Johannes Brahms: Trio for clarinet, cello and piano Op. 114 (1891)

Trio for clarinet, cello and piano Op. 114 (1891), Johannes Brahms (1833-1897).

Juan Enric Lluna, clarinet
Lluis Claret, cello
Josep Colom, piano

I. Allegro (00:00)
II. Adagio (7:30)
III. Andantino grazioso (14:51)
IV. Allegro (19:18)

The Clarinet Trio in A minor, Op. 114 is one of four chamber works composed by Johannes Brahms featuring the clarinet as a primary instrument. It was written in the summer of 1891 for the clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld, and is considered by scholars as part of a rebirth for the composer who in 1890 declared his String Quintet in G Major to be his final work.

The work calls for clarinet, piano, and cello, and is one of the very few in that genre to have entered the standard repertoire. It was written for Clarinet in A, which can also be substituted by viola.

The overall mood of the piece is somber but includes both romantic and introspective qualities. Music historians and scholars have admitted that the trio is "not among the most interesting of his compositions"[1] The work incorporates a considerable amount of arpeggio patterns in its theme, complimented by conversation like passages in the upper register of the cello.[1] Perhaps due to this lack of interesting material, Op. 114 has been overshadowed by another one of Brahms' chamber works written for Mühlfeld- the Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op.115.

However, it is very clear in the music that Brahms absolutely adored the playing of Richard Mühlfeld, and that this adoration made its way into the trio. Eusebius Mandyczewski, a scholar and friend of Brahms, wrote of the trio that "It is as though the instruments were in love with each other."

I don't own the scores nor the audio shown in the video.
-audio:    • Brahms Clarinet Trio in A minor op. 114 (f...  
-score: http://ks.imslp.info/files/imglnks/us...