was that we
had to take a secondary instrument, so I wanted to play the bass. That solidified the jazz
for me even more. However, I had to play in the orchestra. They found a teacher for me
with the name Doc Goldberg for a year, and then he sent me to Fred Zimmermann, and I
started discovering music besides Cannonball and Miles and all of those (jazz) people.16

He completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the Manhattan School of Music

studying under the guidance of David Walter. Mr. Proto performed the first solo double bass

recital in the history of the school.17 For his graduation recital in 1963, Proto confronted a typical

problem for bass players: a limited amount of solo literature for the instrument. He programmed

a baroque work, a romantic piece, and an avant-garde composition using electronics, but wanted

a contemporary composition in a more “American” style. Unable to find one he liked, he decided

to write his own. The resulting piece was his first sonata for double bass and piano, which

became part of the standard repertoire.

During the early 1960s, Proto earned his living as a freelancer in New York, performing

with organizations such as the Symphony of the Air, American Symphony, the Robert Shaw

Chorale, and the Princeton Chamber Orchestra. He also played with various Broadway and Off-

Broadway show bands. Outside of the stage, he would go to Birdland, Embers, and many of the

16 Contrabass Conversations: The Voice of the Double Bass Community, “Frank Proto on
Jazz Influences, Bebop Violin, and Deadlines.” Interviewed by Jason Heath.
https://contrabassconversations.com/ (accessed November, 2018).
17 Ibid.

13
jazz clubs that were a mainstay of New York nightlife at the time to meet and listen to jazz

musicians including Charles Mingus, Dizzie Gillespie, Miles Davis, Cannonball Adderly, and

George Shearing. Mr. Proto shares:

(At Birdland) they had what was called a peanut gallery. If you go in there and sit in with
one single beer and no more than couple bucks you can enjoy music including Eddie
Davis, Maynard Ferguson Big Band, and Count Basie’s Band.18

Mr. Proto joined the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO) in 1966. With the help from

CSO Music Directors Max Rudolf and Thomas Schippers, he was given an opportunity to

compose and arrange for the orchestra. This resulted in a thirty-year collaboration, in which the

orchestra premiered over twenty large works and arrangements composed for tours and their

youth programs. One of his compositions, Doodles – An Introduction to the Orchestra, is widely

used in Young People’s Concerts to introduce grade school children to the orchestra. His solo

compositions have featured artists including Max Rudolf, Thomas Schippers, Walter Suskind,

Michael Gielen, and Jesus Lopes-Cobos. His composition, Carmen Fantasy for Trumpet and

Orchestra featuring Doc Severinsen has been performed over five hundred times and is

considered a standard in the Orchestral Pops repertoire.

In 1997, Proto left the Cincinnati Symphony. That same year, he began collaboration

with the Syrian-French double bass virtuoso François Rabbath who had similar diverse musical

interests. He has written Rabbath five compositions with orchestra that span from contemporary

to the most unusual Carmen Fantasy for double bass that anyone is likely to encounter. Proto

also began collaborating with poet, playwright and author John Chenault.

To date, they have written eight works together, most notably Ghost in Machine - an

American Music Drama for Vocalist, Narrator and Orchestra.19 Several of his larger works were

18 Ibid.
14
commissioned by the Cincinnati Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic, and Kennedy Center for

the Performing Arts. Some of his works were also nominated for Grammy’s and Pultizer Prizes.

Proto is also passionate in his belief that performing artists and composers should not

hesitate to tackle the pressing issues that confront society today – the controversial social and

political issues that many artists are loathe confronting with their art.20 In some of his works, he

explores contemporary society’s problems with racism, religious intolerance, and gender warfare.

He also composed a tribute to the veterans of World War II, which was premiered by Paul

Winfield as the soloist. Proto is the type of person that brings together multiple ideas into one

composition because he dislikes the idea of stylistic limitations in classical music. Utilizing the

orchestra in non-traditional ways, his techniques allow audience members to relate to his

compositions more easily.

