Victoria Soames Samek MUSIC FOR CLARINETS AND SAXOPHONES BY

Rob Keeley
Clarinets & Saxophones
Piano: Michael Bell
Percussion: Chris Brannick

RING!
East Winds, ReedPlay Quartet
and Villiers String Quartet

and other works

WORLD PREMIERE RECORDING

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 1 A Blast for Darragh and Mary (solo soprano saxophone) 3:18
2- 6 Ten Birthday Greetings for Robin Holloway 7:51
(2 Bb clarinets) Movements: 1.(1.09), 2.(1.32), 3.(1.23), 4(1.39), 5.(2.07)

7 Music for Art and Tom (alto saxophone & piano) 12:00
8 Misterioso (Bb clarinet & Marimba) 4:02
9 –13 Ten Birthday Greetings for Robin Holloway 7:54
(2 Bb clarinets) Movements: 6.(1.32), 7.(1.51), 8.(1.53), 9.(1.14), 10.(1.28).

14 Sonata Macabre (bass clarinet & string quartet) 10:04

15 Fanfariations (saxophone quartet) 6:29
16 – 21 Six Clarinet Trios (2 Bb clarinet plus 3rd Bb/bass clarinet) 15:27

Movements 1.(2.33), 2.(2.26), 3.(2.20), 4.(2.37), 5.(3.01), 6.(2.29)

22 Ring! (2 Bb/Eb clarinets 3rd Bb clarinet, 4th bass clarinet & piano) 11:08

Victoria Soames Samek Total Timing 78:23
Eb, Bb and bass clarinet
Soprano, alto and tenor saxophones

with:
Michael Bell - piano
Chris Brannick – percussion
East Winds – Sarah Thurlow (Bb & Eb clarinets), Chris Hatton
(Bb & bass clarinet), Andrew Sparling (bass clarinet in Ring!),
Neyire Ashworth (2nd Bb clarinet in Ten Birthday Greetings for Robin Holloway).
ReedPlay Quartet - Rachel Ridout (soprano) Melonie Henry (alto)
Victoria Soames Samek (tenor), Chris Jolly (baritone) saxophones.
Villiers String Quartet – James Dickenson & Tamaki Higashi (violins),
Carmen Flores (viola), Nick Stringfellow (cello).

View live interview with Victoria Soames Samek

and Rob Keeley on samekmusic.com/media

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 Rob Keeley was born in Bridgend, South Wales, in 1960. He studied
with Oliver Knussen at the Royal College of Music, at Magdalen
College Oxford under Bernard Rose, and later with Robert Saxton.
In 1988 he worked under Franco Donatoni at the Accademia Santa
Cecilia in Rome, then at the Tanglewood Summer School, where he
was the Benjamin Britten Fellow in Composition.
Rob spent ten years as a freelance pianist and repetiteur, working
for Opera Factory, Almeida Opera and Garsington Opera while continuing to compose
in a wide variety of media, with an emphasis on chamber music, especially for winds.
Since 1993 Rob has been a Lecturer in Music at King’s College, London. His music
is published principally by Composers Edition as well as from Clarinet & Saxophone
Classics Publications as download files and physical copy via June Emerson Wind
Music, and recorded on both NMC (‘Songs, Chimes and Dances’) and Lorelt (‘Dances
with Bears’).

Personal Note
Collaborating with a composer is for me one of the greatest privileges as a player.
My association with Rob goes back some five years prior to this recording. We first
met at a concert Rob attended in which I was playing Misterioso with my percussion
duo partner Chris Brannick. While the complexities and demanding detail of his music
presents many challenges for the player, particularly rhythmically, the unbelievable
craftsmanship is without doubt. The reward of the time invested in realising Rob’s
intentions reveals his intricate and vivid rhythmical energy, his musical colour and
dynamic detail. It is also a personal joy for me to work with a composer who is so
inspired to write for the various clarinets and saxophones; a composer who also has
such an understanding of the instrument’s capabilities. Through Rob’s many works
which he has written for clarinets and saxophones, some of which I am proud to say
being dedicated to me, he has enriched the repertoire.
Victoria Soames Samek (2017)

