6 Flute Quintets, Op. 19 

Composer: BOCCHERINI, Luigi
  • Boccherini wrote his six Flute Quintets, Op. 19, in 1774. The quintets are scored for flute, 2 violins, viola, and cello. Each of the six quintets consists of two movements:
    1. Quintet in E-flat major, G.425
    2. Quintet in G minor, G.426
    3. Quintet in C major, G.427
    4. Quintet in D major, G.428
    5. Quintet in B-flat major, G.429
    6. Quintet in D major, G.4301
  • Boccherini referred to these quintets as “opere piccole” (“small works”) because they contain two movements each, but in reality, they’re anything but “small.” The set of quintets covers a wide range of characters and demands virtuosic skill from all instrumentalists, not just from the flutist.2
  • The Op. 19 flute quintets were written while Boccherini was working as the court composer of Prince Luis Antonio de Borbón in Spain.

Sources

  1. “6 Flute Quintets, Op.19 (Boccherini, Luigi),” IMSLP, accessed September 9, 2025, https://imslp.org/wiki/6_Flute_Quintets%2C_Op.19_(Boccherini%2C_Luigi).
  2. Marco Mangani, Notes in accompanying booklet, Boccherini: Flute Quintets Op. 19 performed by Auser Musici, Hyperion 67646, 2008, compact disc.

Cut IDs

26817 26818 26819