Most importantly, Proto believes strongly in maintaining the connection between

composing and performing – a tradition that once was normal, but is now the exception outside

of the jazz and pop fields. He does not hesitate to pick up his bass to play with a jazz or chamber

music group or travel to play a solo recital. “It helps a great deal to experience what a soloist

feels when under the lights,” he says.21 Currently in a long-term project to record all of his

chamber music for the Red Mark label (seven CDs have been released to date, with three more in

various stages of production), he continues to maintain his double-life as both a composer and

performer.

19 Liben Music Publishers. “Frank Proto.” https://www.liben.com/FPBio.html (accessed

January, 2019).
20 Ibid.
21 Frank Proto, Written Interview, October, 2018.

15
 Paganini in Metropolis

Proto was inspired to write Paganini in Metropolis by Eddie Daniels, his longtime friend

since high school. The piece was composed between 2001 and 2003 with the hope to expand the

clarinet repertoire by bridging jazz and classical music. Proto states:

The twenty-minute piece – a set of variations on Paganini’s 24th Violin Caprice - is a

difficult, virtuoso work for the clarinet, incorporating different styles and clarinet
techniques. There is a host of technical challenges to the soloist, but the musical
challenges are at least as demanding. A performer equipped with both a big technique
and experience beyond the standard clarinet repertoire is necessary to deliver an ideal
performance.22

Figure 3.1 Virtuosic opening mm. 1-21.

22 Frank Proto, interviewed by Katsuya Yuasa, Tallahassee, FL, January 2019.

16
 The title Paganini in Metropolis comes from the virtuoso violinist Niccolo Paganini.

Born on October 27, 1782, he was an Italian composer and virtuoso violinist who many still

consider to be the greatest violinist that ever lived.23 Proto’s piece starts off mimicking the

virtuosity of Paganini’s violin through an exploration of the full range of the clarinet (Figure 3.1).

It is important to become familiar with Paganini in this piece. His radical and brilliant

innovations in violin technique are still heralded to this day; and his twenty-four Caprices are

considered some of the most difficult music ever composed – many claim only a handful of

violinists at any period of time ever reach the heights of technique and musical ability required to

play them.24 Paganini displayed a level of virtuosity that far surpassed others at the time. His

performances included fast scales and sweeping wide-interval arpeggios along with tender and

lyrical passages that charmed audiences.

The nineteenth century produced a number of extraordinary violinists – but none with a

reputation like Paganini. His talent was so evident that people thought he was a metaphorical

“musical god” and believed he had made a pact with the devil. From nicknames like the “Devil’s

Violinist,” he was also called “Rubber Man” and Hexensohn (witch’s brat), after speculation on

his astonishing technical facility and virtuosity. Paganini was one of the first major violinists to

memorize various works and publicly perform without sheet music for extended amounts of time

while interacting with the audience.

Many composers have used Paganini’s Caprice No. 24 as a theme to be varied for

a number of reasons. It is written in the clean, white-note key of A minor – a pure starting point –

and exposes the bare bones of its tonal simplicity. This is a textbook example of classical

harmony: it shifts rhythmically from tonic to dominant and back. In the second half of the theme,

23 "Niccolò Paganini." Life In Italy. November 02, 2018. Accessed February 14, 2019.
https://www.lifeinitaly.com/classical/niccolo-paganini.
24Ibid.

17
we hear a circle of fifths and some of the harmonic progression. As well as giving the music

a strangely poignant effect, it allows it to shift instantly and infallibly to a more expressive vein.

Finally, Paganini's theme cuts a dashing rhythmic shape as its melody repeatedly turns on itself.

These are all points that make this musical material eminently suitable for variation, and a fun

challenge for others to use.

Though the caprices are whole (and then some) in their unaccompanied state, musicians

have chosen to render them into other forms. For example, Schumann reworked twelve of them

for solo piano (opus 3 and 10), after being astonished by a recital Paganini gave in Frankfurt in

1830. In 1853-54, he composed piano accompaniments for the violin caprices. Franz Liszt

created dazzling piano transformations of five of the caprices in 1838 as his Études d’exécution

transcendante d’après Paganini. Hungarian-born virtuoso violinist Leopold Auer had also fitted

the Caprice no. 24 with piano. In 1985, the Russian composer Edison Denisov arranged five of

the caprices for violin and strings.

Pianists are not the only musicians to have used Niccolò Paganini’s Caprice No. 24.

