The story of Mozart’s Symphony No. 35 in D “Haffner” K. 385 offers a fascinating look into his life. In 1776, Mozart had written a Serenade K. 250 for his Salzburg friend and contemporary Sigmund Haffner. This was in celebration of the wedding of his sister, Marie Elisabeth. A serenade of this type was relatively lighter, festive music in multiple movements – this “Haffner Serenade” had eight-- and there was, in addition, a Mozart March K. 249 that is assumed to be the entrance and exit music for the 
wedding party.

By 1781, Mozart had left his employment in Salzburg to be a freelance composer and performer in Vienna. In mid-July 1782, Mozart received a letter from his father commissioning him for another celebratory work for Sigmund Haffner, this time in honor of his elevation to the nobility.

Wolfgang wrote back on July 20:

Well. I am up to my eyes in work...And now you ask me to write a new symphony too? How on earth am I to do so? I shall work as fast as possible and. as far as haste permits. I shall write something good.

This was a momentous time in Mozart’s life. On July 16, he had just experienced the very successful premiere of a new opera, The Abduction from the Seraglio, and was anticipating the move to a new house in preparation for his marriage which was to take place in early August. The completion of the opera did not end Mozart’s work with it. There were no copyright laws, and if Mozart were to take advantage of the demand for arrangements of the tuneful “hits” from is new opera, he had better compose those arrangements himself, ASAP, before other enterprising composers beat him to the punch. Yet, Mozart wanted to accommodate his friend as well as placate his father, who was not in favor of his marriage.

We are astonished at the composition of a symphonic movement in a week, but Mozart apologized to his father at his slowness with the work:

You will be surprised to find that this contains only the first Allegro. On Wednesday the 31st I shall send the two minuets, the andante, and the last movement. I have composed my symphony in D major. because you prefer that key.

Mozart, understandably, missed his own deadline, but likely had the work finished before Haffner’s celebration, writing on August 7, 1782, “The work was finished at last. Enclosed is a short march. I just hope everything will arrive on time and meet your expectation. The first Allegro should be played quite fiery. The last, as fast as possible.” His father must have been satisfied with the composition since Mozart wrote to him on August 24, 1782: “I am very happy that the symphony is to your taste.

Despite the fact that Mozart had composed the components of a serenade with its two minuets and a march (the latter included no timpani because the players had to process in and out of the hall) along with the two allegros and an andante, it is obvious from the start that he intended to extract a four-movement symphony from this piece. After several requests to Salzburg, the music arrived back in Vienna in February 1783.

Mozart’s response was one of the most delightful, humanizing moments we have in his correspondence: "My new Haffner symphony has positively amazed me, for I had forgotten every single note of it. It must surely produce a good effect.” Because of his other distractions at the time of its completion, evidently Mozart had remembered nothing about his composition! It premiered the next month in Vienna.

To form his symphony, Mozart eliminated the march and one minuet. But to the Salzburg forces, he added parts for flutes and clarinets. (The manuscript is in the Morgan Library in New York, and it is funny to see that Mozart had to add the clarinet parts way at the bottom of the score.) With its full complement of winds with trumpets and timpani, this is Mozart’s fullest orchestration since his Paris Symphony K. 297 of 1778 – another Carmon DeLeone favorite with the IPO—which Mozart was never to duplicate again in a symphony.

The opening “Allegro con spirito” has vibrant celebratory leaps, dotted rhythms, and trills. Mozart is usually abundantly generous with his melodic richness, but here he follows the Haydn plan -- remember the “London” Symphony of the IPO’s last season – of providing only one theme. Mozart seeds the whole movement with gestures from his theme providing a unity that we will not encounter until Beethoven. (Mozart also eliminates the original exposition repeat which some conjecture is because of its monothematic composition.) The following Andante is punctuated by energetic grace notes and repeated high notes in the violins. The timpani return in the vigorous Minuet. The Finale, Presto (remember Mozart wanted this as fast as possible) cribs the comic theme from Osmin’s aria “O wie will ich triumphieren” from The Abduction from the Seraglio.

Program Note by IPO Board 
Member Charles Amenta, M.D.