George Onslow part two.
This is the second part of the three-part series about the French composer George Onslow. He was born the son of a British father (Edward Onslow) and a French mother (Marie de Bourdeilles de Brantôme) in Clermont Ferrand in 1784. His family was of noble birth, and they were large landowners. He composed for fun. He didn’t have to do it for the money.
Onslow studied piano with, among others, Jan Ladislav Dussek and Johann Baptist Cramer and composition with Antonin Reicha. Onslow most often composed chamber music. He wrote, among other things, 36 string quartets, 34 string quintets and 10 piano trios.
In this hour, you can listen to one of his most famous string quintets and the Sextet for piano, horns and double bass.
Playlist:
- George Onslow: String quintet in C minor, Op. 38 ‘De kogel’. L’Archibudelli & Smithsonian Chamber Players
- George Onslow: Sextet for piano, flute, clarinet, bassoon, horn and double bass, Op. 77bis ‘Grand Sextuor’. Horst Göbel, piano; Members of the Berliner Philharmoniker’s Orchestra Academy.
- Extra: George Onslow: Allegro moderato in F-sharp minor. Laurent Martin, piano
