Ever since Mozart encountered the Clarinet in Mannheim in 1778 he loved the instrument?s warm and expressive tone. His friendship with Anton Stadler the clarinetist in the Royal-Imperial Court Orchestra in Vienna prompted him to compose not only the Clarinet Concerto (K. 622) but also this ?Quintet of Quintets? which was written two years before his death. Like almost all his works for the Clarinet this Quintet wasprobably intended originally for the Basset Clarinet. However it survives only in two posthumous prints both of which call for a standard Clarinet. These prints form the basis of our edition. As an added bonus the appendixcontains a fragmentary Allegro in Bb major for the same combination of instruments.

Robin Milford was a friend of Gerald Finzi and this work certainly owes something to that major 20th century composer. The Quintet is full of wonderful tunes as well as robust and characteristic writing for both the Clarinet and Strings. Arranged for Clarinet and String Quartet.

This is the set of performance parts for Weber's Quintet In B Flat Op.34 for Clarinet and String Quartet. The clarinet part has been edited by Stanley Drucker.