Brahms’s Clarinet: A Journey Through History and an Unexpectedly Mistuned Viola
The life of a musician is that of a time traveller, interweaving one foot in the past and one foot in the present. This research project engages with the creative evolution of instruments and sound worlds. This presentation takes on the Baermann-Ottensteiner clarinet used in the time of Brahms, with an exploration of the key system and technique to provide insights into the performance of a case study from the First Clarinet Sonata. The research aims to ascertain the extent to which this historical instrument can musically influence the performance of the sonatas when played with modern clarinets through an understanding of both continuity and divergence of timbral qualities.
The Brahms clarinet sonatas hold an equally firm place as viola sonatas, rescored by the composer, and thus exhibiting a propensity to impact performance practice for the viola as well. The use of scordatura—the unconventional retuning of the strings—allows the viola to better join the sound world of both historical and modern-day clarinets. A look at historical bows adds another dimension to this research.
Through this collaborative, interweaving endeavour across history and instruments, we place this influence within the frame of both clarinet and viola performance practice.
Assoc Prof Andrew Filmer
Dr Andrew Filmer is versatile in the arts, combining his musicology training with that of viola performance. Andrew has won commendations and prizes in teaching, public speaking, research, performance, and leadership. He is an Associate Professor at the Institute of Music at UCSI University, and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy of the United Kingdom.
Andrew has presented at six International Viola Congresses and is a past Editor of the Journal of the American Viola Society. His research has been presented twice at the University of Cambridge, where he was a scholar-in-residence in early 2023.
UCSI University
Kenny Lim Yong Jia
Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Technology and Management
Kenny Lim Yong Jia is a Malaysian clarinettist, educator, and researcher. He holds a BA in Performance from Middlesex University London and an MMus in Music Performance from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. He studied with Janet Hilton, Robert Plane, John Cooper, Timothy Lines, and Alison Lambert.
He was the 2015 recipient of the Malaysian ABRSM Winds Prize and has performed in various ensembles, including the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonic Winds of Malaysia, and VIRAMA Ensemble. Kenny is currently a lecturer at Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology and a PhD candidate at Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris.