K. 30, Sonata in F

K. 30, Sonata in F

As a whole, my first impression of this piece was ‘goodbye.’  The first movement captures that final embrace. Heads tucked ear-to-ear, tears secretly streaming. Each waiting to see who will release first. A looming dread hints that life will not be better after parting.  The second movement is the moment after the embrace.  It starts off, with both acknowledging that each had been tearful.  Then, the cadence livens up.  It says, ‘Hey, let’s remember the good times.  Let them be our hope.’  But, the music suggests that neither believe reminiscing will ever satisfy.   

K. 13, Sonata in F

K. 13, Sonata in F

A return to the laugh, cry, and reflect three-movement work.  The third movement’s reflections are a bit dark and eerie, kind of a new twist on a Mozart finale.  So to make this blurb a bit different, I’ll try to invent a story that fits the music.  Act one, some children walk up to a castle.  The outside is opulent. Hedges surround the cobblestone walkway leading to the pointed-arch entrance.  They bound passed each other as they sneak excited inside.  Movement two, inside the mansion is drab and abandoned.  A crumbling interior and lone tattered painting lament of the owner long passed away.  The children explore, imagining what could have been… The minuet movement: the children leave after a white haze floats across the upper walkway.  They meet at the property line and argue about what they had seen.  One says it’s a cloud of dust.  Another, a puff a smoke.  The third insists it was a ghost.  When the debate is over, none return to the castle.