Subject: On K511 and K540
From: Joe Dorazio
To: All
Date Posted: 12:48:53 05/31/04 ()
Email Address: joedorazio@hotmail.com
 

Message:
I hope everyone is having an enjoyable Memorial Day. It's raining in Philadelphia. (Perhaps I shouldn't be listening to piano compositions in a minor key!?)

What are we to make of Mozart's, Rondo in A minor (K511), and his Adagio in B minor (K540)?

According to "The Compleat Mozart Edition": K511 "This rondo is a work of such harmonic daring that it prophesies aspects of Schubert and of Chopin." K540 "The design of this extraordinary Adagio is that of a movement in sonata form, but in expression it is much more like a fantasia, with many abrupt changes of dynamics, many silences (the music breaks off twenty times in three pages), and an intense quality in the outlines and harmonies."

But why did Mozart write these beautifully sad and introspective pieces of music? Did his father's death prompt Mozart to write K511, and almost a year to the day later, K540? Or as Gutman postulates, as an elegy to his friend, Hatzfeld who died about the same time as Leopold?

If we are to assume, as Dr. Zaslaw wrote in, "Mozart As a Working Stiff", that Mozart wrote specifically for commissions and their associated fees, then the question of what may have inspired Mozart towards these two compositions, further intrigues.

And what about the unfinished Fantasy in D minor, K397? I've often thought that it sounds as though it may have pointed the way to K540. Would you agree?

Finally, if these minor key gems for solo piano do indeed "prophesies" Chopin, what works by the Romantic composer do you think may have been inspired by Mozart? (Chopin, like many later composers, idolized Mozart). I would certainly say Chopin's Preludes, especially No. 15 in D flat, comes to mind.

Thoughts? Comments?

Subject: CONTEMPORARIES OF MOZART: Joseph Haydn
From: Gary Smith
To: All
Date Posted: 12:09:06 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
CONTEMPORARIES OF MOZART:

Haydn, Franz Joseph (1732-1809)

This is another posting in an irregular series on the various contemporary composers from Mozart's lifetime. The material is mostly derivative from general sources as noted. These are the people that Mozart:

Competed for work with.
Considered as friends and colleagues.
Knew from reputation.
Taught/nurtured as pupils and students.

Joseph Haydn has suffered through the decades under the image of “Papa” Haydn, the be-wigged Kapellmeister of a remote court offering up Classical Lite as opposed to any substantive works. This is a malicious reduction of one of the pivotal composers in history. Haydn was responsible for the maturing of Classical music by his measured development of all its genres and practices. One might accept the point that he had fewer “great” works than Mozart or Beethoven, but over the long stretch of time that constituted the Classical Era, it was Haydn to whom the musical community kept looking to for quality works, for it was he who was constantly supplying them from the very start. His influence is felt everywhere in the music of that time. For one example, while Beethoven may have considered Mozart the superior composer, it is Haydn whom you “hear” when listening to early Beethoven works.

Haydn was born in Austria of pure German stock. This has been a point of importance in Europe, as various studies have attempted to claim Haydn as being Czech, or Croatian, or Hungarian or even of Gypsy stock, based on the apparent folk tunes and themes he used. However, E. F. Schmid in 1934 collected decisive evidence to show Haydn’s roots were German. The son of a farmer-wheelwright, Haydn showed immediate music promise and at the age of 5 was given into the care of a Hainburg schoolmaster named Johann Mathias Franck, who taught him the rudiments of music, though Haydn recalled that he had often received “more thrashings than food” from his benefactor! At 8 Haydn was “discovered” by Georg Reutter, who was looking for talented singers for the choir at St. Stephens’ Cathedral in Vienna. Haydn was selected and went off with him to Vienna and became a choirboy, arriving in Vienna in the late spring of 1740. For the next ten years, he was a prominent and well-liked member of the choir, but accounts differ as to whether he received much in the way of systematic musical training beyond singing. Haydn did receive some training by all accounts, so at the least it can be said that his native talent in this area was not neglected so much as malnourished for these ten years.

When his voice broke at 17, he left St. Stephen’s and lived at first in poverty as a music teacher. His quarters were in the Michaelhaus (still standing proudly in Vienna) in “a miserable little attic room without a stove.” Aside from teaching, he studied music on his own and played for money in various serenade groups and orchestras. Also living in this house was the court poet Pietro Metastasio and the dowager Princess Esterházy, the mother of the two princes Haydn would be working for in the not-too-distant future. Through contacts such as these Haydn was introduced to the composer Nicola Porpora. This got Haydn engaged as an accompanist and valet to the composer. While somewhat demeaning, this position allowed Haydn to take payment in the form of compositional and singing lessons, as well as in the Italian language. Also, via this engagement with Porpora, Haydn was able to make further contacts in the music circles of Vienna.

Porpora left Vienna sometime in 1752 or 53, which then saw Haydn working for two aristocratic patrons for the balance of the 1750s. The first was with Karl Joseph Edler von Fürnberg, supplying mostly chamber music for small musical gatherings, which Haydn as well played in. It was for these gatherings that the first quartets were composed. However, this work was far more freelancing than a “position” as such, meaning that Haydn did not give up teaching. But, through the efforts of von Fürnberg he was to meet Count Karl Joseph Franz Morzin. Supposedly on von Fürnberg’s written recommendation in 1758 (or 1759, accounts differ), Haydn became music director to Count Morzin’s musical establishment for the fee of 200 gulden (say $ 9000 US), free room and meals at the staff table. The Count maintained a small orchestra for which Haydn composed his first symphony. This appointment was a godsend to the struggling composer, and he must have felt great elation at the prospects for the future.

Until, unfortunately, the Count dissipated his fortune (the word “squandered” is also applied here) and thus disbanded his musical establishment, probably in 1760. Despite this loss, good fortune smiled upon Haydn once again. Prince Nikolas Esterházy had heard Haydn’s initial symphony at the Count’s, and being pleased by it, offered the composer the vice-Kapellmeister post with his own musical establishment. The contract for this is dated 1 May 1761, but some information exists to show that Haydn was with the Prince in 1760, so he may have had another lesser position before achieving this plum assignment. Here, at Eisenstadt, Hungary, Haydn remained with the Esterházy household for 30 years, for both Prince Paul and his successor Prince Nikolaus, who reigned from 1762 to 1790, were passionate music-lovers. In 1766 Nikolaus built the palace of Eszterháza (modeled on Versailles, a common practice throughout Europe at this time) on the south side of the Neusiedlersee, spending the greater part of each year in this new home.

At this same point in time, Haydn married Maria Anna Aloysia Apollonia Keller, the ceremony taking place in St. Stephen’s Cathedral. Haydn had fallen in love with her sister first though, but when that Keller daughter entered a convent, Haydn agreed to marry the eldest. It was an unsatisfactory union from both sides. Obviously, she had not been Haydn’s first choice, which probably didn’t set well with her, and since she was devout religious and he was not, he felt she was much too fond of the clergy for his taste. Maria, for her part, appears to have had absolutely no appreciation for the artist she married, as she appears to have been totally lacking of any understanding of her husband’s work. Haydn is reported to have said of her: “It’s all the same to her if her husband is a cobbler or an artist.” He, as the saying goes, found comfort elsewhere, putting it delicately as: “My wife was unable to bear children, and I was therefore less indifferent to the charms of other women.”

