performed by ASMF/Marriner

Mozart Monday, and for the first time… I love this! It’s surprisingly pleasing.

It’s the longest of Mozart’s childhood symphonies so far, his first in F, the first to have a minuet/trio and the first to have two obligatory viola parts, which was certainly not apparent to me.

He was eleven when he wrote this one, and probably finished in Moravia, where the family had apparently fled Vienna die to an epidemic of smallpox.

What was apparent was that it felt far more mature and developed than his others. It’s longer (almost 14 minutes) and in four movements, the first of which is four and a half minutes long and full of energy and brightness and bits that make me smile. I didn’t notice the harpsichord (“keyboard continuo”) until the third movement, where it has a noticeably prominent part.

I really enjoyed how the first movement does fantastically enjoyable things with such a simple theme. It makes me smile, and seems just vaguely familiar, like I should know what comes next, but I don’t. It feels like a little bit of humor, and I nearly did snicker aloud when I heard it. It seemed inventive and smart. Great job, young eleven year old.