Mozart – Piano Concerto No. 23 in A, K. 488

The Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major (K. 488) is a musical composition for piano and orchestra written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was finished, according to Mozart’s own catalogue, on March 2, 1786, around the time of the premiere of his opera, The Marriage of Figaro. It was one of three subscription concerts given that spring and was probably played by Mozart himself at one of these. The concerto is scored for piano solo and an orchestra consisting of one flute, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns and strings. In Mozart’s later works the wind instruments are equal to the stringed instruments, and this is also the case in this concerto. It has three movements:
1. Allegro in A major and common time.
2. Adagio in F-sharp minor and 6/8 time (in later editions, the tempo is listed as Andante).
3. Allegro assai in A and alla breve (in later editions, the tempo is listed as Presto). In Rondo form.
The first movement is mostly sunny and positive with the occasional melancholic touches typical of Mozart pieces in A major and is in sonata form. The piece begins with a double exposition, the first played by the orchestra, and the second when the piano joins in.