Michel Yost, better known as Michel, was born in Paris in 1754 and died there in 1786. Originally an oboist, he gave up this instrument to study the clarinet with Joseph Beer. Michel's activities as a musician (particularly his performances at the Concert Spirituel) and as a composer did much to popularize the clarinet in France. His melodic talents obviously did not correspond to his theoretical knowledge. According to Fétis (Biographie Universelle des Musiciens), “he had the opportunity to find pleasant melodies and brilliant passages; he put these down on paper in a very informal way, and his friend [Johann Christoph] Vogel [1754-1788] used these ideas to write down and orchestrate his concertos.” As a result, the compositions were published under various names, including Michel, Michel et Vogel, Mic et Vogel. His works include 14 clarinet concertos, 30 quartets for clarinet and strings, 8 duo books, a number of other chamber music works and a clarinet method. The three duets presented here are from a set of six duets, Opus 5, published by Imbault (Paris), ca. 1783. Himie Voxman, Iowa City, Iowa, January 1979
- ISMN: 9790004485507 (M004485507)
