Customer Reviews

Mozart: Clarinet Concerto / Oboe Concerto -Antony Pay / Michel Piguet / The Academy of Ancient Music / Christopher Hogwood

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a clarinet player, I have heard over 20 different professional (and numerous amateur) renditions of the clarinet concerto of Mozart. This performance by Anthony Pay brought tears to my eyes. It was just as the composer meant it to be heard, with a deep, rich sound only the basset horn can produce. A marvellous performance all round. Made me rush out and buy this recording the moment I heard it on the radio.

This CD is a successful coming-together of two of Mozart's best concerti, two brilliant soloists and some very good conducting.

More often than not, the Oboe Concerto in C is heard in its flute version - transposed to the key of D. This recording presents Mozart's original layout of the oboe concerto played with period instruments or accurate replicas. The bold stability of the key of C major suits the optimism of this concerto, composed in what many call Mozart's mid-period. Fresh yet mature, the language is extremely expressive. The contrast between the three movements goes to the heart of 18th-Century theory on dramatic contrasts - with the confident Allegro, the lyric Adagio and the bouncy Allegretto.

Tempo choice is impeccable. Orchestral textures come across as vibrant and dynamic thanks to the consummate experience of the Academy of Ancient Music, one of the premier Baroque orchestras. But the playing of Michel Piguet is what really sets this performance apart. The sheer fire he puts into the solo makes this music as current and heartfelt as if he really "lived it." His sound is full and expressive, and his choice of cadenzas nothing short of exquisite. The climax to the high "e" in the first movement's cadenza - and the way Piguet reaches it - is delightful.

The Clarinet Concerto brings the listener to another mood - that of Mozart's more somber "third period." Compared to the oboe concerto, the tones are darker, the melodic phrases longer and the counterpoint between the solo and the orchestral voices more complex and pronounced.

One of the important things that sets this CD apart is this. Mozart did not write this piece for a conventional clarinet (in A or Bb) - but for an experimental hybrid instrument capable of extending the clarinet's normal range down to a low and eerie bass register. This instrument, the "Basset Clarinet" was reconstructed for this recording and played masterfully by Anthony Pay.

Thus, the many passages that were transposed an octave higher to suit the modern clarinet (losing most of their dramatic flare) have been restored to their proper pitch - much to the music's advantage. Hear the basset clarinet's "dialogues" between its high and low register, close your eyes and imagine a soprano and a baritone exchanging lines in a sublime opera...

Good choice on continuo playing too. Rather than conducting from the podium as modern conductors do, Hogwood conducts from the harpsichord and the fortepiano respectively. This adds yet more contrast to the different colors of the two concerti - the first brighter, the second rounder and more sedate.

Overall, an excellent CD, that combines great musicological research with expressiveness, fire and passion.

The liner notes are excellent, providing the history of Mozart's concertos for these instruments and of this recording. Shows the period instruments that were used.

I agree with the reviewer who enjoyed the oboe concerto more. It is lulty and captivating in its swings and melodies, and the oboe richness and trills are wonderful. The Orchestration led by Hogwood is well done as well.

The full, throaty sound of the basset clarinet is rich and Pay's playing is excellent, with good tempo and intonation throughout. Piguet's oboe concerto is superb! Even and balanced solo sounds around and above the orchestration.

Favorites include the Adagio non troppo of the Oboe Concerto where both oboeist and orchestra sing to each other.

This clarinet concerto in A (K622) [along with the piano concerto in d (K466)] convince me that Mozart was expressing himiself, in addition to composing for an audience, and may be the first 'romantic' in these last, late concerti. (Mozart often improvised the slow movements of his piano concerti as well as the condenzas.) I own the Philips recording of K622 with Eric Heprich and the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century, but this is the one I play. Both recordings are with basset clarinets, but this is the one that brings tears to my eyes. You don't have to have any knowledge of the formal structure of classical music to appreciate this concerto, just listen with your heart.

A nice record by the Academy of Ancient Music.
Using original instruments or copy`s, they produce a sound image quite diferent from what we are use to hear, especially on the clarinet concert.
The CD comes with a very good booklet; telling the story behind the record in English, French and German.
A record not unly for the few, but for all lovers of brilliant music. And of course MOZART.

... might not seem so long in comparison to the 220 years, more or less, since Mozart composed his enduringly popular Clarinet Concerto, but a significant improvement in the technical skills of both replica instrument makers and historical instrument performers has transpired. Thus I have to say that I'm surprised how well this performance by Antony Pay, on a conjectural bassett clarinet, has stood up. I've heard live performances on period instruments that surpassed this recording, but I haven't encountered a CD that even equals it. I can't say anything as nice about the accompanying Oboe Concerto K314; in fact I'd rather say nothing about it except that it's the reason for a deducted star in my rating.

