Coolly off the back of writing his Fourth Symphony for wind orchestra, Paul Dean‘s got the pen in his hand again for the last few measures of his new Clarinet Quintet. The shift from 38 lines to just five requires some recalibrating, says the Brisbane-based composer and clarinettist.

“It’s a well-known fact among composers that we can get away with some horrifically bad ideas in orchestral works because we can mask them with every known sound in the orchestra, but you can’t do that with chamber music. Every note, every idea, every texture has to be absolutely perfect,” Dean tells Limelight.

Composer Paul Dean

Paul Dean. Photo © Trish Dean

“And the first hurdle is psychological. I’ve got Mozart, Brahms and Weber sitting on my shoulder, going ‘we’ve written these masterpieces – how are you ever going to contribute something worthwhile?’ I’ve really had to settle the brain. It’s been quite a challenge.”

Dean’s Quintet receives its world premiere on 1 August at the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, in its The Final Sunset program (the final in the Ray Golding Sunset series), with British clarinettist Michael Collins as its soloist.

Dean’s no stranger...