Musicians from the UK’s leading string orchestra join forces with clarinettist Matthew Hunt to explore the nuanced beauty of two of the most cherished pieces in the clarinet repertoire: Mozart and Brahms’s clarinet quintets.
The performance, taking place on Sunday 7 October (3.30pm) at the Crichton Memorial Church in Dumfries, is part of Dumfries & Galloway’s Arts Live seasonal programme which includes events between October and March next year. Matthew and Scottish Ensemble will then embark on a Scottish tour, calling at Perth (8 Oct), Edinburgh (9 Oct), Inverness (10 Oct), Glasgow (12 Oct) and Kirkcudbright (14 Oct).
Ken Gouge, Chair of Dumfries & Galloway Arts Festival who run Arts Live said;
“We are delighted to support Scottish Ensemble and help attract and promote quality events in the region. Chamber Notes promises to be a wonderful performance from one of Britain’s best clarinettists in one of the region’s most atmospheric venues and the Scottish Ensemble will also return for a special candlelit performance later in December”.
Mozart and Brahms wrote just one clarinet quintet each, both in the final years of their lives. But it’s their inherent quality and charm, not only their solitary status, which has always made these quintets stand out amongst each composer’s repertoire.
Mozart’s is now not only one of his best-known pieces, but one of the most cherished in the clarinet repertoire, and it’s easy to see why: moments of understated virtuosity bloom from a soft, calm, mellow beauty. Brahms’ quintet – modelled on Mozart’s, as so many of his works are – is similarly autumnal in mood, with waves of contemplative major and melancholic minor moods shifting like sunlight.
Scottish Ensemble are pleased to welcome leading clarinettist Matthew Hunt to join them on the tour. As well as holding the esteemed position of solo clarinettist with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, he is also a member of the Sheffield based chamber group Ensemble 360.
SE musicians will also perform a movement from a piece by American composer John Luther Adams taken from his first string quartet, The Wind In High Places, which was written at the age of 59 in tribute to a friend who had died.
Chamber Notes was first performed this August in Plockton, and on Skye and Mull, as part of Scottish Ensemble’s ongoing community and creative learning activities. The group also delivered a workshop with the young string players of the Mull Music Makers group, and two workshops for secondary school children in conjunction with Plockton High School, and SEALL at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig. On Sunday 14 October, the concert forms part of the Kirkcudbright Festival of Light.
Programme
Brahms
Clarinet Quintet in B Minor, Op. 115
John Luther Adams
The Wind in High Places (movement II)
Mozart
Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 851
Listings information
Crichton Church
Sun 7 Oct 2018 at 3.30pm
Crichton Memorial Church
Dumfries
DG1 4ZZ
Tickets: www.dgartslive.org.uk