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 A Blast for Darragh and Mary, solo soprano saxophone (2001)
This was originally written for the wedding of Darragh Morgan and Mary Dullea and was first
performed by Andrew McNeill in Drumcliffe, Ireland, in the summer of 2001. It is a raucous,
good-natured celebration, and, I hope, a perfect opener for this disc.
Published by Clarinet & Saxophone Classics Publications

Ten Little Birthday Greetings for Robin Holloway, two clarinets (2013)
1. Poco allegretto 2. Fast 3. Lento, quasi sarabanda 4. Fast and bright 5. Exploratory
6. Fast: in Bulgarian style 7. Andante: misurato e misterioso 8. Quasi tango 9. Allegro
(a study in hocketing) 10. Allegro (On this disc they are divided into two separated
groups of five)
Written for Robin’s 70th birthday, these ten duets were a gift to a composer whose music and
personality have influenced me much over the past thirty five years. Each piece, no more than
two pages long, is an exploration of a single idea or process. I became obsessed with writing
duets a few years ago, and ended up writing them also for oboes, bassoons, trumpets, violins and
piccolos. Apart from the wonderful Poulenc Sonata, there seem to be remarkably few works of
real quality for this delectable combination, so I hope these prove a worthwhile addition.
Published by Clarinet & Saxophone Classics Publications

Fanfariations, saxophone quartet (2015)

As the title suggests, this is a punchy little set of variations based on that most adaptable
of musical images, the fanfare (see also the six clarinet trios). It also exists in a version for
trombones. If the benevolent (if ironic) shade of Igor Stravinsky (particularly of ‘Agon’) may be
detected in this piece, I won’t mind too much.
Published by Clarinet & Saxophone Classics Publications

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 Six Trios for three clarinets
1. Fanfare 2. Pastorale 3. Interlude 4. Ostinato 5. A Keening 6. A Final Fanfare
Back in 2011 I wrote a set of five pieces for the oboe trio Pipers3: in this form they have recently
been recorded for a Divine Arts disc entitled ‘Twists and Turns’. While I was very happy with
these pieces - I love the Bachian sound of the oboes and its relatives in combination (I used to
play the oboe, though not especially well…) – I subsequently felt that they would adapt well to
the more flexible single-reed medium. It was far from a simple process of transcription: with the
changes in register (to accommodate, for a start, the bass clarinet) some rewriting, including
actual notes, proved necessary: I also added a fresh movement, Ostinato. I feel now that the
greater blend and agility of the clarinets work greatly to the pieces’ advantage.
Published by Clarinet & Saxophone Classics Publications

Music for Art and Tom, alto saxophone and piano (1998)
The oldest piece on the disc, it was originally writen for the Oregon-based sax player Tom
Bergeron and composer/pianist Art Maddox (and long-time associate of Lou Harrison and John
Cage). It is a continuous span in five contrasting sections, culminating in a blues in E flat major
which is built out of the rising and falling major 3rds heard in more rhetorical form at the
opening.
Published by Cadenza Music

Sonata Macabre, bass clarinet and string quartet (2014)

There is too little chamber music involving bass clarinet, and even less for this line - up (although
the beautiful York Bowen Quintet springs to mind), so at Victoria Soames Samek’s suggestion
I wrote this concentrated ten-minute single-movement Sonata. A majestic ‘French Overture’
opening is followed by faster ‘spectral’ music, the various subsequent interlocking sections
culminating in a Scherzo based loosely on the ‘dies irae’ motif. The piece is dedicated with
friendship and enormous respect to Victoria Soames Samek.
Published by Clarinet & Saxophone Classics Publications

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 Misterioso, clarinet and marimba (2012)
Another work originally conceived for a different instrument (the trumpet), it was rewritten for
the current performers and first performed in Deptford Town Hall. Its two sections are: first,
lyrical, long melodic phrases separated by ‘mysterious’ silences, and then secondly, playful and
dance-like. Like all my pieces, it took a long time to ‘get right’, for all its apparent modesty, and
it’s a piece I’m particularly fond of.
Published by Composer Edition

Ring! four clarinets and piano (2001)

