Mozart: Violin Concertos Nos. 3 & 4

Featuring

Francesca Dego
Sir Roger Norrington
Francesca Leonardi
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

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Historical Context

The Salzburg Kapelle, where Mozart worked, typically had up to twenty-six players, with violinists making up about half the orchestra.

Performer Biography

Francesca Dego, the violinist on this album, was the first Italian female prize-winner in nearly fifty years at the renowned Premio Paganini in Genoa.

Composer Biography

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, though famous as a pianist, was also an excellent violinist and performed frequently as a violin soloist in his early years.

Interpretation

According to Leopold Mozart's 1756 violin treatise, vibrato in 1775 was an occasional decoration for soloists, not used by good orchestras, as constant use would sound "as if one had a fever."

Compositional Technique

Mozart's violin concertos, like those of his contemporaries, follow the standard three-movement form inherited from Italian baroque composers such as Vivaldi.

Critical Reception

Unlike his piano concertos, Mozart's five violin concertos were rarely performed for seventy years after his death, only gaining interest after late 19th-century editions by violinists like Joseph Joachim.