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Antoine-Joseph Reicha (1770-1836) published this work, the second of his Six Quintuors Op. 100, with the House of Schott [Mainz] in 1824, the plate number being Z 2. The Z refers to the original 1820 Chez Zetter [Paris] plates, which had been acquired by Schott.  It so happens that Schott had a Netherlands satellite in Brussels (now in Belgium) and it was the Library Koninklijk Conservatorium - Conservatoire Royal, Brussels from which the parts used to make this modern edition were derived.

The quintets themselves are entitled in Italian (Quintetto) within the parts, but in French (Quintuors) on the Frontispiece. The instruments, too, are given French names on the frontispiece: flûte, hautbois, clarinette, cor and bassoon; but again, Italian pervades the actual parts: flauto, oboe, clarinetto, corno, and fagotto. No scores are supplied by Schott for any of the Op. 100 quintets; in fact, it would have been quite unusual had this been the case. Like madrigals published in the 16th Century, we have‘part-book’ format in use for these works.

Clarinet in C is specified for this work, while the hand-horn player uses the D crook exclusively. I have supplied parts for the Bb Clarinet and Horn in F in order that modern players might avoid transposition at sight in such a complex work.

The Op. 100 Quintuors are set in the following keys:

No. 1 Fà majeur
No. 2 Ré mineur
No. 3 Mi b majeur
No. 4 Mi mineur
No. 5 La mineur
No. 6 Si b majeur

The original quintet for which this work was composed consisted of the following members:

Joseph Guillou (1787-1853) flute
Gustave Vogt (1781-1870) oboe
Jacques-Jules Bouffil (1783-?) clarinet
Louis-François Dauprat (1781-1868) horn
One Monsieur Henry was the bassoonist in the ensemble.

First Movement
Metronomic markings are as follows: Adagio [Quarter note=60] (68 is better); Allegro [Half note=88] (80 seems more realistic) Reicha gives an alternative to Maëlzel’s Metronome: utilizing a string at a specific length with a small weight attached to its bottom, the invention is swung to and fro. To this purpose Reicha provides the length of the string in centimeters immediately following the metronomic rubric; for example Quarter note=60 is registered as 0.99 Centimeters.

Scott Ellington adds this valuable information:“The tempo, the way Reicha apparently measured it at one beat in each direction, would be: Tempo = 598/sqrt (l). Tempo is in beats per minute, and l is the length in cm, and sqrt means square root. The lengths designated for the pendulums Reicha used to designate tempos seemed awfully short, so I calculated the lengths.  It turns out the published values should be multiplied by 100, e.g., 99 cm instead of 0.99 cm for 60 beats per minute.  It is also evident that Reicha counted two beats for each complete cycle of the pendulum, one in each direction.”

Has Reicha retrenched? Remembering that the first quintet in Op. 100 had all of its innovations centered in the scherzo, it will be interesting to see what direction Reicha takes in this quintet, the second in this series of six.

The introduction to this movement is clearly influenced by the style one associates with the funeral march. It flows seamlessly into a sonata form which is brilliant and technically challenging for all five players. Among the plethora of themes, there is one (Closing Theme 5) that is clearly influenced by the lighter approach to melody which Reicha would have heard at the Opéra comique. Other than that, all seems in order. It must be noted that Reicha's penchant for reorchestrating repeated materials, in this case four of the five closing themes, is heard to good advantage in this movement.

Second Movement
Metronomic markings are as follows: Andante [Quarter note=54].

The slow movement rondeau is placed in G Major, the subdominant of D minor which is the primary key of the quintet. Of its two couplets, the first is placed in the relative minor, but the second is set in a third relationship with G major, Eb major, and Reicha gives the appropriate change of key signature for that purpose. These concepts are all in keeping with the tonal ideals of the early 19th Century. The bulk of the melodic work in this really lovely movement is carried by oboe and flute, but the horn also has a fair amount allotted to it. The blooming of Early Romanticism which we associate with Franz Schubert, Reicha’s great contemporary, is present throughout this movement.

Third Movement
Metronomic markings are as follows: Minuetto. Allegro vivo [Dotted half note=92]

The parallel major, rather than the tonic of D minor, is Reicha’s choice of key for this bright scherzo. Remembering the unusual rondeau scherzo of the previous quintet in this opus, one begins to listen to this work with the expectation that something wonderful will happen. The structure consists of the usual three large sections (scherzo-trio-scherzo) with repeat signs added to maintain the classical structure of the two initial binary forms.

The usual structure of binary form is AA BB. If it is rounded, one finds AA BA BA. In some cases the BA section is modified to BC if rounding is not desired. The first binary form in the scherzo at hand has the structure AA BB CC; that is to say, the C part has been separated from the B section. Reicha composes the Trio in the same manner (AA BB CC) but in the subdominant, which is quite usual; but he places the BB section in the mediant of that key and the CC section in dominant and leaves it there. Normally, the central section is in the dominant, and the final section reverts to the tonic.

The da capo is written out, but this is no usual da capo. After strains AA and BB have sounded (with some extension) we discover that Reicha has, in fact, tricked us and composed a development section based on both binary forms!

Fourth Movement
Metronomic markings are as follows: Finale. Allegro vivace [Half note=116]

This finale is among the most-exciting that Reicha ever wrote. Concerto-style thematic material is used to drive the sonata-form movement from the outset, where a ritornello-like opening theme is followed by a spectacular hand horn solo which functions like the episode of a concerto. As might be expected for a Reicha finale in sonata form, the movement has but two sections: exposition and development/recapitulation; during both of its appearances, the 'ritornello' of the latter section elides briefly with the dominant before continuing in the tonic.

For performers desiring more information regarding the structure of this fascinating movement, the basic layout is as follows:

Exposition
Theme 1=Ritornello: flute lead
Theme 2=Episode: horn solo
Theme 1=Ritornello: oboe lead
Closing Material
Theme 3
Transition
Theme 4
Closing Themes 1-3

Recapitulation/Development
Theme 1=Ritornello: flute lead
Theme 2=Episode: clarinet solo
Theme 1=Ritornello: clarinet lead
Developmental Material
Theme 3
Theme 4
Closing Themes 1-3

Coda
Both the Developmental Material and Theme 2 are included among its several sections

This is one finale that is sure to bring an audience to its feet. Clearly there is no retrenchment in this quintet: the master has continued to move forward!