Mosaic (Clarinet Quintets by Brahms and Mozart).(Sound Recording Review)

Anthony Michaelson, clarinet/Adrian Levine and Kathy Andrew, violins/Stephen Tees, viola/Judith Serkin, cello (Stereophile STPH015-2)

I remember being quite excited when I first heard that the folks at Stereophile were planning to record the Brahms and Mozart Clarinet Quintets, for not only are these two of my favorite pieces of music, but also because I knew that John Atkinson would ensure that this would be a top-flight production both musically and sonically. When the CD was finally completed, I pestered JA to send me a" copy for review; he finally did, and the wait was worth it, for this CD is as excellent as I had expected it to be.

Interestingly, the clarinetist is himself an audiophile personality in his own right, Anthony Michaelson of Musical Fidelity (some may recall his earlier audio company, Michaelson & Austin), who it turns out has studied clarinet under the tutelage of the venerable Thea King. He is joined on this outing by a string quartet consisting of Adrian Levine and Kathy Andrew on violin, Stephen Tees on viola, and Judith Serkin on cello. The recording was made in the Blue Heaven Studios in Salina, Kansas, a converted church where Atkinson had previously recorded a jazz CD.

Some might expect that an audiophile such as John Atkinson would naturally go for the mythical "single stereo microphone straight into all-analog two-channel," with everything done in a single take, but the liner notes quickly put that notion to rest. Atkinson explains that ...