One hears of the title Kapellmeister (or in this case, Vice-Kapellmeister) used during the Classical Era, but what did this position actually entail for the bearer of the title? At Eszterháza initially, Haydn was subordinate to Gregor Werner, who by 1760 was old and tired. Haydn’s position was really in fact that of the Kapellmeister, as he appears to have been put in charge of the musical establishment, allowing Werner to, in reality, retire. Werner was still responsible for choral music; on all other occasions regarding musical performances, everything pertaining to music was assigned to Haydn. What that entailed was that Haydn was responsible for organizing the musical events; hiring, training, disciplining and letting go musicians, composing music, acquiring and maintaining the music library, as well as seeing to it that instruments were purchased and maintained. At the time of his hiring, a new theater was under construction, so opera was to soon come under his charge as well. Even with stage plays though, the Princes often wanted incidental music set for them, which Haydn was required to see to. He was obligated to compose for the Prince as required and forbidden to sell or give away this music without direct permission. To compose for others outside the household required special permission from the Prince as well. Haydn was to dress and behave “…as befits an honest house officer in a princely court.” Towards the musicians, he was to set an example of conduct for them and “…avoid undue familiarity in eating and drinking or otherwise in his relations with them, lest he should lose the respect due him.” As remuneration, Haydn initially received 400 gulden plus another 180 for expenses; by 1764 this had risen to 600 gulden plus 180 for expenses, or roughly $30,000 US. In 1778 he became the organist as well, which added another 180 gulden, meaning he made about $40,000 US per annum from just his Kapellmeister duties. This didn’t count any teaching or sales of his compositions, which did bring him progressively more income as the years went on. Finally, Eszterháza, being somewhat remote, presented the situation of being both inexpensive to live at and offering little opportunity to spend money on “luxuries.” Haydn did however buy a house there, and kept chickens, two horses and probably a cow as well. He had two servants eventually and while he was a major person of the Eszterháza household, he never acted as though he was anymore than a well-paid servant there. Haydn was comfortable with who he was, and showed tremendous loyalty to the family that had lifted him out of poverty.

Though modeled on Versailles, the palace of Eszterháza was isolated, by distance and as well culturally from the rest of the Austrian Empire. Haydn's art actually benefited from this seclusion. As he put it (probably making a virtue out of vice here) “There was no one near to confuse me, so I was forced to become original.” What he may have meant there was that with few works by other composers crossing the threshold, his efforts in music could be centered more on expanding the forms he was comfortable with, as opposed to “competing” with other composers for position and acclaim. As his music passed beyond the borders of Eszterháza , Haydn's fame spread throughout Austria, the German states and into Italy as well. As his symphonies and quartets were published and circulated, the standard “bootleg” French editions began to appear in Paris and later in London. This was a standard problem throughout the Classical Era, as with no copyright protection granted composers (except, notably in England), once other than the original publisher seized a work, all monies from sales went into their pockets.

Through the 1760’s and early 1770’s Haydn basically grappled with the problems inherent in learning how to run an operation such as the Eszterháza musical establishment. Before this time he had been more or less a freelancing artist, but now he was a retained liveried composer to a prince who expected a smoothly running operation first, and genius second. And with a theater now open and on the premises, he was expected to compose operas as well, something he had very limited exposure to previously. It was a constantly testing challenge, but one that he successfully mastered. As he mastered the demands of his post, he gradually was given permission to accept outside commissions and to sell his scores directly to publishers for his personal profit. He composed extensively for every possible medium (just see the lists at the end of this work!) and through them pursued his own musical course. One that gently but firmly expanded the “envelope” of the Classical style.
The works within this initial timeframe that standout from the others would be his symphonies, which were increasing in depth and complexity. After 1762, Haydn more or less abandoned the pre-classical, three-movement format that had developed out of Italian opera overtures (fast—slow—fast) and had moved on to a four-movement plan (fast—slow—dance—fast). This change reflects stylistic transforming of late Baroque into the Classical style. Haydn’s maturity was fully established by the Sturn und Drang symphonies of 1770-1774. These works combined the symphonic technique of motivic development (inherent in a sonata-allegro format) with the art of counterpoint and proceeded to expand the intensity and variety of human emotion, as instrumental music had not consistently seen before. One should note especially the symphonies No.26 in d minor (Lamentatione) and No.44 in e minor (Trauer). Symphony No. 26 is his first minor key work in this genre and with its somber intensity, quotations from the plainsong melodies of the Holy Week Liturgy and violent syncopations, must have seemed a revelation of what this form could be, and become. Symphony No. 44 has an opening movement that is tragic and fiery, with a sadly beautiful Adagio. Haydn at one point requested that this particular adagio be played at his funeral. Finally, Haydn gave this work a minuet that is eerily and effectively contrapuntal, in the end again producing a work that gave much pause for thought among connoisseurs and colleagues. Though he had been composing quartets almost from the start of his career, his quartet sets from this time (Op. 9, 17 and 20 in particular), expanded beyond the limits others were composing at. These are milestones in the development of the genre and were avidly studied. Haydn, however, was a practical man in that his compositional approach was essentially two-sided; he could change between an “expressive” style and a “functional” style without apparent difficulty, composing for household use on the one hand and on the other to experiment and expand. The 18th century, unlike the “progressive” 19th, found no contradiction between these two approaches.

