This is one of the most popular of a dozen quartets composed in 1788 and 1790, especially for Joseph Tost, the principal second violinist in Haydn's Esterhazá orchestra. It pays tribute to Tost's creativity and virtuosity, noted especially in his high register, right at the beginning. Over a rather square accompaniment, the first violin presents the high-flying, birdlike, melismatic melody from which this quartet takes its nickname. This soaring theme vies for prominence in the opening Allegro moderato with several other ideas, including a highly syncopated tune and a more nervous melody with scalar motion, all put through a tense development in remote keys. The "lark" gets the last word, though, appearing almost as an afterthought at the very end of the movement.

The Adagio consists of singing in introspective major-key sections framing a central episode in a minor key, a structure typical of Haydn's slow movements. The ensuing Minuet (Allegretto) has all the rhythmic impulse the Adagio intentionally lacks, and calls to mind a playful German folk dance. Again, the central trio veers into the minor mode, slipping from D major to D minor. The finale (Vivace) is a whirling perpetual-motion piece, a tour de force for Tost and his fellow players. Haydn manages to insert a central fugato section amid all the rapid figures and flurries that emphasize the ensemble's sheer panache.

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