The Danish Clarinet Trio

Among the innovations of the classical period was also the appearance of new instruments. Mozart was certainly responsible for the first “letters of nobility” of the clarinet, for which he found a magnificent virtuoso in the person of Anton Stadler. Certainly the cello is not a “newcomer” but, in the work of Beethoven, who wanted to seduce the Prussian king Frederick William II who, in his spare time, played the cello, the assertion of its melodic and expressive role is completely new in the field of chamber music. As far as Brahms is concerned, it was the encounter with the virtuoso Richard Mühlfeld, which prompted him to write for the clarinet. Inexperienced in the solo use of this instrument, he referred to the model from Beethoven's opus 11 to imagine this first composition where the clarinet dialogues with the cello.