Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Violin Concerto in A major, K 219

It is an interesting fact that Mozart – whose father was considered one of the foremost violin teachers of his day, and in the very same year as his son’s birth (1756) published his textbook on instruction in violin that went on to become famous – only composed a handful of violin concertos. These works were written all in one go, in 1775 when Mozart was 19. Of the five violin concertos, the A major was finished last, in late December of that year. It is a remarkable work from several angles, containing numerous surprising solutions. The composition is an exceptional wonder of the concerto genre for the dramatic entry of the solo instrument with tempo change in the first movement and the finale packed full of extravagant ideas (for instance, the Turkish episode).

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Sinfonia concertante for Violin, Viola and Orchestra in E-flat major, K 364

In the course of his journeys combined with lengthy stays in Mannheim and Paris at the end of the 1770s, Mozart met numerous acclaimed instrumentalists. The skills and abilities of these soloists partly inspired concertos and chamber pieces created during this period. The E-flat major Sinfonia concertante dates from the end of this journeying, being finalized in Salzburg in autumn 1779. The genre – popular both in Paris and in Mannheim – is an unusual blend of Baroque concerto and classical symphony. This is how those masters (Stamitz, Holzbauer, Cannabich) who played a decisive role in the creation of the Mannheim style saw him. Since in Mozart’s day the sound of the viola was less intense, the solo is keyed in D major and the retuning (scordatura) of the instrument is marked: every string must be tuned a semitone higher, thereby providing a more brilliant tone for the viola. This is rarely done these days.