Clarinet and Saxophone Magazine

June 2026

CLARINET CONCERTO

James Rae
Clarinet and piano score
Clifton Edition

Many people know the educational music of James Rae and over the years I have seen many of his educational publications. He has a way of making melodies of just two notes that are interesting and engaging. He has the natural gift of melodic invention and of course his knowledge of the clarinet and saxophone are beyond belief.

However he has also written much music outside of the educational sphere. Having his Clarinet Concerto land in front of me was a very welcome gift. Here Rae has taken inspiration from Brahms; just as the original version of this concerto was for viola and orchestra commissioned by Geoff Wright, this version for clarinet and orchestra is dedicated to David Campbell.

The concerto is a traditional three-movement work, an opening Allegro con brio, a slow Lento Espressivo and a fast Allegro Moderato con fuoco as the closing movement. The writing for clarinet is engaging and exciting and covers the whole range of the instrument – this is a real showcase for the clarinettist. Fast passage work contrasts with slower melodic phrases which give the concerto a wide range of musical feel. This music is certainly not for the faint-hearted, but it’s melodic and, while founded firmly in music tradition, the extended harmonic shifts give it that modern twist that a work like this needs.

Only having the piano score, I can only guess what the orchestration is like. But I hear here a work of great beauty, a work which will fit comfortably in the English musical landscape. I only hope with the publication of this work from Clifton Edition that this work will gain some champions to make it a staple of the English Clarinet Concerto landscape. This is a work which should be joining the Gerald Finzi, Malcolm Arnold, Gordon Jacobs and Guy Woolfenden concertos in the repertoire.

The piano score and part are well presented by Clifton Edition; great music typesetting, well-thought-out page turns and at £14.95 for a work like this, a very reasonable price. Congratulations to James Rae on producing a fine work which people deserve to hear, and bravo to Mark Goddard for publishing it.

Adrian Connell