Virtuoso Arrangements

In spite of Ponchielli's longstanding friendship with B-flat clarinet soloist, Alessandro Peri, he created no new music for him. Instead, he made wind band transcriptions of various virtuosic works based on operatic themes by other clarinetists, most prominently fellow Cremonese, Luigi Bassi (1831-1871). Though listed below, an edition of the Lucia di Lammermoor "concerto" cannot be completed as there is no extant copy of the solo part. As in the case of Il Convegno, Ponchielli provided only a partial solo part. Bassi's duo on La Sonnambula was likely performed by Peri and E-flat clarinet soloist, Francesco Ottoboni. The setting of a "concerto" on I Puritani by Bassi was completed in July, 1865, as (perhaps) Ponchielli's concerns about the band were surfacing. No dates can be found for Domenico Mirco whose two selections are transformed in Ponchielli's hands. The clarinet "concerto" is based on a Neapolitan folksong, Venne la barca. Ever the master technician, Ponchielli tightened up loose ends in the introductory and intermediate sections. For Ottoboni, Ponchielli arranged and transposed up the interval of a fourth Mirco's "fantasia" on Donizetti's Beatrice di Tenda. A single work by Ernesto Cavallini (1807-1874) completes these works. Characterized as a "concerto," it is based on Donizetti's comic opera L'elisir d'Amor.

Concerto per Clarino sull'opera Lucia di Lammermoor di Bassi, PP.50.12

Concerto per Clarino sull'opera I Puritani di Bassi, PP.52.08

Duetto di Concerto sulla Sonnambula di Bassi, Op. 201, PP.136.4

Concerto per Clarino di Mirco, PP.55.01

Fantasia per Clarino sulla Beatrice di Tenda di Mirco, Op. 241, PP.138.12

Concerto per Clarino sull'opera L'Elisir D'Amor di Cavallini, PP.52.05