The Clarinet Concerto was a late and semi-finished work, left in manuscript and not published until ten years after Mozart's death. The first publication involved frequent octave transpositions of whole passages in order to avoid the four lowest notes available on the bassett for which Mozart actually intended the music. That anonymous transposer probably doomed the bassett horn to near extinction, since forevermore the concerto has been played, with transpositions, on clarinets lacking the extended range. But the muddle is worse than that; the precise form of bassett horn played by Anton Stadler is unclear, and no plausible exactly historical model has survived. Antony Pay played an instrument made in 1984 by Daniel Bangham, based on a Viennese bassett made circa 1800; its lowest sounded note is the A on the lowest space of the bass clef, but the instrument is tuned to A430, and that's the tuning of this performance. What you hear, therefore, is a more somber, shaded performance than any modern clarinetist would produce. Oddly, to my ears, that difference is most apparent and affective in the 3rd movement rondo:allegro than is the 'nocturnal' 2nd movement adagio. But understand, please that more than four low notes are at stake; whole passages, now not requiring upward transposition, converse with the orchestra in a different emotive register.

Christopher Hogwood could wave his baton more vigorously in 1986, and more boldly, than has become his style in later years. He neither over- nor under-interpreted in this recording session. In every way, he and his orchestra yield center stage to the bassett clarinet. It's interesting that the superb performance of Mozart's Clarinet Quintet on 'original' instruments, performed by Alan Hacker with the Salomon String Quartet, was issued just two years before this recording, in 1984. Hacker's instrument was also specially built, by Brian Ackerman, to provide an extended lower range. The Quintet was composed around 1789, after Mozart began the Concerto but before he finished it. Both compositions are among the most sublime of Mozart's masterworks.

WINNER OF GRAMOPHONE'S 'EDITOR'S CHOICE CD AWARD' 1990, THIS CD'S TOUR-DE-FORCE PERIOD INSTRUMENT PERFORMANCE OF
MOZART'S CLARINET CONCERTO K.622 AND OBOE CONCERTO K.314 BY CHRISTOPHER HOGWOOD'S CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC IS FOUND IN MOST MOZART AUDIOPHILE'S PERMANENT CD/MP3 COLLECTIONS!

CD REVIEWER NOTE TO AMAZON.COM READERS: I TYPE WITH LARGE CAP LETTERS TO READ WHAT I WRITE BECAUSE I AM A 100% DISABLED DECORATED VIETNAM VETERAN AND AM ALMOST BLIND WITH MACULAR DEGENERATION. I APOLOGIZE FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE CAPS MAY CAUSE YOU. ~PATRICK HILL, MOZART SCHOLAR & AUTHOR~

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART [1756-1791]
CLARINET CONCERTO IN A [K.622] & OBOE CONCERTO IN C [K.314]
FEATURING ANTHONY PAY, BASSET CLARINET & MICHEL PIGUET, OBOE
WITH CONDUCTOR CHRISTOPHER HOGWOOD AND LONDON'S
LEGENDARY ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC (AAM)

THIS SUPERB ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC MOZART CD IS RATED 5-STARS BY CLASICAL MUSIC
AUDIOPHILES AS THE WORLD'S #1 PERIOD INSTRUMENT CD OF MOZART'S CLARINET CONCERTO K.622
AND IN A [K.622]AND OBOE CONCERTO IN C [K.314]!

CD REVIEW
THIS WIND CONCERTOS CD IS WITHOUT A DOUBT THE WORLD'S FINEST CD RECORDING OF MOZART'S CLARINET CONCERTO K.622 AND OBOE CONCERTO K.314 PERFORMED BY CLARINETIST ANTONY PAY AND OBOIST MICHEL PIGUET SOME OF EUROPE'S GREATEST PERIOD INSTRUMENT MUSICIANS.

ON THIS WIND CONCERTOS CD, ANTONY PAY PLAYS AN AUTHENTIC 1789 PERIOD INSTRUMENT BASSET CLARINET AND OBOIST MICHEL PIGUET PLAYS AN AUTHENTIC 1783 PERIOD INSTRUMENT GRUNDMANN OBOE WITH A POLISHED TECHNIQUE EXHIBITING PASSION, WARMTH, AND SENSITIVITY!

BOTH CLARINETIST ANTONY PAY'S PERFORMANCE OF MOZART'S CLARINET CONCERTO AND OBOIST MICHEL PIGUET'S PERFORMANCE OF MOZART'S OBOE CONCERTO DELIGHTS OUR EARS WITH THEIR 18TH CENTURY PERIOD INSTRUMENTS EXQUISITELY SOFT TEMPO, EXPRESSION, ACCENT, TONE, AND NOTES!

