During the summer months of the years 1819, 1823 and 1825, Schubert spent several weeks with his friend and interpreter of his lieder Johann Michael Vogl in Vogl’s home town of Steyr in Upper Austria. Vogl made Schubert acquainted with the musical circles of the town, particularly with the home and circle of Sylvester Paumgartner, the musical patron of Steyr at that time. Schubert’s relations with Steyr and with Paumgartner in particular were vividly recounted by Schubert’s friend Albert Stadler, who also came from Steyr, in his memorandums addressed to Ferdinand Luib in 1858. Stadler’s report is the only source concerning the origin of the Quintet.
“You are probably familiar with Schubert’s Quintet for pianoforte, violin, viola, violoncello and double bass with the variations on his ‘Trout’. He wrote it at the express wish of my friend Sylvester Paumgartner, who was utterly enchanted with the delightful little song. He wanted the piece to have the form and scoring of Hummel’s Quintet, recte Septet, still new at that time. Schubert finished the piece quickly and kept the score himself . . .”.
This account shows that the piece was written upon Paumgartner’s suggestion, but gives no information about the time and place of composition. However, one can assume that Schubert composed it in 1819 for Steyr.
