Beautiful Classical Smaller Pieces, duo,trio,etc

Frogman, re Janacek, on hope you've played him or looked at scores.
I keep trying to spread the gospel on Leos but folk find him too "dissonant" .
I hear him as the epitome of that old-time Czech tonality
, as far as my amateur ear can tell he writes at both extremes of the staff and through fabulous technique makes the whole seem right down the middle. To me he is sui generis exemplified , ever fascinating . A true musical genius !

Schubert, I have been privileged to play several of Janacek's works over the years; most recently "Sinfonietta". "Mladi" was a staple of my woodwind quintet's repertory; with the addition of the bass clarinet, of course. Janacek was one of the most individualistic composers in all of music and while his music is, as you point out, dissonant it always remained tonal and rooted in Romanticism and the folk music of his native Chekoslovakia and of Russia. For me, one of the most fascinating aspects of his music is that he is sometimes referred to as the first Minimalist composer with the use of short repetitive or recurring motifs throughout a composition. Truly a musical giant.

The one that always stuns the crowd is Gary Karr - Adagio d'Albinoni, a duo recording of acoustic bass with organ accompaniment. The King LP is particularly great sounding. Cheers,
Spencer

Frogman I so appreciate your contributions from a players perspective. I like learning from your different level of concentration,sensitivity and appreciation. Peter

Frogman, I'm presently enjoying the exquisite tension in the opening movement of Mendelssohns' Octet Op. 20 played by Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields with Neville Marriner,Hugh Maquire,Ilona Brown recorded in 1968 ! (I'm playing the Decca 96khz - 24 bit remastered CD 475 7716 which does thee job for me). That Mendelssohn wrote this at 16 astounds me. The passion,intensity, and use of the double quartet at that age is for me a prime example of intense genius. Talk about "feeling it to the bone!"