Clarinet Concerto in A Major

Clarinet Concerto in A major, K. 622

Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Date of premiere: October 16, 1791

This is the most famous piece of repertoire for clarinet and is widely considered to be the greatest concerto written for clarinet. It was also written and premiered around 2 months before Mozart’s untimely death at the age of 35.

The concerto begins with an orchestral introduction that presents the graceful main theme of the first movement. When the clarinet enters, it plays its own version of the main theme and introduces several new ones, traversing the whole range of the instrument with several flourishes. Throughout, Mozart fully exploits the different sonorities of the clarinet, from the clear, pure high notes to the warm middle register and the chesty lower range. The soloist’s forays into darker, minor tonalities add expressive complexity to the music’s elegant beauty. Fun fact: The solo exposition of the first movement appears in almost every professional orchestral clarinet audition.

The slow second movement is a marvel of artful simplicity; its undisturbed, serene beauty make it one of Mozart’s loveliest creations. Reflecting Mozart’s skill as an opera composer, it is effectively a three-part aria for the clarinet, which assumes the role of a soprano singer. The movement begins with a long melody whose phrases are introduced by the clarinet and then echoed by the orchestra. A central section focuses completely on the soloist, whose part includes more ornamental figuration. The opening melody finally returns in abbreviated form at the end. The fast and playful final movement takes the form of a rondo, in which a main melody alternates with contrasting episodes. After the soloist and orchestra introduce the jaunty main theme, the soloist launches into a sweet, complimentary second theme that becomes increasingly expressive and developmental as it unfolds. The main theme then makes a brief return, leading to a contrasting episode in a minor key. Surprisingly, Mozart then reprises the second theme first, withholding the full return of the main melody for the concerto’s joyful conclusion.

Movements:

I. Allegro

II. Adagio

III. Rondo: Allegro