After 1772, Haydn’s musical development (conditioned by an edict from the Prince not “…to write so much learned ears”) is characterized by expert, self-assured craftsmanship, the use of more brilliant orchestral resources (adding trumpets and drums, for one) and further expansion of the sonata-allegro style he had picked up. The works through the 1770’s into the early 1780’s provide a consistent musical structure within the genres so that it is possible for one to measure Haydn’s expanding development of his music. These works show an instinctive sense of form, an expansion on the use of orchestral winds (notably the French horn) and the inclination (that grew into a trademark) for building musical development through the elaboration of small motives and themes. In 1784-5 he was commissioned by the Cadiz Cathedral to compose an oratorio without words on Christ's Seven Last Words on the Cross. Here Haydn expands one of his finer talents, his constant ability to find new and inventive solutions to limiting problems, and succeeds on a very high level. He was rightly proud of this work, and its challenge came at an opportune time for him. The Parisian musical society Concert de la Loge Olympique commissioned him to compose 6 symphonies. These six works (Nos. 82-87) were composed in 1785-86 and are so personal and original that it is clear Haydn was setting out to create something entirely new and his own. In 1788-89, he composed three other symphonies for the Loge Olympique, (Nos. 90-92), the last of which was played at the conferring of his Honorary Doctorate of Music by Oxford University. The “Oxford” represents the culmination of Haydn’s symphonic skills. The following 12 are the justly famous “London” symphonies, which are in the end variations on the level the “Oxford” had reached.
By the time of the early 1780’s he had become friends with Mozart, for whom he had the highest admiration. Their works from this date (1781) betray passages of mutual influence. Mozart frequently acknowledged his personal debt to Haydn as a major influence on his developing style, while Haydn, in his more direct way, simply declared that Mozart was “a God in music.” Mozart, in one grand show of gratitude towards Haydn, composed 6 string quartets (k.387, K.421, K.428, K.458, K.464 and K.465), which were played for Haydn on 15 January 1785. Later, when they were published, Mozart wrote a heartfelt dedication to Haydn that accompanied them. Through them one understands Mozart’s remark, “It was from Haydn that I first learned the true way to compose quartets.” Though we have little information on how much the two composers stayed in touch, we do know that Mozart was much moved and saddened by Haydn’s departure for England. “We are probably saying our last farewell in this life,” he is reported to have told Haydn, with tears in his eyes. He was correct, but from the wrong perspective. Haydn assumed that Mozart meant the remark as a reference to his own advanced age, not the prospect of Mozart’s early passing. Mozart, for his part, defended Haydn from any attacks made within his hearing. The composer Kozeluch once assured Mozart that he would never composed a quartet the way Haydn had, to which Mozart replied: “Nor should I, but do you know why? Because neither you or I would have had so good an idea.” There is a different version of this tale as well, with Kozeluch still criticizing a Haydn quartet effort, and Mozart replying: “Sir, even if the two of us were fused together, we wouldn’t make a second Haydn by a long shot!” Nor was Mozart exempt from the tongue of Kozeluch, who declared upon hearing the overture to Don Giovanni K.527: “Good, but full of faults.” Haydn is reported to have passed along Kozeluch’s condescending judgment upon hearing the full rehearsal of the overture to Die Zauberflöte K.620, “Ah, our good friend Mozart is trying to be learned this time!” (Since Haydn was in England at that point, this anecdote is at best second if not third hand, but is certainly in line with Kozeluch’s style).

For his part, Haydn was equally as generous. When Leopold Mozart visited his son In Vienna later on in 1785, Haydn said to him upon their meeting: “I say to you before God, as an honest man, that your son is the greatest composer I know, personally or by name: he has taste and, in addition, the most profound knowledge of composition.” Later on in England, Haydn was to declare that Mozart was the most extraordinary, original and comprehensive musical genius that was ever known in this or any age. When he received news in England of Mozart’s death, he wrote: “Posterity will not see such a talent again in a hundred years!” (He was and is still correct; it’s been over 200 years now and counting.) The chronicler Dr. Charles Burney later overheard Haydn tell listeners; “He was a truly great musician. I have been often flattered by my friends with having some genius; but he was much my superior.”

Haydn's life at Eszterháza ended in 1790 when Prince Nikolaus died and his successor dismissed the musicians, leaving Haydn his salary and title, though without obligations of any kind. In effect, it was a pension. Haydn left the estate for Vienna where he accepted an invitation from the visiting impresario J. P. Salomon to visit London. Efforts had been made in the past to engage Haydn for a concert series in London. All attempts had failed, for one or another reasons. Salomon had been in Cologne to engage soloists for his concerts when heard of the passing of Prince Esterházy. Knowing what this could mean, he at once set off for Vienna, arriving at Haydn’s home unannounced to declare to the somewhat startled Haydn: “I am Salomon from London and have come to fetch you. Tomorrow we shall conclude an agreement.” He stayed in England from January 1791 to the middle of 1792, being fêted, lionized, and entertained by royalty. He completed his symphonies No. 93-98 on this visit, when he was deeply impressed by the 1791 Handel Festival in Westminster Abbey. In July 1791 the honorary degree of Doctor of Music was conferred on him by Oxford University. The “Oxford” Symphony (No. 92) was given at this event, as Haydn had not completed any new works yet while in England, but he had brought some of his latest works for use, or sale. On his return to Vienna he bought a house there and accepted Beethoven as a pupil, which began an uneasy relationship for both great men. (In the end, Beethoven moved on to other teachers such as Schenk and Albrechtsberger; men who could teach him the craft without tending to influence his style). In 1794 he visited England again, having been commissioned by Salomon to write 6 new symphonies. This 2nd visit lasted from February 1794 to August 1795 and was even more successful artistically and, especially, financially than the first. Haydn’s profits are estimated as being as high as 15,000 gulden, which equates over to approximately $600,000 US. He was wealthy beyond his dreams when he returned to Vienna after the second and final tour.

By this time the Esterházy family had now reconstituted their musical establishment and in turn had sent a request to Haydn asking for his return to Eszterháza as Kapellmeister. Though he really was under no obligation to do so, out of loyalty to the family that had given him so much over the decades, he returned to service. In effect though, he assumed the role that Werner had held as Kapellmeister over 30 years earlier. Haydn composed only for special occasions and was allowed to concentrate on his work as a composer, letting others (notably Hummel for one) take over the actually running of the musical establishment. However, as the story goes, there was one change of note. The latest Prince Esterházy at one point in a discussion early on was edging into being severe with Haydn on some point of business. Haydn’s measured reply was that one shouldn’t talk to “A Doctor of Music from Oxford” in that fashion. The Prince paused and addressed Haydn as “Herr Doktor” from then on, moderating his approach to the celebrated composer.

Between 1796 and 1802 he wrote 6 magnificent settings of the Mass, each unique and distinct. In 1797 he composed his Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser, which was adopted as Austria's national anthem. He had admired the English “God Save the King” and wanted to honor his own monarch in a similar manner. But his chief pre-occupation at this time was his oratorio Die Schöpfung (The Creation), first published privately in Vienna, 1798. This was followed by Die Jahreszeiten (The Seasons), published in 1801. Both of these works had Baron Gottfried van Swieten working on their text. Apparently the Baron tended to take more than his share of the credit for the success of these works, which annoyed Haydn. Especially when the Baron, an amateur composer, began to offer Haydn suggestions on what needed to be done musically!

During these later years Haydn became “the grand old man” of music. He was made an honorary citizen of Vienna, of various musical societies across Europe, and was awarded many medals for his compositions, etc. Foreign visitors called to pay their respects, which pleased him very much. He kept composing, but it was becoming more difficult for him to submit himself to the rigors of working out the music. From 1803 onwards, his health and strength began to decline, which meant that composition fell off and then basically ceased. Though he made several more public appearances, at first conducting and then finally just attending, he gradually withdrew from public life and stayed at home. His last public appearance was for a performance of The Creation at the hall of the old university, given in 1808, with Salieri conducting and Beethoven in the audience to honor his old teacher.