I always felt that the clarinet quartet, whilst itself a beautiful and expressive medium, could also
work well in combination with the piano. While opposed in timbre, the clarinets and piano do
seem to blend well and create possibilities for exciting dialogue. The title refers to change-ringing
techniques, an interest of mine for many years now, which inform certain parts of the piece,
most obviously the coda. If I were to attmept to describe the sound world of ‘Ring!’ I suppose a
combination of ‘liquid Messiaen’ and Stravinskyan ‘cool’ would be appropriate! In addition to
‘normal’ clarinets, I use (towards the end) two Eb clarinets: not often heard in pairs, I relish their
shriller sound (especially in unison!), which serves to extend the timbral scope of the ensemble.
It was originally written for and premiered by the Chinook Quartet.
Published by Clarinet & Saxophone Classics Publications

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 Victoria Soames Samek Victoria Soames Samek is one of the most
exciting and versatile musicians playing in the UK today. Combining
breath-taking technicality and musical integrity in her performances and
recordings with an individual approach to her teaching and mentoring,
she is driven by her commitment to musical excellence. The power of
communication in performance, the discipline of practice and the love of
music through her chosen instruments have all shaped her musical career.
Born of Czech and Hungarian parents, she was a pupil at The Purcell
School and studied clarinet with Roger Fallows before winning a
Foundation Scholarship to the Royal College of Music, studying clarinet with Colin Bradbury and
bass clarinet and saxophone with Steve Trier. She later studied clarinet with Antony Pay. Whilst at
the RCM she won the Frederick Thurston Memorial Prize. She performed with many symphony
orchestras, notably the BBC Symphony, City of London and Ulster Orchestras, before focusing her
career as an international soloist in duo recitals with pianist Michael Bell and in chamber ensembles
including Samek/Brannick Duo, ReedPlay and The Mühlfeld Trio .
As well as performing clarinet music from the 18th and 19th centuries, her long-standing
commitment to contemporary music has resulted in over thirty commissions and dedications
from notable composers including Elisabeth Lutyens, Roger Marsh, Phyllis Tate, Nicola Le
Fanu, Graham Williams and Thea Musgrave, whose bass clarinet concerto, Autumn Sonata, she
premiered with the City of London Sinfonia at the Cheltenham Festival. This was followed by its
first live concert and broadcast for BBC radio 3 with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under
the direction of Jerzy Maksymiuk. Victoria has subsequently recorded both Autumn Sonata and
her Clarinet Concerto under the direction of the composer. Thea has also transcribed Orfeo IV for
Eb clarinet especially for Victoria.
Her most recent commission is by Jeffery Wilson, Journeying for solo Bb, Eb, bass clarinets,
Alto and tenor saxophones and digital effects. In 2017 Graham Williams dedicated two pieces –
One for You, for soprano saxophone and piano and Dark Moon, for bass clarinet & marimba.
Performing in the major concert halls in the UK including the South Bank Centre and Wigmore
Hall as soloist and chamber musician, in this capacity she has also toured extensively throughout
Europe, North and South America where she also gave masterclasses.

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 With her great enthusiasm for the clarinet, in 1992 she launched the CD label Clarinet Classics
and subsequently Saxophone Classics. Now combined as Clarinet & Saxophone Classics, it’s a
unique showcase for the richness and diversity of these. Her own recordings for Clarinet Classics
includes the world première recording of Copland’s Clarinet Sonata, voted ‘most sheerly seductive
record of the year’. Other recordings include clarinet chamber music by Paul Harris, Sir Richard
Rodney Bennett and Joseph Horovitz, with duo partner Michael Bell. ‘Victoria Soames Samek…
technically infallible, sober and beautifully controlled and Michael Bell are a formidable duo’
(International Record Review)
Currently clarinet professor for Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance and tutor of
clarinet for Goldsmiths College, Victoria was professor of clarinet and Saxophone for The Royal
Military School of Music for seven years, but in July 2016 resigned her position to pursue further
research. Her work has resulted in a Masters in Performance Science (MSc) from the Royal College
of Music and has culminated in her developing a unique and innovative conceptual approach to
practice and performance. Alongside Victoria’s performing and recording commitments, she is in
much demand as mentor and lecturer, roles which she finds both satisfying and inspiring.

