The Glasshouse

On Friday 24 May, Royal Northern Sinfonia play one of the greatest works in the clarinet repertoire, Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto, led by guest conductor Nil Venditti.

Royal Northern Sinfonia’s section leader, clarinet, Cristina Mateo describes the piece as elegant, delicate, and joyful. She thought deeply about her connection to the concerto and sat down to share her thoughts.

 What are your memories of Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto?

I come from a musical family, and classical music was in the home when I was growing up. One of the pieces I heard at a very young age was the second movement of Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto. I listened to it in the car with my parents, so it was incredibly special when I eventually learnt the piece and played it for the first time.

I’ve played the piece a few times, and the most recent was with maestro Esa-Pekka Salonen. If I had to choose my most special performance, it would be the first time I played it when I was 15 with my hometown orchestra in Almería, Spain. This will be my first time performing it with Royal Northern Sinfonia, and I can’t wait to rediscover the piece with them.

 The concerto has three movements in total. Can you describe each of the three movements in one word?

First: Elegant – The shape of the musical phrases in this movement represents Classicism (an art style inspired by ancient Greece and Rome), making it sound very elegant.

Second: Delicate – This concerto was Mozart’s last completed work before he died. However, unlike other composers, this movement doesn’t sound like a final composition. It has a very light feeling all the way through. I only hear the beauty in it.

Third: Joyful – Playing it is incredibly fun. I enjoy it so much and hope the audience does too. This movement is much more interactive between the soloist and the orchestra than some of Mozart’s other concertos, like the violin or piano. There’s a question-and-answer dynamic throughout the entire movement.

 What is your favourite movement to play from the three? How does it make you feel?

The second movement. It’s one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written, and I feel so lucky to play it with Royal Northern Sinfonia. Its profound and lyrical without being too dramatic, especially considering it was one of his latest works.

Even though it may not sound like it, I find the second movement the hardest one to capture the right character and sound while trying to make it seem easy and peaceful at the same time.

 The original manuscript of the concerto was lost. How much freedom do you feel to interpret the music as the soloist, or do you play as if you believe Mozart would have planned? 

Mozart wrote the concerto for the clarinettist Anton Stadler to play. He then gave the completed manuscript to Stadler in October 1791. The manuscript was lost shortly after. But there is no doubt that this work was composed by Mozart.

There’s a traditional way to play it – in terms of articulation, dynamics, phrasing and more. I’m sure some of that has something to do with publishers. The earliest edition dates from 1801 by the German publisher Johann André, and since then, many other publishers have published versions with different nuances.

However, the fact that there is no manuscript makes it quite freeing for interpretation if you consider the classical period style trends. This piece is remarkable because you won’t find two similar versions of the concerto.  Everyone has their interpretation of this work – there’s something beautiful about that.

 How does Mozart’s choice of the clarinet impact the overall character of the concerto?

Mozart originally wrote the concerto for the basset clarinet, which included a few lower notes. It goes down to a low C, while the regular clarinet can only play up to an E. The concerto has several passages that feature those low notes, especially in the second movement.

Mozart was the only composer to use the basset clarinet in his compositions- they made it especially to play this particular piece. That’s why there were adaptations not long after to use the A clarinet, as no one else had access to the basset clarinet.

The adapted version gets as close as possible to the original. And there’s quite a bit of freedom in the performer’s interpretation to choose the different octaves in each passage. It’s rare to hear two performers playing it in the same way – that’s one of the things that makes this piece magical.

 Mozart intended the clarinet to sound like a human voice in parts of the music. What specific moments in the piece can the audience hear this?

Part of that is the nature of the clarinet itself and its build. However, the second movement is probably the best section of the concerto to appreciate the nuances of that feature. The movement feels like a singer singing a beautiful and delicate lullaby.

Mozart wrote to Stadler: “Never would I have thought that a clarinet could be capable of imitating the human voice as deceptively as it is imitated by you. Truly, your instrument has so soft and lovely a tone that nobody with a heart could resist it.”

Why should people come to Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto if they don’t know the piece? 

Because it’s a masterpiece, and if you haven’t heard it yet, what are you waiting for?