String quintet in 17th century Italy and can be seen as early as 1607 in Claudio Monteverdi's opera, "L'Orfeo". It can also be applied to the standard five-part orchestral string section: first violins, second violins, violas, cellos, and double basses. String quintet A string quintet is a musical composition for five string players. As an extension to the string quartet (two violins, a viola, and a cello), a string quintet includes a fifth string instrument, usually a second viola (a so-called "viola quintet") or a second cello (a "cello quintet"), or occasionally a double bass. Notable examples of classic "viola quintets", in
Hawthorne String Quartet Hawthorne String Quartet The Hawthorne String Quartet is an American string quartet, all four of whose members are players from the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Although its repertoire ranges from the 18th century to contemporary works, the ensemble specializes in works by composers who were interned at the Terezín concentration camp during World War II and other "Entartete Musik" composers. Their recordings of music by three of these composers, Pavel Haas, Erwin Schulhoff and Hans Krása, were released on the Decca Records "Entartete Musik" series. A Boston-based ensemble, the Hawthorne String Quartet takes its name from the New England novelist Nathaniel