Meyer, Sabine
Meyer, Sabine
Meyer, Sabine , gifted German clarinetist; b. Crailsheim, March 30, 1959. She began training with her father, the clarinetist Karl Meyer, and then was a student of Otto Hermann at the Stuttgart Hochschule für Musik and of Hans Deinzer at the Hannover Hochschule für Musk. After playing in the Bavarian Radio Sym. Orch. in Munich, she was engaged as solo clarinetist of the Berlin Phil, in 1982 by its chief conductor Herbert von Karajan. Karajan’s appointment was made in spite of the protests of the musicians of the orch. whose self-governing charter, as well as its long- standing practice of excluding women from membership, was placed in jeopardy. The incident received international media coverage. Meyer was eventually allowed to enter the orch. on a probationary basis, but in 1984 left it and quickly demonstrated her virtuosity as a soloist, recitalist, and chamber music artist of the first rank. She made frequent tours of Europe, and also appeared in North America and Japan. As a soloist, she was engaged by many orchs. on both sides of the Atlantic. She also performed regularly with her own Trio di Clarone from 1983 and Bläserensemble Sabine Meyer from 1988. In 1994 she made her first appearances at the Ravinia Festival in Chicago and at N.Y.’s Mostly Mozart Festival. Meyer’s repertoire ranges widely, and includes not only the classics but contemporary scores as well.
—Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire