Edward Longstaff

"I've known Sarah since her days at the Purcell School and her playing immediately impressed me. Not only was she already in possession of a formidable technique, she was also already an immensely committed performer who displayed a great desire to communicate with audiences. She has always had an ability to throw off virtuosic passages with panache coupled with a gift of producing the softest, sweetest sounds.

The first piece I wrote for her was the Nocturne. This was for the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition. My aim in the piece was to write something that showed off both her musicality and her virtuosity. At the time I composed the Nocturne my firstborn son was still a baby who woke up in the nights. I think that some of the Nocturne's more agitated music could have been inspired by those moments!

Similarly, the Prelude was written when Sarah needed another piece for the last round of the BBC competition. This time the piece had to be shorter. It is probably the piece of mine that has most been written in a sort of flash of inspiration. The opening fifths idea came pretty well as soon as Sarah asked me for the piece and, I think, the whole thing was written within twenty-four hours of that moment. The Prelude makes outrageous demands on the clarinettist - demands that Sarah revels in!

By this stage, it was clear to Sarah and me that we had a musical affinity and we both agreed that it would be great to work on a concerto. Emboldened by Sarah's successes with the other pieces, I threw everything at her in the concerto. It is a real virtuoso concerto; it is also, I hope, fun! It is cast in three movements with the cadenza linking the second and third movements. Although the three movement structure is normal enough, the concerto's shape is slightly unusual as most of the serene, slower music comes at the beginning of the first movement. The movement goes on into some highly frenetic material before briefly claming down in a short coda. The second movement is a nonchalant intermezzo that is interrupted by some fierce martial music. The last movement is partially inspired by Yiddish Klezmer music and winds up into a frenzied finale.

The first performance of the concerto was given by Sarah in Sheffield in 2003, accompanied by the Sheffield Symphony Orchestra conducted by my brother, John Longstaff."

Edward Longstaff