Wolfgang Mozart | Quintet in E flat K452
Martin Wesley-Smith | Janet for flute, percussion and piano
Francis Poulenc | Sextet
György Ligeti | Bagatelles
Ludwig Thuille | Sextet Op.6
Ian Munro, piano; Geoffrey Collins, flute and David Griffiths, clarinet
with guest artists Huw Jones, oboe; Andrew Barnes, bassoon; Robert Johnson, horn; and Alison Pratt, percussion
The wonderful colours and personalities of wind instruments are brought to the fore here, celebrating some of the finest chamber music for woodwind combinations. With pianist Ian Munro, we begin with Mozart’s Quintet for Winds and Piano – a work which the composer regarded as one of his finest – before exploring the quirkier territory of Martin Wesley- Smith’s Janet (named after a pet goat!) for flute, percussion and piano. Poulenc’s capricious Sextet for Winds and Piano is variously inspired by Mozart’s classicism through to Parisian café music. György Ligeti’s Bagatelles for Wind Quintet are captivating miniature essays full of intellect and creative wit, while the grand romanticism of Ludwig Thuille’s Sextet for Winds and Piano rounds off this fascinating musical journey, with not a string instrument in sight!
