Mozart: Clarinet Concerto & Clarinet Quintet

�Better recorded performances of these towering masterpieces may exist, but I have never heard them. In their technical proficiency, style consciousness and broad, yet never exaggerated emotional range, they shine as major achievements.� --International Record Review, 2011 edition

�Martin Fr�st plays Basset clarinet with the extra low notes of Mozarts presumed orginal version and succeeds in getting them unusually well in tune.His light,lively approach to the outer movments and his inward but not over-solemn reading of the Adagio are well matched by the chamber-sized Amsterdam orchestra.� --BBC Music Magazine, nov 2003

In the liner notes to this disc, Swedish clarinetist Martin Fr�st is described as a �daring performer� who has �stretched the limits of musical expression�, likely owing to his frequent collaborations with several contemporary composers including Anders Hillborg and Krzysztof Penderecki. �Daring� does not leap to mind when describing Mozart, and happily Fr�st himself does not flaunt his presumed reputation when tackling these popular works. While some may find Fr�st�s readings on the �cool� side, it is largely because they are just so perfectly executed and pristine that you are left hopelessly grasping for something that might be missing. After all, what ultimately determines Mozartian performance standards but the expectation of technical perfection? In no small part aided by the redoubtable Amsterdam Sinfonietta and Vertavo String Quartet, Fr�st steals the show with his sultry tone, sensitive phrasing, and utterly beguiling pianissimos, momentarily making us forget that several other great performances of the Concerto have graced the catalog for decades. - See more at: