GUSTAV HELSTED (1857-1924): Decet in D for Wind Quintet, String Quartet and Double Bass, Op, 18, String Quartet in F Minor, Op. 33.

Description: The only other appearance this Danish composer has made in these pages was 16 years ago along with his son in Danacord’s “Harmonious Families” series. Those were orchestral works while here we have an 1891 Decet whose joyous and pastoral atmosphere recalls Brahms’ youthful string sextet while the c.1917 quartet is a dramatic work with elements of darkness and anxiety perhaps mirroring the times, even in a neutral nation. The Danish Sinfonietta.