Piano Concerto No. 17 (Mozart)
Encyclopedia
The Piano Concerto No. 17 in G major, KV. 453, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
, was written in 1784.
The work is orchestrated for solo piano
, flute
, two oboe
s, two bassoon
s, two horn
s, and string
s. As is typical with concerto
s, it is in three movement
s:
According to the date that the composer himself noted on the score, the concerto was completed on April 12, 1784.
The date of the premiere is uncertain. In one view, the work is said to have been premiered by Mozart's student, Barbara Ployer
, on June 13, 1784 at a concert to which Mozart had invited Giovanni Paisiello
to hear both her and his new compositions, including also his recently-written Quintet in E flat for Piano and Winds
. Afterwards, Ployer was joined by Mozart in a performance of the Sonata for Two Pianos, K. 448
. Another possibility, advanced by Lorenz (2006, 314), is that Mozart did not wait over two months to premiere the work, but performed it in his concert with Regina Strinasacchi
on 29 April 1784 at the Kärntnertortheater. As a general consensus for researchers, it can be said with relative certainty that the work premiered during the mid-to-late spring of 1784, following its completion.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
, was written in 1784.
The work is orchestrated for solo piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, two oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
s, two bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
s, two horn
Horn (instrument)
The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
s, and string
String section
The string section is the largest body of the standard orchestra and consists of bowed string instruments of the violin family.It normally comprises five sections: the first violins, the second violins, the violas, the cellos, and the double basses...
s. As is typical with concerto
Concerto
A concerto is a musical work usually composed in three parts or movements, in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra.The etymology is uncertain, but the word seems to have originated from the conjunction of the two Latin words...
s, it is in three movement
Movement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
s:
- Allegro
- Andante in C majorC majorC major is a musical major scale based on C, with pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature has no flats/sharps.Its relative minor is A minor, and its parallel minor is C minor....
- Allegretto – Presto
According to the date that the composer himself noted on the score, the concerto was completed on April 12, 1784.
The date of the premiere is uncertain. In one view, the work is said to have been premiered by Mozart's student, Barbara Ployer
Barbara Ployer
Maria Anna Barbara or Babette Ployer was an Austrian piano and composition pupil of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, for whom he wrote two piano concertos in 1784, No. 14 KV. 449 and No. 17, KV...
, on June 13, 1784 at a concert to which Mozart had invited Giovanni Paisiello
Giovanni Paisiello
Giovanni Paisiello was an Italian composer of the Classical era.-Life:Paisiello was born at Taranto and educated by the Jesuits there. He became known for his beautiful singing voice and in 1754 was sent to the Conservatorio di S. Onofrio at Naples, where he studied under Francesco Durante, and...
to hear both her and his new compositions, including also his recently-written Quintet in E flat for Piano and Winds
Quintet for Piano and Winds (Mozart)
The Quintet in E flat major for Piano and Winds, K. 452, was completed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart on March 30, 1784 and premiered two days later at the Imperial and Royal National Court Theater in Vienna...
. Afterwards, Ployer was joined by Mozart in a performance of the Sonata for Two Pianos, K. 448
Sonata for Two Pianos in D major (Mozart)
The Sonata for Two Pianos in D major, K. 448 is a piano work composed in 1781 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, at 25 years of age. It is written in strict sonata-allegro form, with three movements. The sonata was composed for a performance he would give with fellow pianist Josephine von Aurnhammer...
. Another possibility, advanced by Lorenz (2006, 314), is that Mozart did not wait over two months to premiere the work, but performed it in his concert with Regina Strinasacchi
Regina Strinasacchi
Regina Schlick née Strinasacchi was a violin virtuoso in a time when women rarely performed on the violin in public. She is best known as the musician for whom Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed the Sonata in B flat for Violin and Keyboard, "Strinasacchi," .Strinasacchi was born in either 1761, 1762...
on 29 April 1784 at the Kärntnertortheater. As a general consensus for researchers, it can be said with relative certainty that the work premiered during the mid-to-late spring of 1784, following its completion.