Michael Collins & Friends

For the second of his BBC Radio 3 Lunchtime Concerts, British clarinettist Michael Collins performs two trios from the end of the Romantic era.

Despite working within the thick of Viennese modernism, Carl Frühling remained faithful to the Romantic tradition with his clarinet trio. Throughout all four movements, he weaves the cello and clarinet together into an expressive tapestry built on long, soaring melodic lines set to a tasteful piano accompaniment.

Brahms’ trio is darker in tone, more afflicted in mood. Each instrument can rise to the surface or fold itself back within the ensemble, which gives this piece a distinctive dynamic texture, lending subtle inflections to Brahms’ powerful, at times devastating, music.