Violinists like Nathan Milstein and Eugène Ysaÿe wrote their own showpieces based on the

caprice. In the jazz world, Benny Goodman tried it out with his own band.

Figure 3.2 Theme from Paganini’s Caprice No. 24. Music courtesy of Wikipedia (2018).

18
 In this caprice, there is the theme (Figure 3.2), 11 variations, and a finale. Proto

exemplifies the technical variation and leaves the harmonic structure of the theme intact in his

concerto.

Figure 3.3 Caprice No. 24 theme mm. 25-40. Repeated by orchestra after letter B.

Paganini in Metropolis demands delicate playing right from the beginning as the clarinet

soars into its highest register, the variations on Paganini’s tune, all precisely notated, travel in

the classical zone until roughly half way through the journey using knotty turns, inviting fifths

and octaves, as well as persistent syncopated ostinato and traditional calypso rhythm at times.

After this point, the soloist must transform into the improviser after the ensemble reaches

a “cliffhanger” (Figure 3.4) and convince the listener that while he can now be considered the

featured composer, Paganini is still very much in the picture. In other words, the performer will

not only strut his stuff, but not allow the listener to forget that these are still variations on

the Twenty-fourth Caprice.25

25 Frank Proto, interviewed by Katsuya Yuasa, Tallahassee, FL, January 2019.

19
Figure 3.4 Free jazz improvisation mm. 369-396.

The composition is an obsessive fixation on the theme of Paganini, interpreted through

the lens of jazz. At one point, Proto features the saxophone and horn sections; when there are

recognizable melodies, the others are comping.26 Following the nontraditional theme and

variations, one can hear the fast swing and use of the unique calypso rhythm between all

instruments similar to the son clave in 4/4 (1, 1a, 2&, 3&, and 4). This allows the music to keep

Paganini’s theme alive while driving forward with a fast tempo and technical versatility. Just

before the end, there is a short clarinet cadenza, followed by a humorous conclusion to the piece

on a unison forte low E.

26
In jazz, comping is a term used to play quietly in the background, or short for
accompanying.
20
 CHAPTER 4

CONCLUSION

Looking at several notable jazz clarinetists: Sydney Bechet, Benny Goodman, Barney

Bigard, Buddy DeFranco, Jimmy Dorsey, Jimmy Giuffre, Artie Shaw, Paquito D’Rivera, Eddie

Daniels, and Andy Miles: all had/have distinctive careers and voices in jazz. They all came from

different backgrounds and education, yet were successful and unique in their respective ways.

Classical clarinetists are often trained to imitate the accepted sound of their respected

traditions. Depending on the area and use of the Boehm or the German system, and various

professional clarinet brands, the beautiful clarinet sound in classical music can be “deemed

fashionable at a particular time and place.”27 Gunther Schuller states:

In jazz, on the other hand, there is no such thing as a beautiful sound. It is up to the
individual to create his sound … one that will best serve his musical concepts and style.28

There is not a limited way to make a good sound with set methods and techniques. Jazz

music has more individuality of sound emphasized with spontaneous inventive performance style,

while classical playing often reflects certain characteristics and guidelines strictly adhered to in

the geographic area and perpetuated through conservatories and the training therein.

This, however, is not meant to convey that all aspects of jazz music are free and

completely improvised, nor is it meant to imply that all aspects of classical music are formal and

for the “educated.” The two genres have increasingly departed from traditional stereotypes and

limitations to embrace and explore previously foreign elements.

The jazz-classical fusion had begun since the evolution of symphonic jazz in the 1920s. In

1950s there was the Third Stream, followed by stages of fusion in the 1960s. There was more to

27 Schuller, Gunther. “Musings,” New York: Da Capo Press, 1999, 32.

28 Ibid.
21
the genre than improvisational techniques and jazz sounds including: syncopation, blue notes,

vamps, impressionist harmony, shimmering arpeggios, ii-v substitutions, among many. If the two

genres continue to exert an influence to one another – similar to Proto and Freiberg’s approach –

it makes me wonder what direction the music of the twenty-first century will look like.

