You don't often run across a clarinet quintet you haven't heard heard
before because there aren't that many of them, so I was extremely pleased
to discover Reicha's quintet on the radio this morning, and was going to
ask why on earth it hasn't had more recordings.  I find that it's had quite
a few, so it's not the discovery I thought it was.  However, the version I
heard has a Czech clarinettist.  I can't put into words what it is about
the Czech woodwind sound that makes it so special, but I guess it's enough
to know it when you hear it.  Perhaps someone better equipped than I am
might try to explain.

Richard Pennycuick
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