A piano sextet is a composition for piano and five other musical instruments, or a group of six musicians who perform such works. There is no standard grouping of instruments with that name, and compared to the string quartet or piano quintet literature, relatively few such compositions exist. The best-known piano sextet is probably the Sextet by Poulenc, one of the pinnacles of the wind and piano repertoire. Chausson's Concert is widely regarded as one of the masterpieces of French strings and piano chamber music literature (for example, the critic Jean Gallois describes it as "superb").
The following is an incomplete list of piano sextet composers and their works in this genre:
Theodor Blumer (1881-1964), Sextet, Op. 45, composed 1921, for piano and wind quintetErnest Chausson (1855–1899), Concert in D major, Op. 21, composed 1891, for piano, violin, and string quartetAaron Copland (1900–1990), Sextet, composed 1938, for piano, clarinet, and string quartetErnő Dohnányi (1877–1960), Sextet for string trio, clarinet, horn, and pianoLouise Farrenc (1804–1875), Sextet in C minor, op. 40, composed 1852, for piano and wind quintetMikhail Glinka (1804–1857)Grand Sextet (Sestetto originale) in E-flat major, composed 1832, for piano, string quartet, and double bassSerenade (Divertimento brillante) on Themes from Bellini's La Sonnambula in A-flat major, composed 1832, for piano, string quartet, and double bassHans Huber (1852-1921) Sextet in B-flat major, composed 1898, for piano and wind quintetVincent d'Indy (1851-1931), Sarabande et Menuet, Op. 72 for piano and wind quintet, arranged 1918 by the composer from his earlier Suite dans le style ancien, Op. 24 (1886) for 2 flutes, trumpet and string quartetGordon Jacob (1895–1984), Sextet in B-flat major, composed 1956, for piano and wind quintetJoseph Jongen (1873–1953), Rapsodie, Op. 70, composed 1922, for piano and wind quintetPaul Juon (1872-1940), Divertimento, Op. 51, composed 1913, for piano and wind quintetBohuslav Martinů (1890–1959)ballet, La Revue de cuisine, composed 1927, for piano, violin, cello, clarinet, bassoon, and trumpetPiano Sextet, composed 1929, for piano, flute, oboe, clarinet, and two bassoonsFelix Mendelssohn (1809–1847), Piano Sextet in D major, Op. 110, composed 1824, for piano, violin, two violas, cello, and double bassKrzysztof Penderecki (born 1933), Sextet for string trio, clarinet, horn, and pianoFrancis Poulenc (1899–1963), Sextet, composed 1939, for piano and wind quintetSergei Prokofiev (1891–1953), Overture on Hebrew Themes in C minor, Op. 34, for piano, clarinet, and string quartetAlbert Roussel (1869-1937), Divertissement, Op. 6, composed 1906, for piano and wind quintetLudwig Thuille (1861–1907), Sextet in B-flat, Op. 6, composed 1886, for piano and wind quintetFelix Weingartner (1863–1942), Sextet Op.33; for piano, two violins, viola, violoncello and double bassClosely related forms of chamber music include the piano trio, the piano quartet and the piano quintet.
