Carducci String Quartet & Julian Bliss - Mozart & Weber: Clarinet Quintets (2018) [Official Digital Download 24/96]

Julian Bliss joins the Carducci String Quartet in performances of two seminal works – Weber’s Clarinet Quintet in B flat Major, Op. 34 and Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K.581.

Both Mozart and Weber were inspired by the artistry of performers of their day (Anton Stadler in Mozart’s case, and Heinrich Baermann in Weber’s). Their technical prowess, tonal quality and imaginative range allowed each composer to expand the clarinet repertoire with these works, which remain pre-eminent in the genre.

This is the second recording collaboration between Bliss and the Carducci String Quartet, following the 2016 release of David Bruce’s Gumboots and Brahms’s Clarinet Quintet: “Here’s a double delight.

First, an engaging new work which deserves a place in the chamber repertory; second, a passionate account of Brahms’s Clarinet Quintet which can hold its head high against starrier competition…Bliss is in his element…for forthright Brahms and a toe-tapping new work, this is strongly recommended.” (Gramophone)

Tracklist:
1. Clarinet Quintet in B-Flat Major, Op. 34, J. 182: I. Allegro 10:15
2. Clarinet Quintet in B-Flat Major, Op. 34, J. 182: II. Fantasia – Adagio ma non troppo 05:14
3. Clarinet Quintet in B-Flat Major, Op. 34, J. 182: III. Minuetto Capriccio – Presto 05:13
4. Clarinet Quintet in B-Flat Major, Op. 34, J. 182: IV. Rondo – Allegro giocoso 06:12
5. Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 581: I. Allegro 09:20
6. Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 581: II. Larghetto 06:20
7. Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 581: III. Menuetto – Trio I – Trio II 06:57
8. Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 581: IV. Allegretto con Variazioni 09:15

Personnel:
Julian Bliss, clarinet
Carducci String Quartet