In the first of his two great concertos for clarinet, Weber’s operatic style is evident from the dramatic start in the form of a tragic aria. The delightful final rondo, in the style of an opera buffa cavatina, is preceded by a slow movement that is a clear reminder that Weber was a relative by marriage of Mozart. Not only was Constanze Weber’s famous husband (already enjoying legendary status) the role model for Weber’s father when he set out to make his son a prodigy, but Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto K.622 formed the foundation for much of 19th-century composition for the instrument. The second of his clarinet concertos, in E flat major, is a marked contrast to the first; the more symphonic wind of the first movement is structured in a much more classical style, while still demonstrating the coloraturas and virtuosic leaps and runs of the soloist.

Along with his contemporaries, Mozart was often called upon to fulfil the aristocracy's musical requests destined for all kinds of society events. He, for sure, knew how to provide a much profounder dimension to any genre which did not normally have too many expectations placed upon it and the Gran Partita, without losing its playful aim, is a superb example of this. In a similar way, the Divertimentos of Martín y Soler on Una cosa rara, and of Went on Die Entführung aus dem Serail, fill out an accurate portrait of what was, in the 18th century, music meant for noble entertainment.

Vicente Martín y Soler, nicknamed ‘the Valencian Mozart’, was as famous in his own day as his Austrian contemporary. The ‘very rare thing’ depicted in his biggest success, the opera Una cosa rara, is the combination of beauty and honesty, in the person of a charming peasant girl! The work was arranged for wind ensemble by Johann Nepomuk Wendt, and Mozart quoted from it in Don Giovanni. This programme is completed by premiere recordings of three divertimenti.