Michael Bell studied at the Royal Northern College of Music with Derryck
Wyndham and Sulamita Aronovsky; he was successful in receiving the Chopin
Fellowship award from the Polish Government, which enabled him to continue
his studies at the State Academy of Music in Warsaw. Subsequent prizes in
national and international competitions led to numerous live concert performances
and broadcasts on radio and TV throughout Europe, Australia and Africa. Recent notable
performances have included concerts at the Southbank Centre, London, in Sofia as soloist with the
Sofia Philharmonic and return invitations to participate at the Kharkiv Assemblies Festival in the
Ukraine. Michael’s solo repertoire is diverse and extensive. Among the new works he premiered
are the ‘Split Lark’ by Peter Seabourne and ‘Etudes for listeners’ by Miroslav Spasov, written for
piano and electronics. He is also highly acclaimed and is in great demand as a Lieder accompanist
and as a member of the Chamber Players of London. He has recorded solo works by Haydn,
Grieg, Janacek and Tchaikovsky and the complete duo works for clarinet and piano by Richard
Rodney Bennett with Victoria Soames-Samek; on the ‘Clarinet & Saxophone Classics’ label. The

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 Italian Label Sheva issued a recording of Granados and de Falla alongside a new cycle of Alhambra
influenced piano pieces by Seabourne, ‘Steps 3’
A versatile and exciting musician, Michael Bell has over 30 Concertos in his repertoire,
including performances of the complete cycle of Beethoven Concertos. He is director of
Performance at Keele University.
‘…Michael Bell’s thoughtful virtuosity…’ ‘…telling sensuality…’ (Gramophone Magazine).
‘His performance was a brilliant technical achievement but more than that a convincing
characterisation.’ (The Guardian)

The Villiers Quartet, (James Dickenson & Tamaki

Higashi (violins), Carmen Flores (viola), Nick
Stringfellow (cello) are winners of the 2015 Radcliffe
Chamber Music Competition, and holds the position of
Quartet-in-Residence at Oxford University’s Faculty of
Music. Named after Villiers Street in London’s colourful musical epicenter, the Villiers Quartet
encompasses the grand and iconic spirit of the extraordinary music tradition in London.
Hailed as one of the most charismatic and ‘adventurous’ quartets of the European chamber
music scene (The Strad), the Villiers Quartet has developed an international reputation for its
performances of British music. Championing music which reflects the global sounds of Britain’s
rich musical heritage, the Villiers has performed works by Elgar, Britten, Delius, William
Sterndale Bennett, Robert Saxton, Kuljit Bhamra, MBE, and Frank Bridge. The VQ has been
praised for its ‘exquisite ensemble playing’ (Seen & Heard International), and its performances
have been hailed as ‘masterful’. (Classical Source) www.villiersquartet.com

Chris Brannick is a contemporary percussion specialist and a founder member of ensemblebash.

He plays for several chamber groups, has performed cabaret in New York and took his play Get
Fit With Bruce Willis to the Edinburgh Fringe. Percussionist, singer, actor and writer, with both
maths and music degrees, in his spare time he is a music examiner for ABRSM. ‘Chris Brannick’s
percussion virtuosity is fantastic’. (Evening Standard)

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 Sarah Thurlow studied at the RCM with Robert Hill and Michael Harris. The RCM’s Mills
Williams Junior Fellowship enabled her to continue her studies with Andrew Marriner and Hans
Deinzer. She founded the ensemble Contemporary Consort, and has appeared in the clarinet
sections of the RPO, LSO, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Garsington Festival Opera,
and Glyndebourne on Tour.

Chris Hatton is a freelance clarinettist based in London. He enjoys a varied career across the
UK consisting of orchestral, chamber and theatre work and on touring shows. He studied at
the Guildhall School of Music & Drama where he has won many awards for his performances
including the Harold Clarke Woodwind Competition, the Wilfred Hambleton clarinet prize, and
the Ivan Sutton award.

Andrew Sparling is a member of the new music ensembles Lontano and Apartment House,
and has played in many others including the London Sinfonietta at Carnegie Hall and at the
opening ceremony of Tate Modern. For six years he played as a guest with the English String
Quartet at the London Festival of Chamber Music directed by violist Luciano Iorio.

Neyire Ashworth gave her debut solo recital debut as part of the Park Lane Group’s series
and the London premiere of the concerto for clarinet, film, computers and percussion by film
composer Brian Lock Neyire. Appearing on BBC radio 3, Classics FM, she has also recorded the
complete wind chamber music by John Woolrich and Carl Nielsen both for the Meridian Label.

