K. 246, Piano Concerto No. 8 in C Major

K. 246, Piano Concerto No. 8 in C Major

A little ditty written for Archbishop Colloredo’s niece.  So this was a piano work, not as popular in the Salzburg area.  So how could a guy like Mozart make such a medium more popular?  How does anyone make something new acceptable to his or her audience?  By tying it to something familiar.   The first thing I thought when I heard the first movement, “That has a familiarity.  It has a build up similar to Violin Concerto no. 5.”  So I checked the tempo marks.  The same as K. 219, except the second movement is an andante instead of an adagio.

As with K. 219, Mozart starts off with the orchestra’s anything is possible tone.  Then, comes the piano solo.  But, this solo isn’t unsure of itself, although it has a similar melody as K. 219’s solo opener.  This solo carries a more curious mood.  “I wander what’s out there?” It says.  Not sure if that is a musical difference between the pianoforte and the violin, or if it is the music itself.  Then we come to the coming-out-of-its-shell element.  This is where the melody is the most similar to K. 219, but it is not as intense.  It builds at a slower pace, and the climax is more mellow.  I prefer K. 219’s first movement’s contrast. “I’m scared” turns into “You’re right, I just might be able to do it.” As opposed to, K. 246’s “I wonder what’s out there” turning into “gee golly, that’s kinda neat.”

Now I’m not sure how much detail I want to go into about the next two movements, because I have not commented on the next two movements of K. 219 yet.  Just to suffice, the second movement has the sighing elements of K. 219.  And, the third movement’s melody feels like a mirror version of the main melody.  As in, a reverse build up. 

A quick tidbit I read about the piece.  It is supposed to be an easier peace to play.  Mozart used it to teach pupils.  And, if you want to make a genre popular that is a good strategy.  Make it easy and make it familiar.

The Complexity that is Mozart

Sorry for the lack of recent posts.  At the moment, we have just moved into a new place.  I do not have internet access.  However, I am still listening... And, even relistening to pieces I've already commented on.  I've also compared Mozart's work with others.  I've been dabbling as to what makes him so unique.

Mozart is the Shakespeare or classical music.  How so?  Well, obviously there is the beauty of the music, but that is not unique to Mozart.  Oodles of composers have beautiful music, some may even argue more beautiful.  But, another element Shakespeare delved into was ambiguity.  Literary elitists argue back and forth as to whether Shakespeare condoned, condemned, or neutrally approached particular moral issues.  

In a similar manner, Mozart's music is riddled with emotional ambiguity.  Certain song may have an overlying emotion, but that emotion is all too often a mask.  I've yet to listen to a single movement and say, "That's a (whatever emotion) song."  Most often, the cover emotion tends to be joy.  And, think about it, whenever we want to fake an emotion it is usually joy.   I mean, really, who goes around while in reality happy, yet pretending to be mad?