Carl Stamitz's Clarinet Quartets Op. 8 and Op. 19 are amongst the earliest compositions for clarinet and string trio and document the increasing significance of the clarinet in the second half of the eighteenth century. These quartets demonstrate Stamitz's profound understanding of the instrument and also allow an illuminating insight into his idiom. With his sensitive interpretations, Arthur Campbell manages to emphasise the cantabile quality of the clarinet, which dominates all the quartets recorded on this SACD.

Arthur Campbell was born in Canada and studied at the Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, USA, where he was taught by the renowned clarinetist and pedagogue Robert Marcellus. He has won numerous international and national competitions, including the International Clarinet Competition and the National Music Festival of Canada. An internationally sought-after clarinet virtuoso, Arthur Campbell has toured throughout the USA, Canada, Europe and Asia. He regularly presents international master classes at universities, conservatoires and conventions. Arthur Campbell was appointed professor at the Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids Michigan, where he has been teaching a class of clarinet students from across the globe.