Mendelssohn's Octet
Katy Hamilton compares recordings of Felix Mendelssohn's Octet for strings in E flat major and chooses her favourite.
There has never been a more prodigiously talented child composer than Felix Mendelssohn and proof of that is his Octet. Written in 1825 when he was 16 years old, it was unprecedented in form: there had been double quartets but nothing like this where all the instruments are combined with unique brilliance and clarity of texture. Above all, though, it's the Octet's sheer lyrical joyousness and exuberant energy that set it apart, the teen Mendelssohn's generosity of spirit thrillingly combined with his compositional genius.
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Building a Library: a guide to the best recordings of the greatest classical music.