For Clarinet solo with wind quartet and string quartet. Score OnlyFirst performed by Michael Collins Clarinet London Winds and the Endellion String Quartet on 27th January 2011 at the Wigmore Hall London.Scoring:Solo ClarinetFluteOboeBassoonFrench Horn2 ViolinsViolaCelloDuration:circa 13 minutes'During a visit to the exhibition of Francis Bacon at the Tate Gallery in December 2008my eye fell on Figure in a Landscape 1945 which resonated in me powerfully. It is a sceneof devastation and despair and also it seemed to me of latent anger and hostility... butabove it all a serene blue sky beckons. So perhaps even in the darkest moments there is aglimmer of hope - the possibility of change.This idea became the starting point for this work - Towards the Blue - a mini concerto forclarinet who eventually becomes the leader of the group.The work starts without the clarinet and all is desolate yet fiercely argumentative discordant and uncomfortable. Suddenly the offstage clarinet is heard and the players insurprise are quietened. However when the clarinet enters and approaches with a lyricalmusical motif some of the players respond others resist. Gradually the clarinetpersuades the dissident voices to join him in a spirit of co-operation and harmony.A brief memory of the opening desolation casts a momentary shadow which is quicklydispelled by the coda marked Gioioso.'Thea Musgrave (May 13th 2010)Parts available for hire separately

By the age of forty Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg was one of the busiest concert composers in the world. His music avails itself of all manner of modern innovations but there is a Neo-Classical orientation in his harmoniesand formal design that makes his works appealing to a wide audience. The Quintet for Clarinet and Strings was comissioned by Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival and first performed in this festival in Finland in 1992. In the composer'sown words: 'Despite its rather extended duration (almost 20 minutes) the work is in one continuous movement. Sections are based on either a static material composed of different scales giving the music an 'insect like'appereance or on directional processes forcing the music to gradually change character or even physically pushing the music to extreme registers or speed.' This edition contains all the Parts.

für Klarinette 2 Violinen Viola und Violoncello-1890 est l?année où Brahms envisagea d?arrêter de composer. Heureusement sa rencontre avec Richard von Mühlfeld clarinettiste du célèbre orchestre de la cour de Meiningen le détourna de ce projet et l?incita dès 1891 à composer le trio avec clarinette op. 114 ainsi que le quintette avec clarinette op. 115 ? deux des ?uvres les plus extraordinaires qui soient parmi le répertoire de cet instrument. Les premières exécutions publiques eurent lieu à Berlin et un peu plus tard à Vienne et furent couronnées d?un tel succès que Joseph Joachim désigna le quintette avec clarinette comme l?une des meilleures ?uvres jamais composées par Brahms. Comme toujours la présente édition urtext deséditions Henle a donné lieu à l?analyse approfondie de toutes les sources pertinentes. Les corrections personnelles de Brahms y ont également été intégrée.

First performance on 20th November 2007 at St George’s Hall Liverpool by Nicholas Cox (Clarinet) and the Chilingirian Quartet as part of the Rodewald Concert Series.

The first movement of Mozart's second clarinet quintet-Mozart's Sonata Allegro For Clarinet And String Quartet is certainly an exciting addition to the Clarinet repertoire. The first movement of Mozart's projected Second Clarinet Quintet the 'fragment' that is the basis of this work had been known about for many years and was always considered a trial run for the great K581; however recent dating has shown the two pages of manuscript date from after the Clarinet Quintet.The distinguished Mozart scholar Timothy Jones has proved this to be the beginning of a response to the popularity of K581. It was only as a result of his early death that the workremained incomplete. Jones has completed the work using his deep knowledge of late Mozart and we have now a very important new addition to the Clarinet Quintet repertoire.