Brahms was just about to retire from active composing when, on the occasion of a concert invitation from the Meiningen court, he was so taken by the solo playing of the court orchestra's clarinetist, Richard Mühlfeld, that he spontaneously decided to take up his pen once again and delight the world with a total of four works for clarinet, all of which are dedicated to Richard Mühlfeld: the Trio in A minor op. 114 , the Clarinet Quintet in B minor op. 115 and two Sonatas op. 120 for clarinet and piano. All four works were enthusiastically received by the audience of the time and are still counted among the treasure trove of not too numerous classical compositions for clarinet. The English clarinetist Michael Collins and his compatriot, the pianist Stephen Hough have recorded the two sonatas op. 120 and released them on the album Brahms 3 Sonatas on Hyperion Records. The third sonata is an arrangement by Michael Collins of Brahms' Violin Sonata in A major op. 100 for clarinet and piano. Since the violin writing fits the clarinet well from home, it is no wonder that the arrangement is successful, coming quite close to the sonic wonder of Brahms' two "genuine" clarinet sonatas.

Michael Collins and Stephen Hough not only each enjoy extremely successful soloist careers, but also a long-time friendship. In the case of the Brahms sonatas, this friendship yields the most beautiful fruits in their interplay and like-minded musical understanding. The two clarinet sonatas op. 120, with their autumnal tonality, are not interpreted in an additionally darkened, soft manner, which is obvious and not infrequently realized in this way. Rather, under the hands of Stephen Hough, the typically Brahms rather dense piano movement experiences a clear brightening, which, together with the warm but always transparent, beguilingly beautiful sound of the clarinet, conjures up a lucid early autumn mood that lacks any heaviness. In this way, the melancholy moments composed in the sonatas are given less weight in an environment of dreamy, almost joyful lightness. This lightness is finely balanced by the two musicians so that no unruly sentimentality arises. The relatively brisk tempi with which the slow movements are approached do the rest. Pure joy of playing is expressed in the rendition of the dance movements, which are given a rustic swing by the clarinetist and the pianist. The momentum and joy of the dance movements continue into the final movements, which flow exuberantly into their end.

The adapted violin sonata also thrives on the enthusiastic commitment that the clarinetist and pianist bring to the Brahms sonatas, op. 120. Only the adoption of the high violin notes for the clarinet seems a little distant from Brahms own instrumentation for violin, which naturally does not sound quite as beautiful in this register despite Michael Collins' flawless realization.

For Brahms fans as well as for all fans of perfect clarinet playing and not least of the great interplay between clarinet and piano, this album is an absolute must.

Michael Collins, clarinet
Stephen Hough, piano