Bass Fishing

The Big Catch in the 2015 LHS Saxophone Auditions

EVERY YEAR, Libertyville’s best student musicians push themselves beyond known limits in the cutthroat struggle to move up to the next level. A test of pure nerves and musicality, this one-shot, one opportunity event often makes or breaks a student’s annual chance to climb up the prestigious Libertyville Band ladder.

However, perhaps no section is hit harder than the saxophones.

Libertyville’s saxophone section never fails to impress, whether it be in the Wind Ensemble or in the Jazz Bands, the musicianship and dedication of our saxes meet a standard of high-quality playing in an already high-quality program. With that said, auditions this year were thoroughly competitive, with almost 30 saxophonists estimated for the ‘15–’16 season, the top-level bands were expected to be at full capacity.

So what is to be done about “saxophone overflow”? Are they told to quit? Do they become wasted talent? Of course not — those who just missed the cut are often trained for alternate instruments. For 2015, a small percentage saw a conversion to bass clarinet.

The State of Bass Clarinet

Four bass clarinets remained for the upcoming season; a total far below the usual quota. In fact, this next year would have the lowest number of seasoned bass clarinetists in more than 5 years. Filling spots here would be imperative.

I asked our Director of Bands, Adam Gohr, about the bass clarinet deficit, who said that “Certain specialty instruments, such as bassoon [or bass clarinet], are almost always ‘shallower,’ so it’s a faster track to a higher group.”

For bass clarinetists, this is great news — but in a sense may guarantee nothing. High ranking bands are intense and can put a lot of pressure on a student. In Gohr’s words:

[Sometimes kids can] wind up in a situation for which they are musically, academically, or emotionally unprepared…it can be rough on that student. Peers are usually quite smart about it, and can figure out who’s not pulling their share of the load, and that makes for a negative experience for that student, which is the thing I want to avoid most — I want everyone to have a positive experience and feel successful.

In essence, here’s where we’re at: we have 4 bass clarinetists ranging from freshman to senior, and at least 3 bands that definitely need bass clarinetists. In even shorter terms, what we have here is a musical blending nightmare.

The Solution

Gohr: We looked at sax to bass clarinet switches because first, that’s where we had the most depth (on sax); normally I’d just move clarinetists, but we don’t have enough, so sax is the next best option. The similarities with the fingerings and the fact that it is also in the single reed family also contribute; finally, the creating of “doublers” that play multiple woodwinds will pay off for our program in both jazz band and pit orchestra down the road.

Before auditions this year began, Gohr had already begun the search for convertible saxes. He spoke with at least 4 of us: Maxwell Chan, Ian Nagle, Alex Wells, and me — not to mention alto saxophonist Reed Sattizahn, who made the switch early on in the year for the ’15-’16 season. But for those of us who hadn't, we had a choice to make: Choose bass clarinet in a higher band - or saxophone in a lower one?

The Challenge

Gohr: [Those] that took my offer did it from the desire to be surrounded by stronger players, to be given a greater musical challenge than they currently had, …to track into the top ensemble since it is the most visible and has the most accolades…As far as those who declined, it’s probably because it’s a big challenge to switch, they don’t want to feel like they’d always be playing catch-up, and they don’t want to leave the instrument that they have lived with for the last 5–8 years.

In the end, we had split into 2 bass clarinetists and 2 saxophonists. Alex Wells and Ian Nagle moved up to the Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Winds, respectively; while Maxwell Chan and I remained saxophonists in Symphonic Winds.

So that brings us to the actual decision. The four of us that were in instrument limbo were given a couple weeks to decide, but for some of us it wasn't difficult at all. After the results were finalized, I asked all of us about on how we dealt with the offer.

What led you to make your decision in the end, and how hard was it to decide?

Maxwell Chan: I didn't feel comfortable enough on [bass clarinet] to move to Wind Ensemble and would rather play something I’m comfortable with before moving on. The decision wasn't too difficult since I didn't think I could play on a high level on an instrument that I would learn in one year.

Ian Nagle: I didn't want my sister [who is also in Symphonic Winds] to look better than me, [so it was] pretty easy.

Alex Wells: [At my old school, I was in] the top band. However, every year I moved to a different state — different school, counselors, and ultimately bands. [My counselors] always put me in the wrong band — and every year, I've gone down instead. [The choice to switch was] extremely easy.

And me? My choice to stay was pretty difficult, contrary to the rest of us. Like many of us, I really wanted to be in the top band, but at the same time felt like I could serve any band better as a saxophonist rather than a bass clarinetist.

Yet while all of us took a different route in our choices, we all perceived our decision as the best for ourselves. While those of us who stayed on saxophone viewed our pursuit of saxophone as what would bring us success, those of us who switched to bass clarinet found necessity in upward mobility.