Johanes Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony ‘Jupiter’ No.41 in C major, (K 551)
Interprete del álbum: Jaap Ter Linden & Mozart Akademie Amsterdam
Compositor: Johanes Chrysostomus Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Año: 2002
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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s compositions characterized music of the classical era. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart completed his Symphony No. 41 in C major, K. 551, on 10 August 1788.[1] It was the last symphony that he composed, and also the longest.
The work is nicknamed the Jupiter Symphony. This name stems not from Mozart but rather was likely coined by the impresario Johann Peter Salomon[2] in an early arrangement for piano.
Instrumentation
The symphony is scored for flute, two oboes, two bassoons, two horns in C, two trumpets in C, timpani in C and G, and strings.
Composition and premiere
The 41st Symphony is the last of a set of three that Mozart composed in rapid succession during the summer of 1788. The 39th was completed on 26 June and the 40th on 25 July.[1] Nikolaus Harnoncourt argues that Mozart composed the three symphonies as a unified work, pointing, among other things, to the fact that the Symphony No. 41, as the final work, has no introduction (unlike No. 39) but has a grand finale.[3]
Around the same time as he composed the three symphonies, Mozart was writing his piano trios in E and C major, his Sonata facile, and a violin sonatina.
It is not known whether the 41st Symphony was ever performed in the composer’s lifetime. According to Otto Erich Deutsch, around this time Mozart was preparing to hold a series of “Concerts in the Casino” in a new casino in the Spiegelgasse owned by Philipp Otto. Mozart even sent a pair of tickets for this series to his friend Michael Puchberg. But it seems impossible to determine whether the concert series was held, or was cancelled for lack of interest.[1]
Movements
The four movements are arranged in the traditional symphonic form of the Classical era:
- Allegro vivace, 4/4
- Andante cantabile, 3/4 in F major
- Menuetto: Allegretto – Trio, 3/4
- Molto allegro, 2/2
The symphony typically has a duration of about 33 minutes.
The sonata form first movement’s main theme begins with contrasting motifs: a threefold tutti outburst on the fundamental tone (respectively, by an ascending motion leading in a triplet from the dominant tone underneath to the fundamental one), followed by a more lyrical response.
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