In January 2021 Tiago Bento of Porto (Orto) Portugal performed “Chansons de la Nature pour la Clarinette“, (movements 1. Les Oiseaux 4. Le Lièvre et la Tortue 7. Le Serpent) by  Jenni Brandon, for the International Clarinetist Corona Competition – Classical Category. Chansons de la Nature pour la Clarinette was required repertoire for the competition.

Artistic Directors Eva Wasserman-Margolis, Elizabeth Crawford, and Diana Haskell were proud to present ICCC as a true grassroots effort. The Artistic Directors stand in solidarity with our clarinet colleagues around the world. They donated their time to arrange this virtual competition. There was no registration fee for contestants and no payment for jurors and coordinators. Jurors included world-renowned artists and educators who agreed to participate

The International Clarinetist Corona Competition 2020 (ICCC) was conceived as a support mechanism for professional clarinetists ages 25-40, we believed this virtual competition would provide hope to those who were financially disenfranchised when the world stopped for COVID-19.

More about the International Clarinetist Corona Competition from the organizers:

International Clarinetist Corona Competition:

—offers an incentive to achieve high-performance goals

—encourages wider participation by offering prizes in several genres

—offers tangible and intangible prizes that will further aspirations

Chansons de la Nature pour la Clarinette, tells a story about nature as told by the clarinet’s agile voice. The French titles and basis of the pieces were inspired by the lyrical and pastoral quality of the French language and the images it invokes. The piece is also inspired by the images presented in Aesop’s fables (and Jean de la Fontain’s retelling of them); in particular, the movement “Le Lièvre et la Tortue” tells of the slow tortoise beating the fast hare with his patience and determination. Both creatures are represented in this movement, from the plodding of the tortoise to the quick movements of the hare.

The other movements also represent a variety of characters and situations from these famous fables. “Le Poisson” darts, “Le Papillon” flutters and floats, “L’étoile” shimmers in the night sky, nature ‘dances’, and “Le Serpent” is slippery and quick.  Each movement is short, but just long enough to evoke a story and create a ‘song of nature’ for the clarinet.

1. Les Oiseaux
   II. Le Poisson
   III. Le Papillon
   Recording from Jenni’s CD “Songs of California: Music for Winds and Piano”
   IV. Le Lièvre et La Tortue
   V. L’Etoile
   VI. Dansez!
   VII. Le Serpent

This work appears on Jenni’s CD SONGS OF CALIFORNIA: MUSIC FOR WINDS AND PIANO it is also available on Jenni’s website at Chansons de la Nature pour la Clarinette