CONDUCTOR CHRISTOPHER HOGWOOD AND THE ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC ACADEMY DELIVER DELIVER AN BREATHTAKING SPRITED PERFORMANCE OF MOZART'S CLARINET CONCERTO AND OBOE CONCERTO LIKE MOZART INTENDED THEM TO BE HEARD AND PLAYED AS DESCRIBED IN MOZART'S OWN WRITTEN WORDS "HEARD AND PLAYED WITH UNASSUMING ELEGANCE, CLARITY, AND SIMPLICITY!"
THE ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC'S SOFTER SOUNDING 18TH CENTURY PERIOD INSTRUMENTS PRODUCES FAR SUPERIOR SOUND CLARITY SO THE AUDIENCE HEARS ALL OF THE MUSIC'S DETAILS WITH EVERY MUSICAL NOTE!

I HAVE ALWAYS LOVED WOLFGANG MOZART'S HAPPY CAREFREE WIND CONCERTOS [CLARINET, OBOE, FLUTE, FLUTE & HARP] FOR THEIR UNASSUMING TRANSLUCENT BEAUTY! WHEN MOZART COMPOSED HIS WIND CONCERTOS, HE WAS NOT THE SAME MOZART WHO COMPOSED SYMPHONIES AND PIANO CONCERTOS THAT CONTAIN THE SPECTRUM OF HUMAN EMOTIONS FROM GREAT HAPPINESS TO GREAT SADNESS!

ABOUT CHRISTOPHER HOGWOOD & THE ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC [AAM]
CHRISTOPHER HOGWOOD IS A WORLD RENONWED ENGLISH CONDUCTOR, CONCERTMASTER, HARPSICHORDIST, WRITER, AND SCHOLAR OF MUSIC. IN 1973, CHRISTOPHER HOGWOOD FOUNDED THE ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC [AAM] IN LONDON ENGLAND AS THE WORLD'S FIRST PERIOD-INSTRUMENT CLASSICAL MUSIC ORCHESTRA THAT IS RATED #1 BY CLASSICAL MUSIC AUDIOPHILES. SINCE 1973, THE ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC HAS PERFORMED 500 CONCERTS ACROSS SIX CONTINENTS AND OVER RECORDED OVER 250 CLASSICAL MUSIC CDS CLEARLY DEMONSTRATES THE ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC'S PRE-EMINENCE AS THE WORLD'S FINEST PERIOD INSTRUMENT CLASSICAL MUSIC ORCHESTRA!

While I have never particularly favored authentic instrument recordings over modern ones, there is no doubt that this disc is a must-have for any Mozart enthusiast.The liner notes are essential reading, and the performances of the soloists and the Academy of Ancient Music are in a word, impeccable. To hear these magical pieces performed on many original instruments, especially an oboe crafted in 1783, is an enlightening listening experience that is rare today. The remarkable adagio of the clarinet concerto, composed by Mozart in 1791, is some of the most poignant music I've ever heard, brilliantly performed by Antony Pay with warm liquid tones on the bass clarinet. No Mozart collection is complete without this landmark recording from 1984.

I agree completely with Dr. Pyne. Like her, I play clarinet and I would not have thought anyone could surprise me with a performance of Mozart's clarinet concerto. Yet moments after I turned on the car radio to find this one playing, I found myself marveling at every aspect of it--the tone quality, the separation and eveness of notes at speed, the emotional content--everything. I can hardly believe how well Anthony Pay performed it. I have never bought a recording just because I heard it on the radio, but I will buy this one just as soon and I can decided whether I want in on CD or MP3.

This record is a very good version of the clarinet concerto and the oboe one. One of the good things who has got this CD is that it's recorded with authentic instruments. That means that we are listening the lovely pieces like Mozart's time. I think that it's interesting. The clarinet concerto has got Mozart's exquisiteness. I pining more spectacular clarinet solos, because the clarinet is always accompanied by the orchestra and this makes the clarinet's solos very shy. I think the oboe concerto is more beautiful than the clarinet one. It's more attractive and funnier. The worst think that this record has got is the sound, with some imperfections. The informations that you can found in this CD are very interesting. It contains photographs of the musicians and the instruments and technical aspects of the pieces. About the musicians, we have specially to comment the soloists, Antony Pay (Clarinet) and Michel Piguet (Oboe). They are the best clarinetist and oboist that I've ever heard in my life. It's very difficult to arrive at their perforance level. The Academy of Ancient Music and its conductor Christopher Hogwood are very good and their are famous for their quality around the world, but they don't arrive at Mr. Pay's and Mr Piguet's level.