Joseph Haydn died on 31 May 1809 during Napoleon’s occupation of Vienna. He had not wanted to go into the inner town with the threat of combat all around, so he had settled into his house in Gumpendorf. After Vienna surrendered to French forces, Napoleon had a guard of honor placed in front of his house. But Haydn, already weak, began to quickly lose strength and died quietly at home. On 1 June, Corpus Christi, he was buried at the Hurdsturm Cemetery; a memorial mass was given for him at the Gumpendorf church the following day. Later, on 15 June, a great memorial service was held in the Schottenkirche in the inner city of Vienna, at which Mozart’s Requiem K.626 was performed, under the direction of Joseph Eybler. The major people in the musical world of Vienna were in attendance to say their last farewell to a composer who had been an inseparable part of European music for almost 50 years.

A final indignity was bestowed on him, though. Days after he was buried, persons involved in the study of phrenology (the study of heads and skulls to determine character and intelligence, in other words, nitwit science) dug up his grave and removed the head. Haydn’s skull passed through several hands before being safely stored in a museum in Vienna. Finally in the 1950’s it was restored to the rest of his remains, since moved to Hungary. Given that Mozart’s skull might have been stored away as well, it seems a cosmic joke that the two close friends and colleagues should end up at the end emulating one another once again, if only inadvertently!

If Haydn's life was comparatively uneventful, his vast output of music is notable for the number of surprises and delights contained in nearly every work. Yet though the number and magnitude of Haydn masterpieces are constantly amazing, his music for many decades failed to exert as powerful a sway over the public as that of Mozart and Beethoven. He is regarded as the ‘father’ of the symphony (which he wasn’t) and of the string quartet, but some delectable Haydn lies in his vocal music, in his oratorios, masses, and in his operas (which, while not of the caliber of Mozart’s, are still in process of re-evaluation). In all his music his inventive flair seems practically inexhaustible. Haydn's symphonies were written over a period of several decades and reveal an extraordinary wealth of novel and convincing solutions to problems of form. One very distinctive quality they display - and one for which he was roundly criticized by pedantic critics in their own lifetimes - is wit. This is revealed both on a subtle, musical level by deceptive phrase lengths, rhythmic surprises and deceptive cadences and, on occasion, by his penchant for writing descriptive music (at least in comparison to the times). As well, Haydn delights in exploiting the capabilities of solo instruments and virtuoso performers, and within every genre in which he worked he enlarged, extended, and re-shaped the material he touched. Not revolutionary, but evolutionary motion describes the breadth of Haydn’s compositional span. The symphonies are a remarkable example of his development of a particular form, hallmarked by deep feeling, drama, wit, and, in the final 12, a near-Mozartian perfection of all these qualities combined. But much the same can be said of his quartets and masses (especially the later ones); nor should his keyboard sonatas be overlooked. In fact, one shouldn’t overlook any of Haydn’s work.

Joseph Haydn serves as the locus of the Classical Era, a composer who was able to impart his own stamp on the music of his times, encourage his peers by example and personal contact, and through teaching pass along the musical tools which would allow the further expansion of music. There were composers who were as admired and others whose tunes were as much hummed and whistled during their lifetimes, but no other composer so completely won at the same time the unquestioned and generous respect of his peers and the acclaim of the public.

The collecting and cataloguing of Haydn's works has been the object of considerable research. It was begun in 1766 by Haydn himself (sparked by a complaint of inattentiveness to his job), aided by the Esterházy court copyist Joseph Elssler, whose son Johann (1769-1843) later became Haydn's copyist and faithful servant. Haydn worked on this list until about 1805. In fact, his efforts may have proved an inspiration to Mozart, who began his own catalogue of works in 1784, no doubt, one suspects, not long after meeting Haydn in Vienna. Pohl prepared a manuscript catalogue, and for the Breitkopf and Härtel complete edition Mandyczewski assembled his list of 104 symphonies (but omitting 3 now acknowledged as being by Haydn). Modern scholarship, led foremost by H. C. Robbins Landon, has amended this list, and a modern thematic catalogue has been edited by Hoboken in which works are given Hob. numbers in the manner of Köchel's Mozart catalogue (though the numbering system chosen for Haydn’s works is much cleaner and less complicated!).

SYMPHONIES: Nos. 1-5 (1757); No.6 in D (Le Matin), No.7 in C (Le Midi), No.8 in G (Le Soir) (c.1761); No.9 in C (c.1762); No.10 in D (c.1761); No.11 in Eb (c.1760); No.12 in E, No.13 in D (1763); No.14 in A, No.15 in D (1764); No.16 in Bb, No.17 in F, No.18 in G, No.19 in D, No.20 in C (all before 1762); No.21 in A, No.22 in Eb (The Philosopher), No. 23 in G, No.24 in D (1764); No.25 in C (c.1761-3); No.26 in D minor (Lamentatione) (c.1770); No.27 in G (c.1760); No.28 in A, No.29 in E, No.30 in C (Alleluia), No.31 in D (Horn Signal) (1765); No.32 in C, No.33 in C (c.1760); No.34 in D minor (c.1766); No.35 in Bb (1767); No.36 in Eb (c.1761-5); No.37 in C (c.1757); No.38 in C (Echo) (c.1766-8); No.39 in G minor (c.1768); No.40 in F (1763); No.41 in C (c.1769); No.42 in D (1771); No.43 in Eb (Merkur), No.44 in E minor (Trauer) (c.1771); No.45 in F# minor (Abschied), No.46 in B, No.47 in G (1772); No.48 in C (Maria Theresia) (c.1768-9); No.49 in F minor (La Passione) (1768); No.50 in C (1773); No.51 in Bb, No.52 in C minor (c. 1771-3); No.53 in D (L'Impériale) (c.1780); No. 54 in G, No.55 in Eb (Der Schulmeister), No.56 in C (1774); No.57 in D (1774); No.58 in F, No.59 in A (Feuersymphonie) (c.1776-8); No.60 in C (Il Distratto) (1774); No.61 in D (1776); No.62 in D, No.63 in C (La Roxolane) (c.1780); No.64 in A (c.1775); No.65 in A (c.1771-3); No.66 in Bb, No.67 in F, No.68 in Bb, No.69 in C (Laudon) (c.1778); No.70 in D (1779); No.71 in Bb (c.1779-80); No.72 in D (c.1763-5); No.73 in D (La Chasse) (1780-1); No.74 in Eb (1780); No.75 in D (1779); No.76 in Eb, No.77 in Bb, No.78 in C minor (1782); No.79 in F, No.80 in D minor, No.81 in G (1783-4); No. 82 in C (Bear) (1786); No.83 in G minor (La Poule) (1785); No.84 in Eb (1786); No.85 in Bb (La Reine) (1785); No.86 in D (1786); No.87 in A (1785); No.88 in G, No.89 in F (c.1787); No.90 in C, No.91 in Eb (1788); No.92 in G (Oxford) (1789); No.93 in D, No.94 in G (Surprise), No.95 in C minor, No.96 in D (Miracle) (1791, London); No.97 in C (1792, London); No.98 in Bb (c.1792, London); No.99 in Eb (1793, Austria); No.100 in G (Military), No.101 in D (Clock), No.102 in Bb (1794, London); No.103 in Eb (Paukenwirbel, Drum Roll), No.104 in D (London) (1795, London).

