Friday, July 23, 2021

Almost ninety years after the publication of Beethoven’s Opus 38 Clarinet Trio, Johannes Brahms composed his two sonatas for clarinet and piano. Brahms had already decided to retire from composing, but after hearing the clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld play Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet, he was captivated by the beautiful tone of the instrument. He and Mühlfeld became close friends, and Brahms wrote several pieces for clarinet which were to be among his last compositions.