Mozart: Sonatas for Fortepiano and Violin K301, K378, K454

Featuring

Sayaka Shoji
Gianluca Cascioli
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

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Composer Biography

Mozart's father, Leopold Mozart, was a renowned violinist and author of the most influential violin method of the 18th century, the Versuch einer gründlichen Violinschule.

Critical Reception

The 'Auernhammer' sonatas, including K378, were a critical success in Vienna, praised for their originality and equal prominence given to both violin and keyboard.

Compositional Technique

Like Joseph Schuster's sonatas, five of Mozart's sonatas, including K301, are in two movements instead of the typical three, showing the influence of the expressive Mannheim style.

Composer Biography

Despite being known for keyboard, Mozart was appointed third concertmaster at the Salzburg court at age 13 and composed his first solo concerto for violin, K207, before his first keyboard concerto.

Composition History

Mozart composed the K454 sonata for the Mantuan violinist Regina Strinasacchi, who commissioned it for her public concert, and he reportedly improvised the keyboard part at the premiere.

Composition History

Mozart's K301 sonata was initially conceived for violin or flute, possibly for a commission from a German doctor named Ferdinand Dejean, but the flute references were later removed.

Compositional Technique

The K454 sonata marks a shift in Mozart's approach, giving a more equitable balance between the violin and keyboard, departing from earlier works described as keyboard with violin accompaniment.