Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra in A Major, K. 622

Featuring

Wenzel Fuchs
Alan Gilbert
Berliner Philharmoniker
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

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Instruments

Mozart originally composed his Clarinet Concerto for a basset clarinet in A, an instrument custom-made for Anton Stadler with four additional semitones in its lower range.

Composition History

The autograph manuscript of Mozart's Clarinet Concerto for basset clarinet is lost; the only existing source is an 1801 publication where an unknown person rewrote the part for a conventional A-clarinet.

Composition History

Mozart composed his Clarinet Concerto for Anton Stadler, an outstanding master of the clarinet, with whom Mozart had a friendship.

Performer Biography

Wenzel Fuchs, the principal clarinetist featured on this album, has been a member of the Berliner Philharmoniker since 1993.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Clarinet Concerto, featured on this album, is considered 'honest' music that does not rely on effects or typical virtuosity, even omitting standard cadenzas.

Historical Context

The clarinet, an instrument for which Mozart composed this concerto, was relatively new, developed around 1700, and Mozart was among the first to fully utilize it in orchestras.