Piano Concerto in C major | |
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No. 25 | |
by W. A. Mozart | |
Key | C major |
Catalogue | K. 503 |
Composed | 1786 |
Movements | Three (Allegro maestoso, Andante, Allegretto) |
Scoring |
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The Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major, K. 503, was completed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart on December 4, 1786, alongside the Prague Symphony, K. 504. Although two more concertos (No. 26, K. 537 and No. 27, K. 595) would later follow, this work is the last of what are considered the twelve great piano concertos written in Vienna between 1784 and 1786. [1] Chronologically the work is the 21st of Mozart's 23 original piano concertos.
K. 503 is now widely recognized "by common consent" as "one of Mozart's greatest masterpieces in the concerto genre." [2] However, it had long been neglected in favor of Mozart's other "more brilliant" concertos, such as No. 21, K. 467. Though Mozart performed it on several occasions, [3] it was not performed again in Vienna until after his death, and it only gained acceptance in the standard repertoire in the later part of the twentieth century. [4] Mozart's pupil Johann Nepomuk Hummel valued it – it was one of seven of Mozart's concertos which he arranged for chamber music ensemble. [5]
The concerto is scored for solo piano, flute, two oboes, two bassoons, two horns in C, two trumpets in C, timpani and strings. It is one of Mozart's longest concertos, with average performance durations of 29–33 minutes.
The concerto has the following three movements:
While the concerto is frequently compared to the Jupiter Symphony, Girdlestone considers its closest parallel to be the String Quintet in C, K. 515. [4] The expansive first movement (in sonata form) is one of Mozart's most symphonic concerto movements. This movement subtly slips in and out of the minor several times. One of the secondary themes of the concerto's first movement is a march that often reminds people of "La Marseillaise" and may have been an inspiration for the song. [6] (See e.g. Musical section.) This theme dominates the development section. Beethoven references this concerto in his own Fourth Piano Concerto. In addition, the famous motif in the first movement of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony resembles one found in this concerto. Also, Mozart's 25th and Beethoven's 5th concerti have a strong march-like theme in the first movement that is first played in minor and then soon appears gloriously in major.
The tranquil second movement is in sonata form, but lacks a development section. It extensively uses the winds.
The third movement is a sonata-rondo that opens with a gavotte theme from Mozart's opera Idomeneo . Girdlestone considers this movement to be very serious-minded. Like the first movement, it touches upon the minor; however, it ends assuredly and joyfully.
In 1798, music critic Johann Friedrich Rochlitz described K.503 as "the most magnificent and difficult of all [Mozart's] hitherto known concertos" and "[maybe] the most magnificent of all the concertos which have ever been written." [7]
According to Simon P. Keefe, K. 503 is now regarded "by common consent one of Mozart's greatest masterpieces in the concerto genre." It is often viewed as a "kindred spirit" or "the rival and the complement" of Mozart's great C minor piano concerto, K. 491, completed a few months prior. [8] Keefe mentions and quotes Donald Tovey, Cuthbert Girdlestone, and Alfred Einstein as among the musicologists who uphold K. 503 as exemplary. [9]
Sonata form is a musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle of the 18th century.
Johann Nepomuk Hummel was an Austrian composer and virtuoso pianist. His music reflects the transition from the Classical to the Romantic musical era. He was a pupil of Mozart, Salieri and Haydn. He also knew Beethoven and Schubert.
The Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73, known as the Emperor Concerto in English-speaking countries, is a concerto composed by Ludwig van Beethoven for piano and orchestra. Beethoven composed the concerto in 1809 under salary in Vienna, and he dedicated it to Archduke Rudolf, who was his patron, friend, and pupil. Its public premiere was on 28 November 1811 in Leipzig, with Friedrich Schneider as the soloist and Johann Philipp Christian Schulz conducting the Gewandhaus Orchestra. Beethoven, usually the soloist, could not perform due to declining hearing.
Sonata rondo form is a musical form often used during the Classical and Romantic music eras. As the name implies, it is a blend of sonata and rondo forms.
The Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K. 466, was composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1785. The first performance took place at the Mehlgrube Casino in Vienna on 11 February 1785, with the composer as the soloist.
The Symphony No. 38 in D major, K. 504, was composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in late 1786. It premiered in Prague on January 19, 1787, during Mozart's first visit to the city. Because it was first performed in Prague, it is popularly known as the Prague Symphony. Mozart's autograph thematic catalogue records December 6, 1786, as the date of completion for this composition.
The Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major, K. 467, was completed on 9 March 1785 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, four weeks after the completion of the previous D minor concerto, K. 466.
The Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major K. 488 is a concerto for piano and orchestra written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was finished, according to Mozart's own catalogue, on March 2, 1786, two months prior to the premiere of his opera, Le nozze di Figaro, and some three weeks prior to the completion of his next piano concerto. It was one of three subscription concerts given that spring and was probably played by Mozart himself at one of these.
D minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B♭, and C. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative major is F major and its parallel major is D major.
The Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor, K. 491, is a concerto composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart for keyboard and orchestra. Mozart composed the concerto in the winter of 1785–1786, finishing it on 24 March 1786, three weeks after completing his Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major. As he intended to perform the work himself, Mozart did not write out the soloist's part in full. The premiere was in early April 1786 at the Burgtheater in Vienna. Chronologically, the work is the twentieth of Mozart's 23 original piano concertos.
The Symphony No. 98 in B♭ major, Hoboken I/98, is the sixth of the twelve London symphonies composed by Joseph Haydn. It was completed in 1792 as part of the set of symphonies composed on his first trip to London. It was first performed at the Hanover Square Rooms in London on 2 March 1792. Some musicologists and historians interpret this symphony as Haydn’s tribute to his friend Mozart who had died on 5 December 1791.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 9 in E♭ major, K. 271, known as the Jeunehomme or Jenamy concerto was written in Salzburg in 1777 when the composer was 21 years old.
Rudolf Firkušný was a Moravian-born, Moravian-American classical pianist.
The Piano Concerto No. 22 in E♭ major, K. 482, is a work for piano, or fortepiano, and orchestra by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composed in December 1785.
The Piano Concerto No. 19 in F major, K. 459 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was written at the end of 1784: Mozart's own catalogue of works records that it was completed on 11 December. It is occasionally known as the "second coronation concerto" on account of Mozart playing it on the occasion of the coronation of Leopold II in Frankfurt am Main in October 1790. The autograph is held by the Berlin State Library. The first edition was produced by Johann André of Offenbach in 1794, and Breitkopf & Härtel produced an edition in 1800. Like most of Mozart's concertos it is in three movements:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's concertos for piano and orchestra are numbered from 1 to 27. The first four numbered concertos and three unnumbered concertos are early works that are arrangements of keyboard sonatas by various contemporary composers. Concertos 7 and 10 are compositions for three and two pianos respectively. The remaining twenty-one are original compositions for solo piano and orchestra. These works, many of which Mozart composed for himself to play in the Vienna concert series of 1784–86, held special importance for him.
The Piano Concerto No. 14 in E♭ major, K. 449, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was written in 1784.
The Piano Concerto No. 15 in B♭ major, KV. 450 is a concertante work for piano and orchestra by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The concerto is scored for solo piano, flute, two oboes, two bassoons, two horns, and strings. A brief section of the third movement is played by Mozart in a deleted scene from the movie Amadeus.
In musical form and analysis, exposition is the initial presentation of the thematic material of a musical composition, movement, or section. The use of the term generally implies that the material will be developed or varied.
The Rondo in A minor, K. 511, is a work for solo piano by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.