Clarinet Cartography

Details

Duo Althea full profile / Clarinet and piano / 2 musicians

Other players: Paolo Pellegrini and Nicola Possenti

Full program notes

As Duo Althea, we come from Italy—but our story truly began in Tallinn, Estonia, where we met, studied, and fell in love with the idea of building a life in chamber music. From the very beginning, our partnership has been shaped by travel, curiosity, and a desire to share music beyond borders.

This program reflects that spirit. It’s a kind of map in sound—a cartography of the places, traditions, and composers that have inspired us. Each piece comes from a different country, but all speak the universal language of music, full of expression, intimacy, and character.

We begin in our homeland, Italy, with Nino Rota’s Clarinet Sonata. Known worldwide for his film music (The Godfather, La Dolce Vita), Rota was also a master of chamber writing. His sonata is playful, lyrical, and warm, with moments that feel like scenes from an unseen movie.

We then return to Estonia, where our artistic journey began, with Sonata for Clarinet and Piano by Ester Mägi. A towering figure in Estonian music, Mägi blends folklore with striking harmonies and spacious textures that seem to reflect the stillness of the Northern landscape. This piece has a special place in our hearts—it feels like a musical portrait of the city where we first played together.

Next, we move to Poland, with Krzysztof Penderecki’s Three Miniatures. These are youthful works, written before his more experimental period. Brief but expressive, they combine rhythmic wit with a sharp sense of drama.

Finally, we arrive in Germany with Johannes Brahms’ Clarinet Sonata No. 1. Written at the end of his life, it is introspective, rich in harmony, and filled with the bittersweet warmth of memory. Brahms had all but stopped composing until he heard the clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld—and this sonata, one of his last masterpieces, reminds us of how a single sound can reignite inspiration.

Through this program, we hope to take you with us—across landscapes, languages, and emotions—guided by the clarinet’s voice and our shared love of chamber music.