The Berliner Solisten perform Brahms's Clarinet Quintet
Clarinet Quintet in B minor
Cast
Karl Leister — Clarinetist
Bernd Gellermann — Violinist
Bernhard Hartog — Violinist
Wolfram Christ — Violist
Jörg Baumann — Cellist
Program notes
The Clarinet Quintet in B Minor, Op. 115, was born during the final creative period of Brahms's life. In 1891, the composer was so impressed by clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld that he came out of retirement and set about creating this piece—which was finished in a matter of weeks. The Berliner Solisten bring spontaneity and subtlety to this pillar of the chamber repertoire, and clarinetist Karl Leister guides the other instruments through the folk influences that appear throughout the work—a touch of the Balkans, even a glimpse of Byzantium…