My favorite clarinetists are Sabine Meyer and Michael Collins, both of whom I've seen in concert. EMI's Great Recording of the Century series has Meyer's
recordings of both Weber concertos plus his minor pieces: a most amazing rendition and generous offering. Meyer has recorded just about every Mozart piece that features the clarinet, and these should still be in EMI's catalog.
The piece that I heard Meyer played live was Brahms's clarinet quintet, probably my favorite chamber piece by Brahms. She had the purest of tones and her command of the music was exceptional.
Michael Collins specialises in the chamber repertoire and modern music, and has recorded many recordings under the labels Hyperion and Chandos.
As for pieces, a clarinet work that lies just beyond the spotlight is the Clarinet Concerto by the British composer Gerald Finzi, written for the Clarinet and a small chamber orchestra, this is your typical British "pastoral" music, gorgeously melodic. The
recording from Naxos is cheap and good. Indeed the Brits write great concertos for winds, and if you want to explore the highways and byways of clarinet concertos, I recommend the following CD:
Messiaen's
Quartet for the End of Time is, of course, a masterpiece that should be in everyone's collection, but being able to hear it live is an experience that pales any recording. In the hands of a masterly soloist, the final notes of the clarinet movement "Abime Des Oiseaux" will sound as if coming from the deep bowels of the Earth -- an absolutely hair-tingling experience!
Outside classical music, the sound of the clarinet is integral to modern Klezmer music. Hear it at its best in the recordings of
Andy Statman 
