EWALD STRAESSER (1867-1933): Clarinet Quintet in G, Op. 34, Clarinet Sonata in E, Op. 58, Wind Quintet in G, Op. 9b.

Description: With a traditional foundation and excellent technical skills, Straesser was often seen by contemporaries as a successor to Brahms (Furtwängler, Abendroth, Mengelberg, Nikisch and Pfitzner conducted his works). However, he was ahead of Brahms in his ability to write wide-ranging melodic arcs, which can be heard particularly beautifully in the Clarinet Sonata written in 1932 shortly before his death. Together with the Clarinet Quintet of 1915, these three works span an entire composer's life, which shows an interesting development, especially from a harmonic point of view. Without ever getting into atonality or twelve-tone technique, Straesser finds his own way into a modern tonal language, chromaticism increases, surprising dissonances sometimes remain unresolved. Berolina Ensemble.