LIGETI  Six Bagatelles for Wind Quintet

Hungarian composer György Ligeti was an adventurous explorer of textures, harmonies, and rhythms. Early in his career, he concentrated on distilling his musical language to its essence, as illustrated by these finely wrought miniatures that cover a wide range of textures and expression despite using a purposefully limited number of pitches.

GABRIELLA SMITH  Anthozoa

Gabriella Smith combines her passions for music and ecology in this brand-new work for piano trio and percussion. “I get a lot of my inspiration from the forms, structures, and energies in the natural world,” says the young California-born composer, “and I also like math, which can describe these forms, designs, and energies so elegantly.”

KAIJA SAARIAHO  Light and Matter

Dating from 2014, Kaija Saariaho’s richly atmospheric piano trio displays her characteristic sensitivity to instrumental colors and timbres. The music was inspired by the changing patterns of light the Finnish composer observed from the window of her New York City apartment overlooking Morningside Park.

BRAHMS  Clarinet Trio in A Minor, Op. 114

This warmly lyrical trio for clarinet (or viola), cello, and piano belongs to a cluster of masterworks that Brahms wrote near the end of his life after meeting the distinguished clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld. The composer was so enamored with Mühlfeld’s lithe, silken tone that he affectionately nicknamed him “Fräulein Klarinette.”