CONCERTOS: vc. in C (c.1765), in D (1783); Klavier in D (c.1784), Klavier and str. in G; hn. No.1 in D (1762), No.2 in D (c.1764); 2 hn. and str. in Eb; for lira organizzata No.1 in C, No.2 in G, No.3 in G, No.4 in F, No.5 in F (c.1786); org. conc. (1756); for tpt. in Eb (1796); for vn. No.1 in A, No.2 in C, No.3 in G (c.1765); for vn., pf., and str. in F (1766); Sinfonia Concertante in Bb for ob., bn., vn., vc. (1792).

STRING QUARTETS: Op.1 (6 qts., 1760); Op.2, Nos. 7-12 (Nos. 9 and 11, with 2 hn. added) (1755-60); Op.9 (6 qts., 1771); Op.17, Nos. 25-30 (1771); Op.20, Nos. 31-6 (1772); Op.33, Nos. 37-42 (1781); Op.42, No.43 (1758); Op.50, Nos. 44-9 (c.1787); Op.51, Nos. 50-6 (1785, Seven Last Words from the Cross); Op.54, Nos. 57-9 (c.1788); Op.55, Nos. 60-2 (c.1788); Op.64, Nos. 63-8 (c.1790); Op.71, Nos. 69-71 (1793); Op.74, Nos. 72-4 (1793); Op.76, Nos. 75-80 (c.1797); Op.77, Nos. 81-2 (c.1799); Op. 103, No.83 (1802-3).

KEYBOARD: 62 sonatas (c. 1761-94), Variations in F minor (1793).

OPERAS: 20 were completed, some of the first ones being lost. The extant 15 include La Canterina (1766); Lo Speziale (1768); Le Pescatrici (1769); L'infedeltà delusa (1773); L'incontro improvviso (1775); Il mondo della luna (1777); La vera costanza (1777-8, rev. 1785); L'isola disabitata (1779, rev. 1802); La fedeltà premiata (1780, rev. 1782); Orlando Paladino (1782); Armida (1783); Orfeo ed Euridice (1791); also 5 puppet operas incl. Philemon und Baucis (1773) and Dido (1776).

MASSES: No.1 in F (Missa brevis) (1750); No.2 in Eb (Grosse Orgelmesse) (1766); No.3 in C (St Cecilia) (1776); No.4 in G (1772); No.5 in Bb (Kleine Orgelmesse) (c.1775); No.6 in C (Mariazellermesse) (1782); No.7 in C (In tempore belli—Paukenmesse) (1796); No.8 in Bb (Heiligmesse) (1796); No.9 in D minor (Nelson) (1798); No.10 in Bb (Theresien-messe) (1799); No.11 in Bb (Schöpfungsmesse) (1801); No.12 in Bb (Harmoniemesse) (1802). Also a Mass in G (c.1750).

CANTATAS & ORATORIOS: Stabat Mater (1767); Applausus (1768); Il Ritorno di Tobia (1774-5); Die sieben letzten Worte unseres Erlösers am Kreuz (The Seven Last Words of Our Saviour on the Cross, 1st version (str. qt.) 1785, choral version 1795-6); Die Schöpfung (The Creation) (1796-8); Die Jahreszeiten (The Seasons) (1799-1801).

CHAMBER MUSIC: 32 pf. trios; 6 sonatas for klavier and vn.; flute qts; lute qts.; divertimentos for str. trio; str. trios; 126 baryton trios; 32 pieces for mechanical clocks; and Notturnos for lira organizzata.

SOLO CANTATAS: Arianna a Naxos for sop. (1790); Berenice che fai (1795).

Sources:
Braunbehrens, Volkmar Mozart in Vienna 1781-1791 Grove Weidenfeld, New York 1986
Clive, Peter Mozart and His Circle: A Biographical Dictionary Yale University Press, New Haven 1993
Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music Oxford University Press 1996
Harrison, Max Liner Notes to the Philips Set “Haydn Name Symphonies” 1996
Larsen, Jens Peter The New Grove Haydn W.W. Norton & Company, New York 1982
Rosen, Charles The Classical Style: Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven W.W. Norton & Company, New York 1972
Sadie, Stanley (Ed.) The New Groves Dictionary of Music and Musicians 2nd Edition Groves Dictionaries, New York 2000
Sisman, Elaine (Ed.) Haydn and His World Princeton University Press, Princeton 1997

Subject: Re: CONTEMPORARIES OF MOZART: Joseph Haydn
From: Agnes Selby
To: All
Date Posted: 21:54:43 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Gary, you outdid yourself. It is a most beautifully written tribute to a great man.

Kind regards, Agnes.

Subject: Re: CONTEMPORARIES OF MOZART: Joseph Haydn
From: DonW
To: All
Date Posted: 21:52:08 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
Message:
An excellent article. Thank you. I would complain only that more attention was not given to the trios. They contain some amazing music and an entirely different perspective on Papa Haydn's music.

Subject: Re: CONTEMPORARIES OF MOZART: Joseph Haydn
From: Gurn Blanston
To: All
Date Posted: 14:53:51 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Gary,
What a particularly appropriate day to publish this excellent summary. I have been celebrating Haydn all day, with what is to me the choicest part of his oeuvre, the string quartets. They put me in mind of fun-filled conversations with my friends, no one else (though I love Mozart's and Beethoven's) has ever matched the easygoing sincerity, wit and just plain beauty of these works. Thanks again,
Regards,
Gurn

Subject: Re: CONTEMPORARIES OF MOZART: Joseph Haydn
From: Matt Dubin
To: All
Date Posted: 19:36:19 05/31/04 ()
Email Address: captnvideo@webtv.net
 

Message:
Haydn was a truly great composer and my 2nd favorite after Mozart.

I own practically every recorded Haydn opera and they are certainly neglected masterpieces, especially "Orlando Paladino".

And I am still seething mad at Decca for cancelling the Haydn/Hogwood Symphony Cycle. I own all ten volumes which were released but really would have loved to hear Hogwood's interpretations of the final 29 symphonies (he did record 94, 96, 100 and 104 separately).

Subject: "Bad Music Sells Better than Good"
From: dennis
To: All
Date Posted: 22:50:15 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Last month in a posting I stated no other form of music had more
misattributed works published than his Piano Variations. Dan
Leeson stated actually it is in the area of the Waltz. So when I saw
this quote I was reminded of the many misattributions and the
reason for it. This is part of a letter send by the Reverend Christian
Ignatius Latrobe to Vincent Novello on June 17, 1817; thus only
about 25 years after Mozart's death. Latrobe was assuring Novello
the music Novello had copied from his collection was authentic,
and their lack of publication meant little. Latrobe wrote:

"You know well enough that bad music sells better than good,
therefore there was undoubtedly more hesitation in the minds of
music sellers about publishing Mozart's works, than those of more
use to the waltzsquad, pennyfiddlers and other fashionable
musicians".

