Brahms Quintet for Clarinet and Strings, op. 115.

Have you listened to Karl Leister with Vermeer Quartet released by Orfeo?

Thanks!

Greg, thanks for your recommendation. With my limited knowledge of EMI branding, it seems that the most of EMI Reference releases are mono recordings. Please confirm.

Again, thank you all.

Otto

Greg,
Please kindly share your finding(s) with us.

Frogman,
Please kindly provide us more thought on the statement that "Leister's style and approach to the instrument is closer to what Brahms heard in the playing of the great clarinetist Richard Muhlfeld....". Last night I did revisit this recording twice on different machines. The music made my eyes wet.

Also I am pretty surprise that so many people love this piece. Probably after this, we should start another one on Tchaikovsky's String Quartet No.1, op. 11 or Mendelssohn's String Octet, op. 20.

Many thanks to Frogman for sharing so much information with us. It is very educational to me.

Happy listening and Happy Holiday.

Otto

It's amazing that this discussion still attracts attention from people after its initial posting fourteen years ago.  

Last night, I printed the score and listened to all recordings I collected with score on my hand.  It is still such unique piece of Brahms in his late life.  Another one would be his piano intermezzo, op. 117.  He described it as "the cradle song of my sorrows".     

During these years, I collected additional 3 unmentioned CD recordings of this piece. They are listed below for your reference:

1. Smetana Quartet / Vladimir Riha (recorded in 1964, released by Supraphon in 2009).  This performance didn't take the repeat in first movement. It is a very energetic performance.  This recording  creates a enclosure presentation comparable to a small recital hall.

2. Bartok Quartet / Bela Kovacs (recorded in 1976, released by Hugaroton).  This performance didn't take the repeat in the first movement, either.  The first violin has a very lyric and subtle singing tone.  In term of recording, it is quite different from the Smetana's recording.  It presents a perception from seating position in the 1st tier of a grand concert hall. 

3. Alban Berg Quartet / Sabine Meyer (recording of live performance in 1998, released by EMI in 1999).  This performance focused on lots of downbeat by first violin to lure your attention to the beginning of the phrase.  Audience applause was retained in the recording, if that irritates you. 

Happy Listening and Happy Holidays.

Otto