Carl Maria von Weber
Concertino for Clarinet, Op. 26
Weber’s most widely performed clarinet work — a single-movement theme-and-variations scena written in days for Heinrich Baermann, premiere before the King of Bavaria.
At a glance
Clarinet and orchestra. Advanced-intermediate to early-advanced. Continuous theme-and-variations form: C-minor recitative introduction, Italianate E-flat theme, dexterous variations, chalumeau Lento aria, and 6/8 virtuosic finale. Ideal bridge into Weber’s concertos.
Composer & composition
Composer & Baermann
Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst, Freiherr von Weber (18 November 1786, Eutin – 5 June 1826, London) was a German composer, pianist, and opera director central to the Classical-to-Romantic transition, best known for Der Freischütz, Euryanthe, and Oberon. For clarinetists his defining partnership was with court clarinetist Heinrich Baermann. In 1811 in Munich their friendship led to the Concertino Op. 26 and the two clarinet concertos. Weber wrote six clarinet works for Baermann; they toured December 1811–March 1812.
The Concertino was composed extraordinarily fast between 29 March and 3 April 1811 — the first of Weber’s six clarinet compositions. Command premiere: evening of 5 April 1811 in Munich, Baermann soloist, King Maximilian I of Bavaria in attendance (the King purchased 50 tickets). Baermann played a recently acquired ten-key clarinet. Success led the King to commission two full-scale clarinet concertos immediately. The Concertino has become Weber’s most widely performed work for clarinet.
Structure / listening map
Introduction (recitative)
Adagio / recitative style · C minor
Sombre slow introduction “much in the style of a recitative”; horns soft on the dominant before brightening to E-flat.
Theme
E-flat major
Vocal, Italianate theme — conversational phrasing.
Variations
Variations demanding both dexterity and expressiveness (including poco più vivo writing).
Lento aria
Lento
Melancholy aria with clarinet in low chalumeau against divided violas — operatic pathos.
Allegro finale
Allegro, 6/8
Virtuosic finale with “hunting horn” interjection; chromatic scales with loud/soft contrast near the end.
Reference performances
1Joan Enric Lluna
C M von Weber: Concertino for clarinet and orchestra.
Soloist-conductor with the Real Filarmonía de Galicia.
- Selection reason
- Highest view count of any full-performance clip found.
- Pedagogical value
- Complete professionally filmed orchestral performance; hear soloist–orchestra coordination across introduction, variations, and finale, and rubato shaped from the clarinet.
- View count
- ~354K views
2Sharon Kam
Weber Concertino
1990 live, Mann Auditorium, Tel Aviv; Berlin Philharmonic & Israel Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta; Kam soloist at age 18.
- Selection reason
- Both prestige and views — historic live performance with world-class orchestra and conductor.
- Pedagogical value
- Model of youthful virtuosity married to operatic phrasing; dramatic projection over a large orchestra and singing quality of the E-flat theme.
- View count
- ~149K views
3Sérgio Pires
Sérgio Pires – C. von Weber – Concertino for Clarinet and Orchestra – Live Recording
With Musikkollegium Winterthur. Pires also publishes teaching analysis on this exact piece.
- Selection reason
- View count plus rising-star prestige; soloist who also teaches the piece publicly.
- Pedagogical value
- Pair with Pires’s analysis video: breathing before “para-para” upbeats, shortening the second note of finale motifs, singing the line, hearing harmony not “just notes.”
- View count
- ~108K views
4Paul Meyer
P. Meyer, JSO – Carl Maria von Weber: Concertino for Clarinet and Orchestra, Op. 26
Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, conductor Dmitry Yablonsky. Meyer: Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters.
- Selection reason
- High performer prestige (French school / conductor-soloist).
- Pedagogical value
- Mature French-school clarity and soloist–orchestra balance in a full live reading.
- View count
- ~32K views
5Martin Fröst
Concertino for Clarinet & Orchestra in E-Flat Major, Op. 26, J. 109
Definitive BIS studio recording with Tapiola Sinfonietta, Jean-Jacques Kantorow (℗ 2006 BIS).
- Selection reason
- Highest performer prestige — benchmark studio reference (lower official-channel views because the recording is widely re-uploaded).
- Pedagogical value
- Reference for refined tone, architectural pacing of the continuous form, and polished virtuosity.
- View count
- ~12K views
Practice studio
Begin a practice plan →Performance notes
Treat it as an operatic scena
Continuous variations as ongoing dramatic development — conversational, aria-like, not a study piece. Introduction as free recitative with rubato; theme with conversational vocal phrasing; Lento as dark German Romantic theatre pathos; finale lively and virtuosic yet elegant.
Sing the E-flat theme
Imagine voices answering each other; ask what a vocalist would be telling you. Shape by hearing underlying harmony, not isolated notes — “sing, sing, sing as much as possible.”
Difficulty & suitability
Advanced-intermediate to early-advanced. Weber’s most widely performed clarinet work and a frequent next step after intermediate concerti. Demands even fast scales, dramatic dynamic contrast (including extreme soft chromatic writing), chalumeau colour in the Lento, and operatic character across a continuous form. Suitable for strong high-school soloists and college students; an excellent gateway into Concerto No. 1 Op. 73.
Sources & notes
Compiled July 17, 2026. View counts change over time; verify before citing in class.
Compiled July 17, 2026. View counts read from video pages on the research date and will change. Sabine Meyer’s celebrated Blomstedt/Staatskapelle Dresden recording is outstanding but was not listed among the five primary clips due to fragmented/low-view uploads at research time.