Luckily for us, things changed later.

dennis

Subject: Re: "Bad Music Sells Better than Good"
From: Agnes Selby
To: All
Date Posted: 06:34:57 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Dennis, By the way, there is a Latrobe Valley in Victoria, Australia. It is a most beautiful place named after Reverend Latrobe. His words resonate very well. This beautiful valley is not that well known to people outside of Australia. Not only beautiful music but even beautiful places do not appeal to tourists as much as the Sydney or Melbourne casinos.

Regards, Agnes.

Subject: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: Agnes Selby
To: All
Date Posted: 00:24:39 05/30/04 ()
Email Address: taselby@idx.com.au
 

Message:

Adolf Heinrich Friedrich von SCHLICHTEGROLL was a professor, privy counselor and member of the Academy of Sciences in Munich. He published a number of Necrologs, obituaries of famous people. These were biographical sketches published in annual volumes in the relevant year of his subjects' deaths.

Schlichtegroll approached Constanze for details of Mozart's life but she refused his request. There were two reasons for her refusal. One was Schlichtegroll's
reliance on hearsay, and the other was the fact that she had already entrusted Franz Xaver Niemetschek to write Mozart's biography.

Schlichtegroll then turned for information to Mozart's sister, Nannerl. Nannerl in turn asked Johann Andreas Schachtner to write a report on Mozart's life.

This report was highly inflamatory and was published by Schlichtegroll in 1793.

It is interesting to note here that Nannerl claimed in a letter to Breitkopf & Hartel that she was not aware of Mozart's death nor the state of his affairs at the time of his death. Schachtner knew even less.
However, this is the report signed by Schachtner in which Nannerl's voice sounds loud and clear:

"...This same being who, considered as an artist, had reached the highest stage of development even from his very earliest years, remained to the end of his life completely childish in every other aspect of existence. Never until he died, did he learn to exercise the most elementary forms of self-control. The ordering of his domestic affairs, the proper husbanding of money, temperance, or the rational choice of pleasure - these were never virtues with which he had the least acquintance. Invariably it was the pleasure of the moment that swept away all other consideration. He always needed a father's, a mother's or some other guardian's care; he married a girl quite unsuited to him, and against the will of his father, and thus the great domestic chaos at and after his death."

Schlichtegroll had the good sense not to publish the detrimental remarks about Constanze. [He must have reasoned that there was not a person alive who could have been suitable for such a person]. The obituary was first published in Gotha in 1793 and Joseph Hubeck had it reprinted in Graz in 1794. Stendhal (Henri Beyle) republished it in 1814 in his "Lives of Haydn, Mozart and Metastasio".

Constanze attempted to buy out the entire Graz edition in 1794 and managed to get the obituary off the market. However, it was far too late.

In 1800 Nannerl Mozart sent the same letter to Breitkopf & Hartel in response to their inquiry about Mozart's compositions which they had hoped were in her possession. The letter was published in Breitkopf & Hartel's house organ, the Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung on Janury 22, 1800. It was in the accompanying letter that Nannerl claimed not to have known about Mozart's death nor of his widow's financial situation despite the fact that as early as January 1792, newspapers in Salzburg carried notices of Mozart's death.

Mozart's reputation was thus tarnished for ever. Mozart, the man who had composed the greatest music ever, who had pioneered independence for composers who followed in his footsteps, who had organised his own concert series and saw to the publication of his works, and much, much more, was destined to be labelled as an idiot for eternity.

Despite much evidence to the contrary, Mozart even today is perceived as a child with a God given gift which he may not have entirely deserved. Hence such movies as Amadeus, books and articles which reflect badly on Mozart's character.

The power of Schlichtegroll's Necrolog and Nannerl's venom will haunt Mozart for eternity.

Ref:
Davies: 145-146
Stendhal: 182
Selby: 115-116

Regards, Agnes Selby.

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: catherine sprague
To: All
Date Posted: 10:27:10 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:

Message:
Yes, in reading Stafford's book about the early biographers, it is certainly true that the reporting of Mozart go off to a biased start. He who was independently described by Hasse and many others, as purely delightful in his youth, ("hard not to love"), and then as an adult one who mingled so easily with the elite, was still to be cast as inept in his personal life. Having an unstable income, paying for so many medical ailments and being a father and composer all at the same time must have required quite a juggling act. It is almost as if people felt the need to come down on him like a ton of bricks due to his troubles with money and certain issues with gambling. If his debts were worth about one year's average salary, that is more than I can say for many people, even of today. If he had lived another few years, received the handsome amounts that were in the offing, and become quite financially solvent, could the early biographers have looked at these difficult years in quite another light? In other words, Mozart's death at this point in his life I believe was quite unlucky. Would Nannerl's statements been taken so matter of factly if Mozart had died five years later, with a perhaps completely different financial picture? What if he had died in 1785? How things would have been reported differently!

Even most of the childrens' books today contain many false and misleading impressions. The begging for money is stressed and the image of Mozart being thrown into a "pauper's grave" seems to be a favorite as well. I have to explain to my children how books in the library contain untruths! Even the adult books and liners for CD's contain many inaccuracies. Unauthorized pictures and so on....we need a book of corrections that dispels some of these things and written so that an average reader gets a clearer picture.

I only throw my hands up in the air and say that the truth is hard to come by! Somehow, this idea of a genius made more interesting by casting, in this case, Mozart as a child, inept in his daily life...the absent-minded professor or crazed scientist stereotype...is more appealing. But it is the same with artists such as Van Gogh as well...everyone thinks he was deranged! Yet read his letters. He was extremely literate and well read. He spent most of his time painting, hard at work, and not cutting of ears of best friends, just as Mozart was busy and hard at work most of his life.

Catherine Sprague
(new to site)

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: Gary Smith
To: All
Date Posted: 16:32:38 05/30/04 ()
Email Address: smithworld@earthlink.net
 

Message:

Dear Catherine,

As well, welcome to the Forum!

Human nature what it is, SOME reason had to be found for the inability of the "German Orpheus" to become rich and famous. The easy explanations served up:

Remained like a child most of his life
Poor marriage partner
Jealousy of the contemporaries
Bad money manager, hence died a pauper

all probably have some basis in a kernal of truth somewhere. But, they provide easy, simple-to-grasp, short answers as to why things turned out as they did. The fact that they're mostly wrong is in fact HARDER to uncover, and so folks will, in the main, go with the easy answers. Remember, most folks will read at best one book on a subject (if not just a magazine article) and so the odds of them acquiring Stafford's book are slim, let alone Gutman's or Solomon's, if not anything by Landon.

Of course, that DOES mean that our Forum, and other sites similar to it, do get to expand and spread the information folks need to make a better, more accurate judgement of the man and his times.

