The Violin Concerto No. 5 in
A major,
K. 219, often referred to by the nickname "Turkish", was written by
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...
in 1775, premiering during the Christmas season that year in
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
. It follows the typical fast-slow-fast musical structure.
Background
Mozart composed the majority of his
concertos for string instruments from 1773 to 1779, but it is unknown for whom, or for what occasion, he wrote them.
[ ISMN M-006-45361-0] Similarly, the dating of these works is unclear. Analysis of the handwriting, papers and watermarks has proved that all five
violin concerto
A violin concerto is a concerto for solo violin (occasionally, two or more violins) and instrumental ensemble (customarily orchestra). Such works have been written since the Baroque period, when the solo concerto form was first developed, up thro ...
s were re-dated several times. The year of composition of the fifth concerto "1775" was scratched out and replaced by "1780", and later changed again to "1775".
[ Mozart would not use the key of A major for a concerto again until the Piano Concerto No. 12, K. 414.]Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...
, Washington, D.C.[
]
Structure
The concerto is scored for two oboe
The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range.
...
s, two horn
Horn most often refers to:
*Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound
** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments
*Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various ...
s and strings.
The movements
Movement may refer to:
Common uses
* Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece
* Motion, commonly referred to as movement
Arts, entertainment, and media
Literature
* "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...
are as follows:
:
\relative c''
The ''aperto'' marking on the first movement is rare in Mozart's instrumental music (two of his piano concerti, Piano Concerto No. 6 in B Major and Piano Concerto No. 8 in C Major, have this marking, as does his Oboe Concerto in C Major), but appears much more frequently in his operas. It implies that the piece should be played in a broader, more majestic way than might be indicated simply by ''allegro.'' The first movement opens with the orchestra playing the main theme
Theme or themes may refer to:
* Theme (arts), the unifying subject or idea of the type of visual work
* Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos
* Theme (computing), a custom graphical ...
, a typical Mozartian tune. The solo violin comes in with a short but sweet dolce
Dolce, the Italian word for 'sweet', may refer to:
Places
*Dolcè, a municipality in Italy
*Dolce (Plzeň-South District), a municipality and village in the Czech Republic
*Dolce, a village and part of Jesenice (Příbram District) in the Czech ...
''adagio'' passage in A major with a simple accompaniment by the orchestra. (This is the only instance in Mozart's concerto repertoire in which an ''adagio'' interlude of this sort occurs at the first soloist entry of the concerto.) It then transitions back to the main theme with the solo violin playing a different melody on top of the orchestra. The first movement is 10–11 minutes long.
The rondo
The rondo is an instrumental musical form introduced in the Classical period.
Etymology
The English word ''rondo'' comes from the Italian form of the French ''rondeau'', which means "a little round".
Despite the common etymological root, rondo ...
Finale is based on a minuet
A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''.
The term also describes the musical form that accomp ...
theme which recurs several times. In the middle of the movement the meter changes from to and a section of "Turkish music
The music of Turkey includes mainly Turkic and Byzantine elements as well as partial influences ranging from Ottoman music, Middle Eastern music and Music of Southeastern Europe, as well as references to more modern European and American popula ...
" is played. This is characterised by the shift to A minor (from the original A major), and by the use of grotesque elements, such as unison chromatic crescendo
In music, the dynamics of a piece is the variation in loudness between notes or phrases. Dynamics are indicated by specific musical notation, often in some detail. However, dynamics markings still require interpretation by the performer dependin ...
s, repetition of very short musical elements and col legno
In music for bowed string instrument
Bowed string instruments are a subcategory of string instruments that are played by a bow rubbing the strings. The bow rubbing the string causes vibration which the instrument emits as sound.
Despite th ...
playing in the cellos and double basses. This section gave the concerto the nickname "The Turkish Concerto". The famous Rondo alla Turca from Mozart's piano sonata in A major features the same key and similar elements.
Mozart later composed the Adagio in E major for Violin and Orchestra, K. 261, as a substitute slow movement for this concerto.
A typical performance lasts about 28 minutes long.
References
External links
*
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{{Authority control
5
1775 compositions
Compositions in A major