During the 1960s Robert Simpson produced two of his most compelling scores: the Third Symphony (1962) and the Clarinet Quintet (1968). Like the Clarinet Quintets of Mozart and Brahms, Simpson’s work is expansive in design, demonstrating the fullest expressive range of his creative powers. It is dedicated to Gervase de Peyer and has subsequently been played by some of Britain’s most celebrated clarinettists, including Bernard Walton, Emma Johnson, and Thea King, who appears on the present disc.