Richard Bernhard Herrmann Mühlfeld (February 28, 1856 – June 1, 1907) was a German clarinettist who inspired

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period (music), Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, oft ...

and Gustav Jenner to write chamber works including the instrument. The pieces that Brahms wrote for him are the Clarinet Trio, the Clarinet Quintet, and the Clarinet Sonatas. Born in

Bad Salzungen Bad Salzungen () is a town in Thuringia, Germany. It is the capital of the Wartburgkreis district. Geography Location Bad Salzungen is situated on the river Werra, east of Tiefenort and south of Eisenach. Divisions In July 2018 the form ...

, where as a youth he played in the spa orchestra,Pamela Weston. "Mühlfeld, Richard." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. 20 January 2001 Mühlfeld originally joined the Meiningen Court Orchestra (Hofkapelle) as a violinist and changed to the clarinet three years later. Following the completion of Brahms's String Quintet No. 2 in G Major, Op. 111, the composer decided to end his compositional career. After Brahms listened to Mühlfeld play Weber's Clarinet Concerto No. 1 in F Minor, Mozart's Clarinet Quintet and some of

Ludwig Spohr Louis Spohr (, 5 April 178422 October 1859), baptized Ludewig Spohr, later often in the modern German form of the name Ludwig was a German composer, violinist and conductor. Highly regarded during his lifetime, Spohr composed ten symphonies, ...

's works, his sound quality and musicianship inspired Brahms to start composing again. Brahms later wrote letters to his old friend

Clara Schumann Clara Josephine Schumann (; ; née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic music, Romantic era, she exerted her influence o ...

about the skill level he saw in this clarinettist's playing. Mühlfeld and Brahms soon became close friends. In appreciation of Mühlfeld's relationship to him, Brahms gave him a set of fine silver teaspoons with a

monogram A monogram is a motif (visual arts), motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol. Monograms are often made by combining the initials of an individual or a company, used as recognizable symbo ...

. Although Mühlfeld played the Quintet along with the Trio at a concert in London, the debuts for those pieces were held at the Court of Meiningen in November 1891, with the Joachim Quartet playing the Quintet's string parts. Both Sonatas were performed for the Meiningen Circle at the Palace of Berchtesgaden in the summer of 1894, with Johannes Brahms playing piano.

References

External links

Biography from the International Clarinet AssociationMühlfeld and Brahms
written by Bernard Portnoy {{DEFAULTSORT:Muhlfeld, Richard 1856 births 1907 deaths People from Bad Salzungen People from Saxe-Meiningen German classical clarinetists 19th-century classical musicians Johannes Brahms