W. A. Mozart
Larghetto from
Clarinet Quintet (K. 581)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composer, violinist and piano virtuoso, was born on January 26, 1756 in Salzburg, Austria and died on December 5, 1791 in Vienna, Austria. The Clarinet Quintet (K. 581) was completed on September 29, 1789 and first performed December 22, 1789.

The “K” in K. 581 stands for an Austrian musicologist named Ludwig Köchel (pronounced “Kershel”) who, in 1862, published a numerical list of Mozart’s works in the order in which they had been written - i.e., K. 1 was the first & K. 626, the last. In addition to the Quintet, a Trio, K. 498 (for clarinet, viola & piano), and a Concerto, K. 622, were all written for his friend, clarinetist Anton Stadler (1753-1812). Stadler had a fascination with lower notes which led him to have a clarinet constructed which could play down to low C - usually referred to as a Basset-Clarinet.

The Basset-Horn had been invented in the 1760’s by Mayrhofer; its range went down to low C but it was usually pitched in F or G. Mozart’s original sketch (only 199 bars) for the Concerto was written in 1789, before the Quintet, and was for Basset-Horn in G. It is probable that the final versions of the Quintet and the Concerto (completed in October 1791, less than two months before Mozart’s death) were written for Stadler’s Basset-Clarinet in A; however, the original manuscripts for both works have disappeared (most likely into Stadler’s hands) as have any examples of Stadler’s actual Basset-Clarinet.

All modern versions of the work are based on editions for the standard Clarinet in A, published ten years after Mozart’s death. The Clarinet Quintet (K. 581) has 4 movements: Allegro; Larghetto; Minuet & Trio(s); and Theme & Variations. This arrangement has been transposed up a semitone so that it can be played on a Bb Clarinet and a one bar introduction has been added to the Solo part and the CD; however, the (real) piano accompaniment part begins on bar 1.

9”X12” - 8 pages - $14.95
Piano accompaniment part - 8 pages
CD - 18 Audio tracks

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