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Cover: Carl Maria von Weber – Clarinet Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 · Concertino · Clarinet Quintet

Carl Maria von Weber

Clarinet Concertos Nos. 1 & 2

Concertino · Clarinet Quintet

Kari Kriikku, clarinet
Finnish RSO
Sakari Oramo, conductor
New Helsinki Quartet

ODE 895-2 · CD · April 1997

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Track listing

13 tracks · 75:24

Listen to samples on selected tracks.

Carl Maria von Weber

  1. Clarinet Concerto No. 1 in F minor, Op. 75 20:47
  2. 1 I. Allegro (Cadenza: Kari Kriikku) 8:13
  3. 2 II. Adagio ma non troppo 6:46
  4. 3 III. Rondo (Allegretto) 5:42
  5. Clarinet Concerto No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 74 21:59
  6. 4 I. Allegro 8:28
  7. 5 II. Andante con moto (Cadenza: Kari Kriikku) 6:56
  8. 6 III. Alla Polacca 6:29
  9. Concertino for Clarinet and Orchestra, Op. 26 9:47
  10. 7 I. Adagio ma non troppo 2:50
  11. 8 II. Andante (Cadenza: Kari Kriikku) 4:57
  12. 9 III. Allegro 2:00
  13. Clarinet Quintet in B flat major, Op. 34 23:16
  14. 10 I. Allegro 7:02
  15. 11 II. Fantasia (Adagio) 5:02
  16. 12 III. Menuetto 4:55
  17. 13 IV. Rondo (Allegro) 6:04

About this recording

Finnish star clarinetist Kari Kriikku performs the clarinet works of Carl Maria von Weber. This recording has contributed to the rediscovery of the two concertos, one concertino, and one quintet, which Weber composed for the great clarinet soloist of his time, Heinrich Joseph Bärmann (1784-1847).

Sakari Oramo here conducts the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra in the orchestral works, while the New Helsinki Quartet performs together with Kari Kriikku in the Quintet (which was previously released in 1994 as ODE 820-2). Kari Kriikku plays his own cadenzas.

Features

Booklet with liner notes in English, German, French and Finnish

Press

"Swingender" Vibrato-Belcanto, atemberaubende Staccatotechnik, attraktive Superdynamik (...) Spitzenniveau!
Gerhard Pätzig, Fono Forum, November 1997, Stern

These are brilliant performances of works that more or less reinvented the clarinet as an instrument of brilliance. (...) Kari Kriikku has such a wide range of expression and such an intelligent approach to the music.
John Warrack, Gramophone, September 1997

Kari Kriikku is absolutely sensational throughout (the First Concerto) and keeps the listener riveted by his wonderful virtuosity and range of colours, contrasting utterly briilliant passagework with beauutifully controlled phrasing.
Tim Payne, BBC Music Magazine, September 1997, Performance * / Sound

Outre le clarinettiste Kriikku, prodige d'omniprésence lyrique et d'élans intimes admirables autant que virtuose débordant de verve et d'humour, l'Orchestre Symphonique de la Radio d'Helsinki et son chef Sakari Oramo (...) doivent être cités en exemple pour leur accompagnement exhaustif, chaleureux, nuancé, équilibré, qui colle à l'oeuvre par l'esprit et le coeur.
Jean Hamon, Répertoire, September 1997, 10 de Répertoire

Highly recommendable disc (...). (Kari Kriikku's) refined tone and virtuosity (...) would surely have inspired Weber too: this is playing of quite exceptional quality by a master of the instrument.
Barry Millington, The Times, July 17, 1997

Kriikku's mastery and stylish acumen are beautifully supported by conductor and orchestra, sensationally so by the string players during the Quintet.
BBC Radio 3 In Tune, 8+9/1997

The artists

Kari Kriikku

Hailed by the New York Times as “A physically flamboyant player of Olympian virtuosity…”, Kari Kriikku has been a living inspiration behind a great number of remarkable Finnish compositions for the clarinet. On stage and through recordings, he has championed concertos and chamber works written for him by Kimmo Hakola, Jouni Kaipainen, Magnus Lindberg, Uljas Pulkkis, Kaija Saariaho, and Jukka Tiensuu. Above all, Kari Kriikku has premiered the entire output for clarinet by Magnus Lindberg. His recording of the Clarinet Concerto earned him both a Gramophone Award and a BBC Music Magazine Award in 2006. Furthermore he has championed the clarinet works of Jukka Tiensuu. Both concerto works Puro (“brook”, or “Bach” in German) and Missa he has performed more than fifty times.

Full biography

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