Concerto in A
sorted in:
The Piano concerto in A, KV 488 belongs to a group of piano concertos that Mozart composed in 1784–85; however, it was initially left unfinished and was only completed for concert events during Lent in 1786. At that time, Mozart was able to use clarinets in orchestral works for the first time, so he rewrote the accompanying parts in the first movement, which were originally scored for oboes.
The concerto was apparently intended for Mozart’s student Barbara Ployer; embellishments in her hand are also preserved for the Adagio, which is unusually in F-sharp minor.
that Mozart needed four attempts for the final movement? He first conceived the movement—the exact order of the drafts is not known—in 6/8, 2/4 and allabreve time before coming up with the idea for the brilliant finale. At 524 bars, it is the most extensive orchestral movement in Mozart’s oeuvre.
Between 1773 and 1791, Mozart composed a total of 21 concertos for piano and orchestra, two concertos for two or three pianos (see Work Group 14b), and two standalone rondo movements. In addition, there is a considerable number of mostly short fragments of concerto movements that Mozart abandoned. The Salzburg concertos were not yet composed for the fortepiano, and the intended keyboard instrument is not specified; various types of instruments—organ, harpsichord, tangent piano—were available. Up until 1788, Mozart used the general term "harpsichord" (*Cembalo*) for the solo instrument. In Vienna, Mozart became acquainted with the technically advanced fortepianos made by Gabriel Anton Walter. In performances of the four concertos K. 413–415 and K. 449, woodwinds are not mandatory. In all other Viennese concertos, woodwinds are employed in many different configurations. By shortly after 1800, all of Mozart’s piano concertos (except for the Concerto in C, K. 246) had been published, which attests to their extraordinary popularity. Several concertos were specifically composed for Mozart’s female students, especially Barbara Ployer, or for virtuosas such as Louise-Victoire Jenamy and Maria Theresia Paradis. While Mozart usually improvised cadenzas and lead-ins, he wrote out a large number of them for his sister and for his students (see Appendix G).
Autograph, 1786
Partitur: 50 Bl. (99 beschr. S.)
Abschrift, 1800
Concerto/ Per il Clavicembalo o Forte Piano/ Coll'accompagnimento de 2 Violini, 1 Flauto, 2 Clarinetti/ 2 Corni/ 2 Fagotti/ Viole e Basso/ Di W: A: Mozart.
Klavier-Stimme, mit Bezifferung und Kadenz zum 1. Satz
Erstdruck, 1800
N=o [handschriftliche Ziffer:] 5./ des six grands concertos/ pour le Piano_Forté/ composés par/ W. A. MOZART,/ & respectueusement dédiés/ à S. A. R. le Prince/ Louis Ferdinand/ de Prusse/ par l'editeur./ Oeuvre 82./ [links:] N=o 1415-20. [rechts:] Prix f. 3/ Edition faite d'après la partition en manuscrit./ A Offenbach s/m, chés J. André.
Stimmen: 53 S.