Mozart: Divertimenti

Following the success of performances and recordings of Weber's Wind Concertos with SCO principals as soloists, the SCO Wind Soloists that feature on this album have since 2012 started to explore Harmoniemusik repertoire.

Inspired by the legacy of the great Mozartian conductors of the SCO including Sir Charles Mackerras, the Wind Soloists make a fine contribution to the SCO's distinguished Mozart discography.

This new recording includes four of the five Tafelmusik sextets for pairs of clarinets, horns and bassoons, together with the Serenade in E flat major, the first of Mozart's three great wind serenades.

The Serenade in E flat major has many unusual features. Its opening fanfare - a series of repeated chords on the tonic in E flat - immediately catches the ear.

The fact that Mozart avoids fatiguing the listener with a surfeit of the same sonorities, in music with a necessarily limited dynamic and instrumental range, bears eloquent testimony to his genius.

This recording captures the wealth of detail in Mozart's Divertimenti; there is something in each of them for every music lover.

Comprising pairs of clarinet, bassoons and natural horns, the players are dedicated to performing each work in a stylish and informed way, from the masterpieces of Mozart, Beethoven and Weber to twentieth-century works and contemporary commissions.

The SCO Wind Soloists are: Maximiliano Martín clarinet, William Stafford clarinet, Peter Whelan bassoon, Alison Green bassoon, Alec Frank-Gemmill horn, Harry Johnstone horn.

The SCO Wind Soloists have appeared in chamber concerts throughout Scotland. They have also performed at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in the presence of HRH The Prince Charles.