The movie The Terminal, directed by Steven Spielberg in 2004, tells the story of Viktor Navorski, a citizen of Krakozhia —a fictional Eastern European country— who becomes stranded at New York’s JFK airport. To convey the tenderness and bewilderment of the character, composer John Williams created one of his most endearing melodies: Viktor’s Tale, written for clarinet solo and symphony orchestra.

One morning in September 2024, I received a WhatsApp message from the composer Esteban D'Antona saying: "Hi Gabriel, I've just finished composing a piece for solo clarinet and orchestra. It's a suite in four movements (Cha-cha-cha, Bolero, Guajira, and Salsa). I'm sending you the score and a digital recording for you to review. If you like it, I'd like you to premiere it with the orchestra."

In a previous post on this blog I wrote about the Zamba for clarinete and piano by the Argentine composer Viviana Danon. Now, I want to present another beautiful composition of his authorship

In previous entries on this blog, I wrote about the pieces Zamba for clarinet and piano and Atardecer en Villa Elisa by Argentine composer Viviana Danon. Today I want to introduce you to another beautiful new work by her: "El adios" for clarinet and piano.

At the beginning of 2023, Argentine composer Leonora Arbiser contacted me with the proposal to perform a work of hers that she had just finished composing, which bears the suggestive title of "El sueño de las flores" ("The dream of flowers") for clarinet and piano. It's a series of three short pieces for clarinet and piano, each lasting around seven minutes. After reviewing and studying them a bit, I accepted the invitation to make a recording of the work at a later date.

Composed in 1943 by the English composer John Ireland (1872–1962), the Fantasy-Sonata is regarded as one of the twentieth century’s masterpieces of the English clarinet repertoire, and also as Ireland’s most significant chamber work.

When I was very young, I was introduced to Arthur Honegger Sonatina for clarinet and piano on a recording by clarinetist Stanley Drucker, and it always appealed to me. Two years ago, I decided to study it for recording, a project I was finally able to complete in July 2021, along with the track recorded by pianist Mohamed Shams. Above is the video of this recording, which I enjoyed so much. Arthur Honegger (1892-1955) was a prolific composer of Swiss parents

Video recording and musical comments of the Fantasia Tanguera for clarinet and string orchestra by Ezequiel Diz. Soloist: Gabriel Blasberg.

The choro song “Carinhoso” is the most famous work of Pixinguinha, with hundreds of recordings made all over the world,

I first heard Hindemith's Sonata for clarinet and piano on the album "20th Century Classics for Clarinet and Piano",

Two months ago, in March 2023, my colleague and great Peruvian clarinetist Marco Antonio Mazzini showed me his latest video, where he played a piece for alto clarinet and piano that I had never heard before. It was Ordner Seg—also known in English as “It’ll Be Alright”—composed by the Norwegian tuba virtuoso Øystein Baadsvik.The original version of Ordner Seg is written for tuba and piano, and in his video Marco used the excellent backing track recorded by pianist Rena Hashim

On March 18, 2023, I had the pleasure of performing the beautiful Theme from "Schindler's List" for clarinet and symphonic band,

Notes, video and sheet music of the Zamba for clarinet and piano by Viviana Danon, dedicated to Gabriel Blasberg.

I met the Belgian clarinettist Ronald Van Spaendonck in November 2018, when he came to the city of Buenos Aires

During June, July and August of the year that just ended (2021), I had the pleasure of undertaking a musical/teaching activity that gave me

One of the clarinetists that I admire the most is Nicolas Baldeyrou, an outstanding figure, who, in addition to being a technically super virtuoso, has a balanced and sober musicality, always at the service of the work.

In mid‑2020, I felt inspired to revisit this excellent piece that I had studied decades earlier as a student

Notes, short analysis and video of the beautiful Nino Rota Sonata for clarinet and piano.

Recording and useful data about the Sonatina for clarinet and piano by Joseph Horovitz, written in 1981.