Regards,

Gary

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: dennis
To: All
Date Posted: 11:15:02 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Catherine:
Welcome to our site. I have read some of your postings at
openmozart.net, and hope you contribute the same high quality at
our site.

dennis

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: Agnes Selby
To: All
Date Posted: 16:04:15 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Dear Catherine,

I am so glad you have finally arrived at the Forum.

You have strengthened my resolve to write a children's book about Mozart which just may correct some of the fallacies.

Kind regards, Agnes.

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: Bill Szep
To: All
Date Posted: 17:07:12 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Agnes,
Thanks, as always, for your posting. As was mentioned, it is always easier to go with the short answers when it comes to these things. Mozart made the break from his father and sister to make his own bread and I am sure this ruffled their feathers - not to mention the Arch-Bishop! When Wolfgang left Salzburg, these folks were very unhappy with him. He found a safe-haven in Constanze as she was his friend, his lover, then wife, and confidant. If Mozart was peeved at Salieri or even the Emperor - who else could he tell? All of his earnings were now going to his immediate family's account - not to father and sister's well-being. This had to sting! They had to fend for themselves.

It sounds like years of jealousy poured out from Nannerl's heart after her brother died. She may have felt these things, but I think that she did not use the best judgement in making her feelings public. You mentioned before that she was not the most intelligent woman; maybe she was a bit of an opportunist?

Catherine, welcome to this forum! I enjoy it very much and learn a lot in the process.

Bill

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: Agnes Selby
To: All
Date Posted: 18:40:47 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Dear Bill,

Thank you for your comments. As you know, the custom during Mozart's time in Europe and later was a father's "final word" and a son's duty to support his old parents and especially his un-wed sisters. Yes, all of that came to an end when Mozart left Salzburg for good. Mozart's departure and his subsequent marriage to Constanze did anger Leopold and due to his influence, his daughter, Nannerl. Apart from her own jealousies, she had to cope with her father's nagging about his ungrateful son.(see letter to Nannerl regarding Mozart's proposed travel to London). Nannerl, however, changed her mind in her old age and she and Constanze became good friends. (This friendship between the two women is referred to by writers as a "tolerable relationship" on behalf of Nannerl).

So influential was Leopold, that his feelings towards his son and Constanze, reverberate even in today's literature. One cannot entirely blame poor, ineffective and inexperienced Nannerl when she only had her father as a point of reference. Whereas writers who continue to indulgence themselves with Leopold Mozart's opinions, have a wide variety of literature to study.

One of these days, I will try and explore Nannerl's relationship with Constanze during Nannerl's final years. The references will be drawn from Constanze's diaries as well as other much ignored contemporary commentaries.

I hope all is well with you family.

Kind regards, Agnes.

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: Gurn Blanston
To: All
Date Posted: 19:05:18 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Agnes,
Nice summary. Yes, it would be a delight to see these things set straight. I am intrigued by the children's book idea. Of course Stafford has done his best in "The Mozart Myths", but adults will not change, they just see another apologist, if they read it at all (thousands won't). But if children see things straight,perhaps the next generation won't perpetuate the horror.
Regards,
Gurn

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: Agnes Selby
To: All
Date Posted: 20:27:26 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Dear Gurn,

My own grandchildren do have a number of little stories I have written for them and it is amazing how they view Mozart. They see him not only as a great composer but a as great man, which indeed he was.

My own publisher does not publish children stories and it is a hard market to crack. I have not REALLY tried very hard because of other commitments but will give it a go.

Thank you for the encouragement.

Kind regards, Agnes.

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: Teresa
To: All
Date Posted: 05:34:29 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Hi Everyone,

Agnes, I think a children's book would be a fabulous idea, also! DO give it a go!

Welcome Catherine!
All the best, Teresa

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: catherine sprague
To: All
Date Posted: 08:49:06 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Thanks everyone, for your kind words of welcome. I too have much to learn, and this very direct and personal approach complements my love of reading anything on Mozart.

I would say go for it as well, Agnes. You might well find, as I have, that the children's books on Mozart need a major makeover. I know you're right that the children's book industry seems to have impenetrable walls--it's very political. I am going to check around and see what suggestions I can dig up.

A suggestion I would have is to survey the current literature out there for children and identify problems. Mike Venezia has illustrated and written (I think) a series on composers including Mozart. The name of Maurice Sendak, the famous children's illustrator comes to mind (author and illustrator of Where The Wild Things Are). Recently, he was the artistic director of an innovative production of the Nutcracker which I happen to see on TV. He seems to be branching out and really carries clout. I will do my part at the library and contact what friends I know in publishing here. I had my own children watch the A & E special on Mozart, which still wasn't all that great. It will take generations to undo all the damage, but SOMEWHERE SOMEHOW SOMEONE must make a start to turn this around. Of course, if only all this could get as much attention as "The Mozart Effect" then we would have no worries. Usually a gimmick of a PR nature works wonders.

An idea that I think might be considered is a book that has text and pictures that can be taken apart as puzzles. THese books sell and my daughter has one called My Fairy Jigsaw Book, with 6 pages of 24 piece jigsaws, with accompanying text. Especially since Mozart loved remaking words, riddles and puzzles, it sort of fits in with the spirit of Mozart. I'll email further thoughts along to you as they come to me.

Regards,
Catherine S.

Subject: Re: THE CURSE OF SCHLICHTEGROLL'S NECROLOG
From: Agnes Selby
To: All
Date Posted: 17:19:53 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Dear Catherine,

I greatly appreciate your ideas. I would be most grateful for your suggestions. The Mozart books for children which I have bought for my grandkids describe him only as a little genius, which of course he was, but no child can relate to that. Nicholas who is almost 12 years old is at present reading Solomon's "Mozart a Life". He is adult enough to take it all in. But my younger ones aged 7 years and 8 years respectively would need a much different version.

Kindest regards,
Yours, Agnes.

Subject: book suggestions cont.
From: Dan Manley
To: All
Date Posted: 17:18:43 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
another real obvious idea that comes to mind as a suggestion agnes is to have a sound chip in the book - similar to the greeting cards, preschool books etc. to play excerpts from various times in his history as an example. it wouldn't be too difficult these days to have the music on vellum on a facing page and have some holes cut into the page under, so you could have the " bouncing ball(or bouncing mozart head)" effect leading you thru the music as played with a simple setup incorporating electroluminescent "dots" under the appropriate spots with the circuit printed on foil. these types of things require very little voltage, there could be a battery assembly in the spine.( was a suggestion i gave my sister for a light up menu for a bar in a restaurant she worked on- this seems like a neater usage.)
dan m.

Subject: Re: book suggestions cont.
From: Agnes Selby
To: All
Date Posted: 18:06:05 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Dear Dan,

This is a great suggestion. I will have to see if any publishing house is interested. The problem is that children's books are "manufactured in book factories", (this is my own publisher's statement). Australian publishers see no profit in children books. It is cheaper to import them from overseas, it seems. For instance, our Woolworth food stores have whole shelves of children books imported from Japan and Taiwan. Are they good? No! The same principle applies, as mentioned by Dennis above.

