Leslie Mann

Mann, Leslie

Mann, Leslie (Douglas). Composer, clarinetist, b Edmonton 13 Aug 1923, d Balmoral, Man, 7 Dec 1977. Though he took lessons in clarinet at 13 and in composition at 15, he was largely self-taught. He became principal clarinet of the CBC Winnipeg Orchestra in 1958 and of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra in 1960. He led the Winnipeg Woodwind Quintette and was a member 1956-66 of the Dirk Keetbaas Players. Leaving the WSO in 1971, he devoted increasing time to composition and received a number of CBC commissions. The works he wrote after 1970 show an individual and undoctrinaire mind, a grasp of form, and a predilection for counterpoint. His music thus shows a nearer relationship to Alan Hovhaness, Robert Simpson, Samuel Barber, and, in an earlier generation, Sibelius than to the descendants of Schoenberg and Webern. He was a member of the CLComp, and his status as associate composer is maintained at the Canadian Music Centre.

Selected Compositions

Five Improvisations for Flute and Piano. 1954. Ms. RCI 215/RCA CCS 1009 (Keetbaas)

Sonata, Opus 17. 1962. Va (clarinet), piano. Ms. RCI 459 (Reiner piano)

My Master Hath a Garden, cantata (Elizabethan poets). 1963. Sop, orch. Ms

The Donkey's Tale, chamber opera (fairy tale). 1971. Sop, mezzo, tenor, bar, orch. Ms

Concerto Grosso for Chamber Orchestra. 1972. Ms

Meditations on a Chorale. 1972. Str orch. Ms

3 Symphonies. (1973-4). Ms. (No. 1) CBC SM-281 (CBC Winnipeg Orchestra)

Weep You No More Sad Fountains. (Elizabethan poems). 1974. V, chamber orch. Ms

Preludio and Scherzo, Opus 38. 1975. Str quartet. Ms

Suite for Saxophone Solo. 1976. Ms

Other works for orch, including concerti for clarinet (1970), bassoon (1971), and fl (1974). Also sonatas for violoncello and piano (1953) and solo violin (1974); some suites for solo instr; works for woodwind quintet; 4 works for piano, including Meditations on a Chorale (1972), which also exists in a version for piano and string orch, and 4 song cycles. All manuscript