For clarinetists, having a classical background enhanced with elements of jazz can help

further develop the jazz legacy, ultimately creating this cross-fertilization. In addition, the two

original genres have the possibility to renew interest, allowing the art of jazz and classical music

to expand and regenerate.

22
 REFERENCES
“Anat Cohen: Bringing the Clarinet to the World.” NPR, last modified: February 6, 2013,
Accessed September 15, 2018. https://www.npr.org/2013/02/06/171176294/anat-cohen-
bringing-the-clarinet-to-the-world

Brill, Mark. “Music of Latin America and the Caribbean.” New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2011.

Caban, Ruben. “An Analysis of Six Original Latin Jazz Compositions and Arrangements.” M.M.,
Florida International University, 2011.

Carney, Courtney Patterson. "Jazz and the Cultural Transformation of America in the 1920s."
PhD diss., Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College, 2003.

Collier, James Lincoln. Benny Goodman and the Swing Era. New York: Oxford University Press,
1989.

Demory, Richard and Donald Megill. “Introduction to Jazz History.” 5th ed. New Jersey: Prentice-
Hall Inc., 2000.

Dommet, Kenneth. “Jazz and the Composer.” Proceedings of the Royal Musical Association 91st
Session (1964-1965): 11-20.

Dourado, Freire. “The History and Development of the Clarinet in Brazil.” D.M.A. diss.,
Michigan State University, 2000.

Duffie, Bruce. “A Conversation with Bruce Duffie.” Accessed September 15, 2018,
http://www.bruceduffie.com/proto.html.

Erenberg, Lewis A. “Swingin' the Dream: Big Band Jazz and the Rebirth of American Culture.”
Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1998.

“Eric Simon, Teacher and Conductor, 87.” New York Times, last modified: October 9, 1994,
accessed September 15, 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/09/obituaries/eric-
simon-teacher-and-conductor-87.html

Farley, Jeff. “Making America’s Music: Jazz History and the Jazz Preservation Act.” Doctor of
Philosophy, University of Glasgow, 2008.

Freiberg, Daniel. “Daniel Freiberg.” Accessed September 16, 2018,

https://www.danielfreiberg.com/

__________________. Skype Interview, October, 2018.

Guffey, Amy M. ““American Clarinet Concerti of the 21st Century: An Annotated Bibliography.”
D.M.A. diss., Florida State University, 2015.

23
Heath, Jason. “Frank Proto on jazz influences, bebop violin, and deadlines.” Last modified
October 3, 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_patpWbIPk

Heaton, Chris. “Jazz Clarinet Performance.” The Versatile Clarinet. Taylor & Francis Group,
England: United Kingdom (2001): 24.

Lutz, Phillip. “Daniel Freiberg Brings New Tunes and New Group to the White Plains Jazz
Festival.” New York Times. September 17, 2015. Accessed September 15, 2018.
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/20/nyregion/daniel-freiberg-brings-new-tunes-and-
new-group-to-the-white-plains-jazz-festival.html

Nocera, Joe. “Jazz’s Skinny Stepchild.” New York Times, last modified: May 3, 2013, Accessed
September 16, 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/05/arts/music/anat-cohen-and-
her-jazz-clarinet.html

Proto, Frank. “Liben Music Publishers.” Accessed September 15, 2018,

https://www.liben.com/protocont.html

______________, Telephone Interview, Spring 2018.

Lanzelotte, Rosana. “Musica Brasilia.” Accessed September 15, 2018,

https://www.musicabrasilis.org.br/

Morelli, Michael. “Reviews.” Bass World: The International Society of Bassists Magazine. Vol.
16 No. 3 (Spring 1990): p. 33

Norman, Liesa Karen. “The Respective Influence of Jazz and Classical Music on each other, the
Evolution of Third Stream and Fusion and the Effects Therof into the 21st Century.”
D.M.A. diss., University of British Columbia, 2002.

Paddock, Tracey Lynn. “A Biographical Dictionary of Twentieth-Century American Clarinetists.”

D.M.A. diss., Florida State University, 2011.

Sales, Grover. Jazz: America’s Classical Music. New York: Prentice Hall Press, 1984.

Schuller, Gunther. 1968. Early Jazz: Its Roots and Musical Development. New York: Oxford
University Press.

