Georges Onslow’s reputation as the ‘French Beethoven’ was earned in the field of chamber music. His 34 string quintets build on a form perfected by Mozart, and are enhanced through Onslow’s suggested use of a double bass instead of a second cello, as heard in this recording. The String Quintet no.14 in F major has an attractively genial quality, with distinctive themes contrasting with warmly emotive lyricism; String Quintet no.24 in D major shows the influence of Beethoven in its theatrically dramatic moods.

Previous volumes of our recordings of Onslow’s String Quintets have been a great success and were warmly received by the critics. Vol.1 (8573600): ‘Onslow is a composer of imagination and beauty, and these are highly interesting and worthwhile works’ (American Record Guide); Fanfare commented on Vol.4 (8574187), ‘This is music you don’t want to miss, in splendid sound’.

Ensemble Telos appears here in its Naxos debut, bringing a fresh perspective to the Romantic string quintets of George Onslow in this fifth volume of our complete edition, and uniting five distinguished musicians from leading international institutions. These include double bassist Matthew Baker, whose work on Georges Onslow’s quintets with Naxos Records is a core focus, bringing both performance and scholarship to the forefront of the quintet’s mission to illuminate this composer’s unique voice.