Mozart was an unequalled opera composer, and everyone knows it. His merits for piano concertos are also well known. But how well do you know his wind music?
Mozart did not play a wind instrument himself, but he wrote wind music all his life. In his years in Vienna, he was particularly fond of the clarinet, the new instrument with its beautiful dark timbre. You have undoubtedly heard of his clarinet concerto, but have you heard of his Adagio for two clarinets and three basset horns?
Those days, compositions for winds were called ‘divertimento’, ‘partita’ or ‘serenade’, names that suggest easy, unpretentious music. In the Gran Partita, Mozart considerably counters this. The form is still that of the serenade, with several song and dance sections in a row, but the content… wow! The same applies to the Serenade KV 388. This work is more of a sonata than a serenade, and the melancholy music is the last thing an eighteenth-century composer would expect from eight wind instruments. The Quintet for piano and wind is also worthy of mention. What’s more: Mozart considered it his best work ever!
Just as remarkable as the works you will hear today is perhaps the ensemble we are hearing. We know the Netherlands Wind Ensemble mainly for their modern, challenging repertoire, often written especially for them. But for Mozart, they gladly break out of that: no wind instrument can ignore him!
Playlist:
1. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Quintet for piano and wind KV452
2. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Adagio for two clarinets and three basset horns KV 411
3. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Serenade KV 388
4. Charles Gounod, Petite symphonie for wind orchestra
5. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Serenade (Gran Partita) KV 361