Shipton, Alyn. “A New History of Jazz.” London: Continuum, 2001.

Smith, Mary Margaret. “The Swing Era Clarinetists and Their Contributions to Twentieth-
Century Clarinet Repertoire.” D.M.A. diss., Ohio State University, 2010.

Washburne, Christopher. “Latin Jazz: The Other Jazz.” Accessed September 16, 2018.

White, John. Artie Shaw: His Life and Music. New York: The Continuum International
Publishing Group, 2004.
24
Wika Norman A. “Jazz Attributes in Twentieth-Century Western Art Music: A Study of Four
Selected Compositions.” D.M.A. Dissertation, University of Connecticut, 2007.

Williams, Martin. “The Jazz Tradition.” Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1983.

Wright, Megan A. “The Influence of Jazz Clarinet in the Development of American Art Music.”
M.M., California State University, Long Beach, 2014.

Yeo, Lisa Lorraine Gartrell. “Copland’s Clarinet Concerto: A Performance Perspective.” D.M.A.,
University of British Columbia, 1996.

25
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

A charismatic and versatile clarinetist, Katsuya Yuasa has been praised by critics as a

“born performer with rare ability to express the beauty and soulfulness of the composer’s music”

– and have toured in the United States, Europe, South America, and Asia as a concert soloist,

recitalist, chamber musician, and orchestral player. Born in Kobe, Japan, he is presently the

International Concert Artist of Mu Phi Epsilon (MPE), Piatigorsky Foundation Artist, and

Professor of Clarinet at Florida A&M University. He is a founding member of Duo Esplanade

(flute, clarinet) and Cosmos New Music (flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano). An inventive artist,

he explores a wide repertoire of classical, jazz, ethnic, pop, rock, and contemporary music.

Recipient of over twenty awards and distinctions, he has been honored with long list of

prizes including the Dallas Clarinet Colloquium Young Artist Competition, ENKOR

International Competition, San Diego Heritage Music Festival Director’s Award, Arthur W.

Foote Award (finalist), and the MPE International Competition (first clarinetist to win). As a

soloist, he has been featured with numerous ensembles. Recent performances include Debussy’s

Premiere Rhapsodie with the Rio Hondo Symphony Orchestra, Frank Proto’s Paganini in

Metropolis with the Boston Conservatory Wind Ensemble, Copland’s Clarinet Concerto with the

Boston Conservatory Sinfonietta, Mozart Clarinet Concerto with the Big Bend Community

Orchestra, Artie Shaw Concerto with the Parma Symphony Orchestra, Finzi Clarinet Concerto

with the Southern Crescent Symphony Orchestra, and midwest premiere of Daniel Freiberg’s

Latin American Chronicles with the Kansas City Civic Orchestra.

An active educator, he has given masterclasses at collegiate establishments in the US and

overseas, most recently at the University of Missouri Kansas City, Ithaca College, California

26
State University at Northridge, Eastern Michigan University, Radford University, and Mimar

Sinan Guzel Sanatlar Universitesi Devlet Konservatuyari in Istanbul, Turkey.

In addition, Yuasa is an avid chamber musician with large and varied repertoire, his Duo

and Cosmos continually offer performances and master classes at several universities and

institutions widely in southern regions. Their goal is to branch out to more community including

those with limited access to the arts. He has appeared on WFSU and WGBH radios, WTXL

television, Carnegie Hall, Boston Symphony Hall, Florida Flute Association, National Flute

Association, the International Clarinet Association’s Festival, and toured as part of the

Piatigorsky Foundation. Outside of his studio, Katsuya recently taught at pianoSonoma, Summer

in the City Music Camp, Marching 100 Summer Band Camp, and New York Summer Music

Festival.

Yuasa studied under Janet Averett for his Bachelor’s at San Jose State University and

Michael Norsworthy for Master’s and Artist Diploma at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee. He

completed Doctor of Music with teachers Deborah Bish and Jonathan Holden at the Florida State

University while serving as their graduate teaching assistant. Katsuya became a Yamaha Young

Performing Artist in 2014. He is a member of the International Clarinet Association, College

Music Society, Chamber Music America, Piatigorsky Foundation and MPE.

27