Many thanks for your suggestions.

Kind regards, Agnes.

Subject: Weekend poll
From: Sue
To: All
Date Posted: 18:59:17 05/29/04 ()
Email Address: suebschorr@hotmail.com
 

Message:
What is everyone listening to this weekend? Is somebody lucky enough to have tickets to an opera or concert? I have been absorbed in Idomeneo. Today I gave special attention to the “Godiam la pace” chorus. Really, the whole work is almost too intense taken all at once, so I’m cooling down with K477 (thanks to those posts). I’ll probably throw in some piano bit, and then get back to the intense stuff, because I say that’s the whole point!
Have a great weekend everybody
Sue

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Andrea Hubrich
To: All
Date Posted: 00:48:38 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
On this Penticostal Sunday I watched on a german TV station a performance of Mozart's "Great Mass in C minor, K.427" broadcasted from a concerthall in Baden-Baden, Germany. I especially love the "Kyrie" from this mass.

I remember the first time I heard this Kyrie and that was back in 1984 when I saw the film "Amadeus" for the first time.

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: DonW
To: All
Date Posted: 12:36:28 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
K 466 & K 467 are in my car stereo. I noted to myself that I was being stopped from getting out of the car because I had to finish a movement. Mozart. A curse to the man about town.

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Sue
To: All
Date Posted: 19:09:48 05/29/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
I hasten to add that I do not think the Masonic Funeral music is NOT intense! :)
Sue

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: dennis
To: All
Date Posted: 19:40:41 05/29/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Well, thanks to Maurizio Tomasi translating a paper for me on
Ferlendis' Oboe Concerto in F, I have been listening to numerous
Oboe Concertos by Mozart and his contempories.

Also in honor of the movie Van Helsing (which I will not see) I am
re-read Bram Stoker's novel "Dracula" for about the 8th time.
Obviously an enjoyable book for me.

Monday I will visit the Veteran's cemetary in southern Wisconsin to
honor my father and other veterans.

Enjoy your week-end, and drive careful.

dennis

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Matt Dubin
To: All
Date Posted: 05:07:03 05/30/04 ()
Email Address: captnvideo@webtv.net
 

Message:
This weekend my Mozart listening is directed to some of his Wind music.

The "Gran Partita" K.361 and Serenade K.375 stand out among the works which include clarinets.

The Divertimento for wind sextet K.289 is also one of my favorites.

By the way, I also listened to and still like the Cassazione for oboe, clarinet, horn, and bassoon discovered in 1910 which was falsely attributed to Mozart and is actually by Lickl.

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Bill Szep
To: All
Date Posted: 07:09:30 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Hello Sue and all,

This weekend, I have been listening to the piano sonatas!

Enjoy your weekends!
Bill

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Teresa
To: All
Date Posted: 09:04:35 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Hi--I'm doing the reprise of K459 this afternoon at 4 PM, so guess what I'll be listening to! Wish me luck!

All the best, Teresa

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Agnes Selby
To: All
Date Posted: 03:16:30 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
We do not have a Memorial Day weekend in Australia.
Instead, we celebrate ANZAC DAY which is not being celebrated this weeked.

However, my husband and I (not in the Royal sense) listened to the lovely recording of our friend, Teresa,
performing her concerto, K459 at precisely the time she was playing it. This was during breakfast at 6.00 am which was 4.00 pm in Tampa, Florida.

I can say that it was a beautiful performance and
put both of us in a perfectly affable mood for the day.

Regards, Agnes.

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Sue
To: All
Date Posted: 14:49:23 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Respondents who are performing concertos skew the results of my humble poll. I regret that I could not see what is surely a fabulous performance! Please
report back to us. Maybe the renowned artist Marcus was onhand?
Regards
Sue

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Marcus
To: All
Date Posted: 20:30:56 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
haha I am flattered! I wish I could hear all our performers on this board! It would be fun to meet everyone on the board actually! one big Mozart fan party!

As for me, I am listening to Mozart's piano concerti 20-27... I love listening not only for the different orchestras/conductors/pianists but also very much for the different cadenzas!

I wish I played piano too! ah well, at least i have k.498, 581 and 622 =)

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Gary Smith
To: All
Date Posted: 09:31:49 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Hi everyone!

First, all of us in Southern California wish you Good Luck today! And, make those plans to get out here, take in a musical and see Disneyland, or whatever!

On listening to music: it's Mozart Piano Concerti, right now being #23 in A K.488, while yesterday it was K.466 in d as well as K.482. I'm working on a paper, and it's surprising (well, maybe not) how the music improves the thought process.

Everyone have a safe and fun Memorial Day; but give some time in rememberance for those who fell in the line of duty for our country.

Regards,

Gary

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Teresa
To: All
Date Posted: 05:47:12 05/31/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
Thanks to you all for the good wishes! The concert went fine, it sounded better than the one recorded in January (I didn't have it recorded this time--too bad, because I was told my playing was 100% better.)

Thank you, Dear Agnes, for listening to the CD--I felt the presence of my friends in Australia!

Gary, I have no doubt I will get to Southern California one of these days, and watch out, because I'll be at your doorstep anticipating a musicale!

All the best,Teresa

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Gurn Blanston
To: All
Date Posted: 18:56:43 05/30/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
For me, I am re-listening to the early symphonies, as I was reminded to do by the thread earlier this week. I shall finish with the Little g minor, my favorite! And thinking also of my nephew in Baghdad, hope his weekend is not too bad so that mine can be so good :(

Subject: Re: Weekend poll
From: Robby Bonkowski
To: All
Date Posted: 19:39:15 05/30/04 ()
Email Address: ageokid@aol.com
 

Message:
For me, I have been listening to the String Quintets. I heard No. 3 on the radio the other day, which reminded me of how great they are. I have also been listening to some really fabulous period-instrument recordings of Haydn's Paris Symphonies with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.

Robby

Subject: Robby Bonkowski and His Chamber Orchestra
From: dennis
To: All
Date Posted: 08:12:01 05/29/04 ()
Email Address:
 

Message:
One of my sons is a high school teacher, so for that reason I pay
particular attention to articles on high school matters. In this part
of the country, schools, teachers, etc. are under fire for failing
schools, budget problems, etc. The focus is on high school kids
who have problems in many different forms. Responses are
usually on the negative side to the students: that they are trouble
makers and just don't want to learn, etc. etc.

Robby Bonkowski's short discussion on his chamber orchestra was
very nice to read in this regard. Two things struck me in his
writing that I think are exceptional. First that there are kids in the
ensemble that are very good and others that are just learning. It is
wonderful to hear that differently talented kids can get along
together. So many times at the high school level only the most
talented can make a team or event, be it academic or sporting.
How wonderful that the "star" and the "beginner" play together
without the "beginner" having to fear being "cut" from th