The Clarinet

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

1756-1791

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart showed his musical gifts at a very early age; by the age of four, we are told, he could play his lessons perfectly. When he composed his first pieces, he was unable to write the music down, so his father wrote it down for him.

Mozart wrote his first work for the clarinet in 1771, a Divertimento (a light piece written for entertainment purposes). Six years later he visited Mannheim, Germany, and was impressed by the clarinet playing in the famous orchestra at the electoral palace. To his father he wrote, "Alas, if only we also had clarinets."

Mozart only gradually began to use clarinets in his orchestral works, including them in just four of his symphonies. His last work for clarinet--the Clarinet Concerto--is his most famous, and one of the best known works ever written for the instrument.

Clarinet Quintet in A
(audio clip)

Allegro

Mozart wrote the Clarinet Quintet, for clarinet and strings, in 1789, and Anton Stadler gave the work its first performance in Vienna the same year. In the opening of the first movement the clarinet plays a beautiful decorative accompaniment figure; it assumes more important thematic material later in the movement.

Performed by Gervase de Peyer (clarinet) Members of the Melos Ensemble of London
P1964/1989*

*Digital Remastering P as shown by EMI Records Ltd.

The Clarinet Family

Sopranino

The sopranino clarinet is a popular member of the military band, where its high, shrill tone adds sharpness to the mellow sound of the other woodwind and brass instruments. It is seldom used in orchestras, although composers occasionally call for its bright and breezy sound, often giving it a descriptive role to play.

Clarinet

The clarinet's reedy sound is produced by a thin piece of cane that vibrates to the force of the player's breath. Clarinetists have a selection of reeds of various strengths to choose from, depending on whether they want the sound of their instrument to be strident or more gentle. The clarinet blends well with almost all other instruments, especially flute, bassoon, horn, and strings.

Alto Clarinet

The alto clarinet was invented in 1810 by the German clarinetist and instrument maker Iwan Muler. It is lower in pitch and longer and larger than the soprano clarinet. To allow the instrument to be held easily, the mouthpiece is situated in an extra piece of tubing called a "crook," which is bent back toward the player. To avoid directing the sound of the instrument toward the floor, the flared "bell" is curved up and points in the direction of the listener.

Basset Horn

The basset horn is perfectly described by its name-- "basset" means "Little bass" (referring to its deep notes). Today, the basset horn looks similar to the alto clarinet, although a little larger. The basset horn was a favorite instrument of Mozart, who included it in his Requiem. Mendelssohn also wrote for the basset horn, and Richard Strauss used it in several of his operas. Today, basset horn parts are sometimes played by the alto clarinet.

Bass Clarinet

The bass clarinet, larger than the alto clarinet and basset horn, is the lowest member of the clarinet family in general use. The earliest bass clarinets date from the end of the eighteenth century and were probably intended as wind band instruments. During the course of the nineteenth century, however, the bass clarinet slowly began to appear in orchestral scores. The French composer Giacomo Meyerbeer led the way in 1836 by writing an important part for it in his opera Les Huguenots.