PRO MUSICIS FINALE : KANOFF IN CLARINET RECITAL

Though capable of deliciously silly giggling and mournfully quiet weeping, the clarinet is equally adept at monochromatic noodling.

To escape this trap, the collective spirit of composer and player must be willing. Such, alas, was not the case often enough at the Bing Theater of the County Museum of Art on Wednesday.

Appearing on the final event in the Pro Musicis series at the museum, Steven Kanoff, a 33-year-old California native now living in Switzerland, rarely succeeded in stirring the emotions in a recital of humdrum works. Only in a trio by Mozart did the clarinetist appear to shed his stiff demeanor and allow the music to soar.

The “Kegelstatt” Trio, K. 498, served as a finely balanced ensemble vehicle for Kanoff, pianist Jean Barr and violist James Dunham. Its subtle charms and mature Mozartean musings were clearly and lovingly projected. Three seemed to be Kanoff’s lucky number--in tandem with Barr, success eluded him.

Maybe it was the music: a pleasant if forgettable Duo Concertant by Milhaud; a slightly amusing Sonata of Poulenc, and two meandering potboilers--Schumann’s “Fantasiestuecke” and Weber’s Grand Duo Concertant.

Maybe it was the piano: an unresponsive, hopelessly muffled Grotrian Steinweg. Try as she might, Barr never matched her partner’s brilliant tone. The distracting piano may be partly to blame for a few uncharacteristically smudged passages that intruded on otherwise rock-steady playing.

In addition to his ability to fill the room with sound, Kanoff displayed ample technique, notably in the knock-’em-dead coda of the Weber. The clarinetist did fall short in projecting the wit of Poulenc and the Romantic longings of Schumann.