Quartet in F Major, KV370; Adagio in C Major, KV580a; Quintet in C Minor, KV406 (516b)

Released by the Japanese label Denon in 1982, this recording features the distinguished oboist Hansjörg Schellenberger accompanied by the Philharmonia Quartett Berlin. The selection highlights Mozart's chamber works for winds and strings, specifically the Oboe Quartet in F Major and the Adagio in C Major, alongside the composer's own arrangement of his Serenade for Wind Octet as the String Quintet in C Minor. At the time of production, Denon was at the forefront of digital recording technology, and this release served as a showcase for the high-fidelity clarity that early PCM digital masters could achieve in a chamber music setting.

The collaboration brought together Schellenberger, who was then principal oboist of the Berlin Philharmonic, with members of the Philharmonia Quartett Berlin, a group renowned for its rigorous approach to the Austro-German classical repertoire. The design of the release reflects the minimalist and scholarly aesthetic typical of Denon’s classical series during the early 1980s, prioritizing the fidelity of the performance and the historical accuracy of the score. The recording received favorable attention from audiophile critics of the era, who valued the balanced, transparent soundstage that allowed the distinct timber of the oboe to emerge clearly within the string textures.