Talk:Clarinet Quintet (Mozart)

Was the quintet written for basset clarinet?

At the begining of the article it says that this quintet was written for basset clarinet, altough it is played today on a normal A clarinet. Were did the people that wrote this article got that information? It is really not confirmed that Mozart wrote his clarinet quintet for basset clarinet. In fact, the most probably thing (but unconfirmed, too) is that he did not. Why? Because it's probable that this instrument (the basset clarinet) wasn't invented yet when Mozart wrote the quintet. Mozart wrote for basset clarinet first in his opera "La clemenza di Tito" and then in his Clarinet concerto as "a new instrument that Stadler had invented". He originally intended to wrote this concerto for basset horn (not basset clarinet which is a different instrument) in the key of G major two years earlier (1789, he only completed the first part of the first movement, this is the only manuscript that survives today), and then transcribed what he had already written to adapt it to "the new Stadler instrument", the basset clarinet, and create the first movement of the concerto. So it seems very unlikely that he wrote the quintet for an instrument that probably did not exist yet at that time... —Preceding unsigned comment added by Clarihuge 200.3.249.199 (talk) 05:34, 24 March 2008 (UTC)

1) From Oxford Music Online, "Basset clarinet", Nicholas Shackleton: "The instrument was probably devised by Anton Stadler in collaboration with the Viennese instrument maker T. Lotz. Several of Mozart’s compositions were intended for a basset clarinet rather than for an instrument of conventional range: the Concerto k622 and the Quintet k581 required a basset clarinet in A, while the clarinet obbligato in La clemenza di Tito required a basset clarinet in B♭." Thus there certainly is a reliable, notable source that definitely says the Mozart clarinet quintet was written for the basset clarinet.

2) Oxford Music Online dates the composition of the Mozart clarinet quintet as occurring in September of 1789 (Oxford Music Online, "Mozart", "10. Works", Cliff Eisen, Stanley Sadie: "The Clarinet Quintet k581 of September 1789...."). The Oxford Music Online "Stadler, Anton" article by Pamela L. Poulin says that the basset clarinet " was first played in public at Stadler’s concert of 20 February 1788." If these dates are correct, then the basset clarinet certainly did exist before the composition of the quintet. TheScotch (talk) 11:53, 29 November 2014 (UTC)

3) Re: "Mozart wrote for basset clarinet first in his opera 'La clemenza di Tito' and then in his Clarinet concerto as 'a new instrument that Stadler had invented'."

It's not clear who you're quoting here, but note that the quintet was composed only two years (almost exactly two years) before the opera. If the basset clarinet had been new in 1789, it would still have been new in 1791. TheScotch (talk) 06:39, 30 November 2014 (UTC)

Why move?

I don't think the recent move from Clarinet Quintet (Mozart) to Quintet in A major for Clarinet and Strings was necessary or helpful. The latter title seems very much prone to conflict with other works, while the original title, as it has been here since 2005, is by far the most common name. I know that REDIRECTs make these discussions a bit nit-picky, but I suggest to move the article back. -- Michael Bednarek (talk) 14:17, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

I've moved it back. The original mover is welcome to come here and explain their proposal if they still feel strongly about it. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 23:41, 11 June 2014 (UTC)

Structure

The paragraphs titled "First movement" and "Second movement" are taken verbatim from a blurb at a CD seller site called "Pristine Classical" (or vice versa), and the "Second movement" paragraph appears to be wrong. The second movement is actually in simple ABA ternary form with a short coda. TheScotch (talk) 09:49, 16 November 2014 (UTC)

Analysis

The section of the article labelled "Analysis" has no actual analysis. TheScotch (talk) 09:51, 16 November 2014 (UTC)

Wiki Education assignment: Chamber Music Literature

This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 18 January 2022 and 12 May 2022. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Reywhatareyoudoing (article contribs).

Image

Why in the world is there a clarinet in the image? ISometimesEatBananas (talk) 01:06, 29 February 2024 (UTC)