Famous Clarinet Players

Clarinet is a musical instrument which belongs to the woodwind (it is a musical instrument which produces sound when you blow wind in it) family. There are over a dozen types of clarinets in this world. It was first invented by Johann Christoph Denner from Germany in the 18th century. Since then the clarinet has been widely used in jazz and musical concerts all around the world. A person who plays a clarinet is a clarinetist. You may also like to know some German musical instruments.

There are two types of clarinet players, those who play classical music and those who play jazz or modern music in a band. There are some famous clarinet players who play both classical and modern music such as Bill Smith.

Famous Clarinet Players List
•Barney Bigard
•Johnny Dodds
•Don Bryon
•Benny Goodman
•Elysia Clapin (grand daughter of Benny Goodman)
•Artie Shaw
•Larry Shields
•Pee Wee Russell
•Pete Fountain
•Irving Fazola
•Larry Combs
•Frederick Thruston
•Sabine Meyer
•David Shifrin
•Jack Brymer
•Richard Muhlfeld
•Anton Stadler
•Woody Allen
•Acker Bilk
•Woosy Herman
•John Helliwell
Famous Clarinet Performers

Anton Stadler: Perhaps one of the most famous clarinet performers, Stadler's playing inspired Mozart to write many of his compositions. He was like a mentor to Mozart.

Carl Baermann: Carl was a famous clarinet player and was Heinrich Baermann's son. Today he is popularly known as a music professor and an author of clarinet book, that most of the clarinet students use. He has helped in improving the mechanics of clarinets.

Karl Leister: One of the most famous clarinet players of Germany. He has the most number of clarinet recordings in the German music market. Karl has also played with Karajan for almost 30 years. His recordings are always a delight to hear.

Sharon Kam: She was born in Israel and won a scholarship of the Jewish-American cultural society at the age of 12 and has since been performing concerts all around the world. She resides in Germany and is a perfect example of a modern flexible clarinet player who can adapt to the style required, rather than playing in the same fashion.

Benny Goodman: He is a Jewish-American clarinet player, who started as a jazz musician, but became one of the most famous clarinet players of all time. He has made some new recordings of classical works in his own style.

Famous Clarinet Composers

Sergej Prokofiev: This name defines modern Russian music. He wrote modern musical pieces in early 1900's, which are still played today. He was convinced that Russian music needed some transformation. He wrote the most famous clarinet tune "Peter and the Wolf".

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Regarded as the most talented and the most famous clarinet music composers of all time. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart lived in a time when clarinet music was still new. In 1780 clarinet became his most favorite musical instrument. He wrote the most famous clarinet concertos for his infamous friend Anton Stadler. You may also like to read on biography of Mozart.

Karl M. V. Weber: After Mozart the most famous clarinet player was Weber. Weber knew the strengths and weakness of the clarinets more than anyone. This makes his concertos so successful.

Francis Poulenc: Poulenc was a member of the group "six". He had a radical approach towards modern music. His works are popular in many clarinet students. Though his pieces were never popular, he will always be known as a great clarinet composer.

Aaron Copland: A Jewish musician, Copland was a student of Rubin Goldmark in New York and Nadia Boulanger in Paris. He wrote musical pieces for both classical music and jazz. He also wrote a composition for Benny Goodman which is regarded as a classic piece of clarinet music.

Read more on:
•Famous Saxophone Players
•Greatest Guitar Players
Well there are many more famous clarinet players and composers that I have not mentioned, which doesn't make them any less important. If you think I should have added some more names, do revert back to me.