The two works on this release are of special significance for the Henschel Quartet, with their prolific chamber music-making over the past 25 years. The three founding members of the Henschel Quartet – Christoph Henschel, Monika Henschel and Mathias Beyer-Karlshøj – have a special artistic friendship with Gerold Huber and Alexandra Hengstebeck. Recording Franz Schubert's Trout Quintet together for the Henschel Quartet’s anniversary is a wish that the ensemble has now fulfilled. Hardly any work has been played more often in concert by the Munich-based Henschel Quartet than that brilliant piece of chamber music composed by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy at the age of only 16: his Octet, op. 20. For the Henschels, their ‘Octet concerts’ – with legendary musicians such as members of the Amadeus Quartet and the leading string quartet of Japan, the Sawa Quartet – remain unforgettable. Since 2010, the Henschel Quartet has been working together closely with the Diogenes Quartet, also based in Munich. With their joint commitment to promoting young talent and with the help of the association "Friends of the Henschel Quartet", the two quartets have already managed to support 500 young ensembles and have reached more than 5,000 young listeners.