The String Quintet, D. 956, was completed in 1828 by Austrian composer Franz Schubert (1797 - 1828). It is sometimes called the "Cello Quintet", because Schubert chose to add a second cello to the regular string quartet, rather than a second viola as Mozart and Beethoven did. It is generally regarded as one of the pinnacles of chamber music - it certainly is for me. The average playing time is 52 minutes (AllMusic). I have two versions, of which I prefer the one by the Amadeus Quartet and Robert Cohen on a Deutsche Grammophon CD.
