With the exception of a handful of works – the miraculous Octet, composed when the composer was just 16, a couple of the string quartets, early and late, and maybe one of the piano trios – Mendelssohn’s chamber music remains too little known. The string quintets, scored for the pairs of violins and violas with a single cello that Mozart opted for in his quintets, are superb examples of what that neglected music can offer.
