Franz Krommer, as Frantisek Kramár styled himself in German-speaking lands, is quite well represented on record. These four pieces make an agreeable addition to the tally of a composer who speaks with talent the language that Mozart spoke with genius. The two quartets, which surfaced in the library of a Moravian castle only in the 1950s, are the lighter pair, though they have much charm and some nice strokes of wit. There are some nimbly Mozartian touches in the First Quartet, such as a final rondo with a suggestion of his Serenade for 13 Winds in the theme, and a pleasantly fresh opening movement with the slightly unusual marking Allegro aperto (used by Mozart for his Oboe Concerto). The Second Quartet is the more original and includes a clever first movement which has the oboe vying with the violin in what is not so much a duet as a duel, and a rondo with a nice little surprise to end with.

The quintets – these are the first recordings – are more substantial, especially in the first movements, and make inventive use of an accompanying quartet consisting of violin, two violas and cello. Mozart also found this an attractive combination when he wrote his horn quintet, and there is here in both works, perhaps above all in the beautiful Andante of the E flat Quintet, a sensitive response to the richer texture provided by two violas. It sets the oboe in a somewhat different tonal perspective, especially as the instrument’s higher register is generally favoured. Sarah Francis responds sensitively to the tonal subtleties in her attractive performances of music that falls very easily on the ear.