Classical · 1771
Minuet (from String Quintet in E major)
L. BoccheriniOp. 11 No. 5 (G. 275)
- Key
- A
- Time
- 3/4
- Tempo
- ♩=100
- AO focus
- AO1
Incipit
Form
Minuet from a five-movement string quintet (2 violins, viola, 2 cellos). The single best-known piece by Boccherini — pizzicato accompaniment, gracious upper-string melody, gentle staccato cadences.
Teaching points
- Pizzicato vs arco — the lower strings pluck under the bowed melody
- Three-bar phrases occasionally interrupt the prevailing four-bar grouping — discuss
- AO1: a friendly first chamber-music piece — manageable for school string quartets at Grade 4–5
Full score ↓Public domain
Score: IMSLP (multiple editions, all public domain).