“How I detest Salzburg […] you won’t hear anything there; no theater, no opera!” Mozart complained in a letter to Joseph Bullinger. Despite his undisguised aversion to his native city, that is where he created excellent compositions, which reflect the experience gained during numerous travels, filtered by his own genius. It is in Saltzburg, at the beginning of 1772, between two trips to Italy, that Divertimento in D major KV 136 was composed. Both the three-movement form of the composition and elements of the concertante style, probably inspired by Italian music, give it a symphonic character despite its modest instrumentation for a string ensemble. A few years later, in July 1779, Mozart composed his penultimate Salzburg symphony – in the key of B-flat major and numbered 319 by Kochl. The original three-movement work was later supplemented with a Minuet in Vienna. In this mature musical form, Mozart perfectly combines the lightness of sound with the richness of harmonic and melodic solutions.
The program is crowned by Joseph Haydn’s Symphony in G minor – probably the most characteristic of the series of his six Parisian symphonies composed in 1785, commissioned by Count d’Ogny. The work’s subtitle La poule (or The Hen) comes from the “cackling” second theme of the first movement, which provides a humorous contrast to the majestic opening theme of the symphony. The melody of the strings, outlined with short notes, supplemented with dotted rhythms repeated at one pitch in the oboe part, truly reminds one of the sounds made by poultry in the countryside. There are even more humorous elements in this composition, such as the unexpected dynamic contrasts in Andante or the idyllic mood of the Minuet.
PROGRAM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Divertimento in D major KV 136
Allegro – Andante – Presto
Allegro assai – Andante moderato – Menuetto – Finale. Allegro assai
Joseph Haydn
Allegro – Andante – Minuet – Finale. Vivace
PERFORMERS
THE ORCHESTRA OF THE POLISH ROYAL OPERA
MACIEJ TOMASIEWICZ CONDUCTOR
Duration: approx. 1 h
