Anton Zimmermann (1741–81) came from the Silesian area, the north-east of what is now the Czech Republic, and worked mainly in Pressburg (now Bratislava); he was quite a prolific composer of sacred, dramatic, orchestral and chamber music, but he hasn’t been much revived – I confess I haven’t heard a note of his music before, or if I have I’ve forgotten it. That isn’t meant to be a criticism. Zimmermann is a very capable, very professional composer as shown by these three quartets, which are in an idiom much like that of, say, Haydn’s Op 9 – they date, like Op 9, from the beginning of the 1770s or a little later. Each is in five movements, with a pair of minuets as second and fourth.

The actual invention, as you would imagine, is less enterprising, less original than Haydn’s, but there are a lot of pleasing ideas, with some expressive writing in the slow movements (especially the Adagio of No 1, and that of No 2 has a charming muted violin solo above pizzicati), and some witty touches in the quick ones (try the finale of No 1 or the spirited middle movement of No 2). And the trios of the minuets are often appealing. Zimmermann is a little apt to write rhythmically dullish bass parts: the cellist may, I should think, have got a little weary of playing crotchets by the end of the session.

The Musica Aeterna Soloists play firmly into the notes and give sympathetic performances, with a sure grasp of style and tempo; the first violinist perhaps finds the rapid variation in the first movement of No 3 a shade testing. Altogether an interesting disc, particularly for anyone curious about the background from which Haydn emerged.