Clarinet for our Times
The most telling statements are often the simplest. Instead of symphonic moving vans, we get the highly manoeuvrable vehicle of an unaccompanied instrument, telling us that more is less. No music emanating from our days of unrest is more eloquent than Anthony McGill’s brief and understated clarinet solo variant on “America, the Beautiful” that we hear on You Tube as part of his “TakeTwoKnees” series. As one of the most esteemed black figures in American symphonic music, he is a…