Serenade No. 10 for winds

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The Serenade No. 10 for winds in B flat major, K. 361, is a serenade by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart scored for thirteen instruments. It is believed to have been composed in 1783 or 1784 and consists of seven movements. It is often known by the subtitle "Gran Partita"; it is uncertain whether this title is Mozart's.^[1]

Contents 1 Composition 2 Movements 3 References in popular culture 4 Sources 5 References

[edit] Composition

Mozart composed the Serenade no. 10 in Vienna, most likely in 1783 or 1784^[2], a few years after moving to Vienna from Salzburg and his subsequent marriage to Constanze Weber. The exact date and occasion for the composition is unknown, although it is known that a performance of the work took place 23 March 1784, and Daniel Leeson suggests that the composition may have been completed shortly before this date.^[3] Note that, although the Köchel catalogue places this work as the earliest of his three serenades for winds^[4], it was in fact composed after the Serenade No. 11 K. 375 of 1781, and possibly also after the Serenade No. 12 K. 388 of 1782 or 1783.

The work is scored for 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 basset horns, 2 bassoons, 4 horns and double bass (sometimes replaced by contrabassoon).

[edit] Movements

The serenade is in seven movements:

• I. Largo. Allegro moderato
• II. Menuetto
• III. Adagio
• IV. Menuetto. Allegretto
• V. Romanze. Adagio
• VI. Tema con variazioni
• VII. Rondo

The opening movement begins with a slow introduction in B flat major in which tutti dotted rhythms are set in opposition to solo passages for clarinet and oboe. This leads into the Allegro moderato, which is a monothematic sonata form. The first theme of the exposition opens, originally presented in B flat major in the clarinets, later returns in F major in the basset horns and oboes in a modified form as the second theme. This theme continues to be explored in the development and returns in the recapitulation, this time in B flat major both times.

The second movement is a minuet featuring two contrasting trio sections. The minuet section is in B flat major and uses all the instruments extensively. The first trio employs is in E flat major and employs only the clarinets and basset horns. This section leads into a repeat of the minuet section. The second trio section is in the relative minor, G minor, and extensively uses the solo oboe, basset horn and bassoon.

Described by Goodwin as “virtually an ‘operatic’ ensemble of passionate feeling and sensuous warmth”,^[5] the third movement, marked Adagio, is in E flat major. A syncopated pulse occurs almost throughout the movement while solo lines alternate between the solo oboe, clarinet and basset horn.

The fourth movement is a second minuet; like the second movement, it has two trio sections. The fast, staccato minuet section is in B flat major. The first trio, by contrast, has fewer staccato notes and is in the parallel minor, B flat minor. After the minuet section is repeated, the second trio is played. This section is in F major and is largely legato.

The fifth movement, labeled Romanze, returns to the slow tempo and E flat major tonality of the third movement. The movement begins and ends with an Adagio section in the tonic and in triple meter with many long notes in the melody. Contrasting with these sections is an Allegretto section between them, which is in C minor and features constant pulse in the bassoons.

The sixth movement is a set six of variations on an andante theme in B flat major. The theme is presented primarily by the solo clarinet. The variations make use of various rhythmic motives and often feature solo instruments; for example, the first variation features the solo oboe. Unlike the other variations, all of which are in B flat major, the fourth variation is in B flat minor. The last two variations are in different tempos from the rest of the movement: the fifth is marked Adagio, while the sixth is marked Allegretto. The last variation is also in triple meter, in contrast with the other variations, which are in duple meter.

The seventh and last movement is a rondo. The movement employs many tutti passages in which the oboes and clarinets play in unison, particularly in the rondo theme. The episodes between the returns of the theme feature a greater degree of interplay between the instruments.

[edit] References in popular culture

In the 1984 film Amadeus, Antonio Salieri's first encounter with Mozart is at a performance of this work. Salieri has not been impressed with Mozart's boorish behavior before the performance, but as he looks at the music on the page, he describes the beauty and delight of the solo clarinet's line, leading him to say, “This was no composition by a performing monkey. This was a music I'd never heard. Filled with such longing, such unfulfillable longing. It seemed to me that I was hearing the voice of God.”^[6] It is at this point that Salieri first questions how God could choose a vulgar man like Mozart as his voice; this question becomes a primary theme of the film.

[edit] Sources

• Leeson, Daniel N., “A Revisit: Mozart’s Serenade for Thirteen Instruments”, K. 361 (370a), the “Gran Partitta”, in Mozart-Jarbuch, 1997 (Kassel: Barenreiter)

[edit] References