The ReedPlay Quartet, Rachel Ridout (soprano) Melonie

Henry (alto) Victoria Soames Samek (tenor), Chris Jolly (baritone)
saxophones, formed in 2013, ReedPlay is an exciting new ensemble
committed to performing music by British composers. Uniquely
versatile, ReedPlay performs in various instrument combinations of saxophones and clarinets
enabling them to offer a diverse range of music from early classical clarinet quartets to the wealth
of master-works for saxophone quartet from the 20th and 21st century.
Their debut recording, for the specialist record label Clarinet and Saxophone Classics,
features music by celebrated British composer Joseph Horovitz.
10

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 Acknowledgments
Recorded in the presence of the composer
Recorded at All Saints Church, East Finchley, London, October 2015 & September 2016
Producer Simon Weir. Engineer Morgan Roberts. Mastered by Classical Media
Cover and booklet design: Hannah Whale.
Booklet and CD tray images by Simon Weir – www.simonweir.com

Founded in 1992 by acclaimed clarinetist Victoria Soames Samek, Clarinet & Saxophone
Classics celebrates the single reed in all its richness and diversity. It’s a unique specialist label
devoted to releasing top quality recordings by the finest artists of today on modern and period
instruments, as well as sympathetically restored historical recordings of great figures from the
past supported by informative notes.

Having created her own brand, Samek Music, Victoria is committed to excellence through
recordings, publications, learning resources and live performances. Samek Music is dedicated to
the clarinet and saxophone, giving a focus for the wonderful world of the single reed.

To view the complete catalogue of clarinet and

saxophone recordings and publications, buy CDs
or sheet music in physical or digital format,
please visit: www.samekmusic.com

Victoria Soames Samek

would personally like to
thank D’Addario UK for
their financial support.

11

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 www.clarinetclassics.com • www.samekmusic.com

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23/03/2017 14:26 CC0070 Rob Keeley-sleeve-template i01DAX112XX 15-3-17.indd 1

SPINE
FRONT
BACK

Victoria Soames Samek MUSIC FOR CLARINETS AND SAXOPHONES BY

Rob Keeley
Clarinets & Saxophones
Piano: Michael Bell
CC0070
1 A Blast for Darragh and Mary (solo soprano saxophone) 3:18 Percussion: Chris Brannick

Ring! and other works by Rob Keeley

RING!
East Winds, ReedPlay Quartet
2- 6 Ten Birthday Greetings for Robin Holloway 7:51
and Villiers String Quartet
(2 Bb clarinets) Movements: 1.(1.09), 2.(1.32), 3.(1.23), 4(1.39), 5.(2.07)

7 Music for Art and Tom (alto saxophone & piano) 12:00
8 Misterioso (Bb clarinet & Marimba) 4:02
9 –13 Ten Birthday Greetings for Robin Holloway 7:54 and other works
(2 Bb clarinets) Movements: 6.(1.32), 7.(1.51), 8.(1.53), 9.(1.14), 10.(1.28).
WORLD PREMIERE RECORDING
14 Sonata Macabre (bass clarinet & string quartet) 10:04
15 Fanfariations (saxophone quartet) 6:29
16 – 21 Six Clarinet Trios (2 Bb clarinet plus 3rd Bb/bass clarinet) 15:27
Movements 1.(2.33), 2.(2.26), 3.(2.20), 4.(2.37), 5.(3.01), 6.(2.29)

22 Ring! (2 Bb/Eb clarinets 3rd Bb clarinet, 4th bass clarinet & piano) 11:08

Victoria Soames Samek Total Timing 78:23

Clarinets & Saxophones
Piano: Michael Bell
Percussion: Chris Brannick
East Winds, ReedPlay Quartet
and Villiers String Quartet

View live interview with Victoria Soames Samek

and Rob Keeley on samekmusic.com/media

CC0070
Recorded in the presence of the composer.
Recorded at All Saints Church, East Finchley, London, October 2015 & September 2016.
Producer: Simon Weir. Engineer: Morgan Roberts. Mastered by Classical Media MCPS
CC0070
℗ & © 2017 Clarinet & Saxophone Classics, 58 Crescent Road, London E13 OLT, UK. Made in the EU DDD
www.clarinetclassics.com • www.samekmusic.com 24 bit recording

INSIDE LH SIDE
INSIDE RH SIDE CD PANEL