Sinfonia Concertante for Four Winds in E-flat Major, K. 297B
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

THE STORY

As the name suggests, the sinfonia concertante mixes two genres: the symphony and the concerto. Typical of the symphony, the first movement is in sonata form, in which main themes are introduced in the exposition, developed in various keys, and recapitulated. On the other hand, like the concerto, the sinfonia concertante consists of three movements rather than four.

The sinfonia concertante originated in Paris, which in the mid-to-late 18th century was a vibrant musical capital that attracted touring soloists and composers. Mozart’s visit to Paris in 1778 provided the impetus for six sinfonia concertantes. One of them—a piece in E-flat major for flute, oboe, horn, and bassoon soloists—was written expressly for leading woodwind players of the day.

Sadly, this sinfonia concertante was lost—but in the early 20th century, a 19th-century copy of a sinfonia concertante in E-flat was discovered. This piece appeared to be the lost work, but with one problem: the manuscript calls for slightly different instrumentation—clarinet instead of flute. Music scholars hold different opinions as to whether the recovered manuscript was really composed by Mozart or if he had simply rearranged the parts for a special performance of which we have no record. Regardless, the work bears distinctively Mozartean features, such as melodic ease, elegant clarity, and delightful richness of invention.

LISTEN FOR

• How the soloists’ roles fluidly switch from introducing thematic melodies to providing accompaniment to each other in the first movement
• The pliant, arching melodies in the Adagio movement: halfway through, the bassoon introduces an aching new melody that is answered by the oboe
• The various ways in which the jocular theme of the finale transforms over the course of each variation

INSTRUMENTATION

Solo flute, oboe, horn, and bassoon; two oboes, two horns, strings