<P> Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Quintet in A major for Clarinet and Strings, K. 581, was written in 1789 for the clarinetist Anton Stadler . A clarinet quintet is a work for one clarinet and a string quartet (two violins, a viola and a cello). Although originally written for basset clarinet, in contemporary performances it is usually played on a clarinet in A or B - flat for convenience's sake . It was Mozart's only completed clarinet quintet, and is one of the earliest and best - known works written especially for the instrument . It remains to this day one of the most admired of the composer's works . The quintet is sometimes referred to as the Stadler Quintet; Mozart so described it in a letter of April 1790 . </P> <P> A fragment of score exists for a second (though possibly written first) clarinet quintet in B - flat, of which a complete exposition survives . It is possible that Mozart completed the movement, as the score continues into the development section on the last surviving page . This fragment is unlikely to be a sketch, as it bears no marks of correction . Nevertheless, the A major quintet is Mozart's sole surviving complete work for clarinet quintet . </P> <P> The composer indicated that the work was finished on 29 September 1789 . It received its premiere on 22 December of the same year, in one of the four annual Vienna performances of the Tonkünstler - Societät, an organization that existed to fund pensions for widows and orphans of musicians . The main item on the program was a cantata, Il natale d'Apollo, by Vincenzo Righini; Mozart's work was performed between the two halves of this work . The solo clarinet part was taken by Stadler, the first violin part by Joseph Zistler . </P> <Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section does not cite any sources . Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (November 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table>

Mozart - clarinet quintet in a k. 581