Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) String Symphony No. 5 in B-flat major (1821) 00:00 - Allegro vivace 04:16 - Andante 07:16 - Presto Performed by the Northern Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Nicholas Ward. "Mendelssohn wrote his twelve String Symphonies between 1821 and 1823. The first seven were all composed in 1821, with the eighth a year later, dated 27th November 1822, and the ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth, completed in March, May, July and September 1823 respectively. A thirteenth symphony, started in December that year, was replaced by a fully orchestrated work, to become his Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 11. The string symphonies were written when Mendelssohn was a pupil of Zelter and reflect the inclinations of the teacher and Mendelssohn's own clear debt to earlier classical models, with an increasing interest in the contrapuntal practices of Bach and Handel. ... String Symphony No. 5 in B flat major, completed ten days after String Symphony No. 4, on 15th September 1821, starts with impressive unanimity in a movement in which the opening descending bass motif has continuing importance. There is a tender second movement and an energetic final Presto." - Keith Anderson Painting: The Hobby Horse, Robert Peckham