Rabl’s Quartet in E-Flat Major won first prize in 1896 in a prestigious competition for young composers sponsored by the Vienna "Tonkünstlerverein" of which Johannes Brahms was honorary president and a judge of the competition. Brahms recommended the piece to his own publisher, Simrock, who released it the following year along with three other Rabl works: the Fantasy Pieces for Piano Trio, Op. 2, and two sets of Four Songs, Op. 3 and Op. 4. The Op. 1 quartet appears to be the first work ever wri...