Matthias Petzold

11 Duets for Clarinet

Matthias Petzold belongs to the younger generation of German jazz musicians. He has recorded 8 CDs with his own compositions in many different ensembles and has published them under his label 'Indigo-Records', which is very well received by industry experts and music lovers alike. Some of his compositions have been commissioned by the WDR (Westdeutscher Rundfunk) symphony orchestra and the WDR Big Band. He has had many years of teaching experience in various music schools with pupils of all ages and abilities. He was able to fall back on these experiences when working on his own compositions, which have been published by the AMA Publishing House ('Scenes from a Sketchbook', AMA610226, among others).

Stylistically, his music is based on modern mainstream jazz and therefore assimilates groove-orientated musical influences from different sources. His detailed engagement with European classical and avant-garde music is just as important. In this way, his music always preserves ease and improvisational joy in playing.

Following his book '11 Duets for Saxophone' (AMA610379), we now have a version for two clarinets, or a combination of a clarinet and an alto saxophone. Petzold assembles the most different styles to make up his compositions: these range from jazz to calypso and from blues to the French musette walzes. These pieces are particularly good concert pieces, not only because of their melodic character and diverse composition, but also because of their variable instrumentation. For this volume, a separate piano part can be ordered (AMA610483), so that the clarinet can additionally be accompanied by a pianist or the CD.

With regards to technical difficulty and playing experience required, this book is aimed at clarinettists who have been playing for 2-3 years and already have experience reading music and know the most important keys.