K. 33b, Piece in F for keyboard, Klavierstück

I've hit a sloppy patch of pieces.  It was hard to know what to do next.  I got through all the Grand Tour works. I think.  Maybe. Sort of.  Who really knows?  So I went with K33b.  Was it a quickly doodled bit? I don't know.  I'm sure Mozart had a lot of quickly doodled musical tidbits.  This one had staying power.  In fact, it was used in the movie Amadeus.  The scene where young Mozart was touring.  If I am understanding it right, Mozart would have actually wrote it after the tour.  The movie may have got the bit wrong.  I don't know.  

Apart from the nerdy stuff, this song is a fun cheerful piece. It's full of youthful hope.  If it was written near the end of the grand tour, I could see it being a "that was fun, but thank God it is over," tune.  There is hope in it.  "I done with that crap" kind of hope.  Or, maybe I'm reading too much into the historical context.  And, relying on personal experience.  We all hit those moments after a long hard trial, or straining effort.  We think we've reached a point of smooth sailing.  The young Mozart may have reached that point.  Of course, when we look back on it, we often see our rest was only a rest, it wasn't a lifestyle changing event.  New trials, new strains come.  

This song suggests 'enjoy the rest.' 

Mozart fights for Figaro

I was thinking of the scene from Amadeus.

Mozart fights for the right to display The Marriage of Figaro.  The emperor admits he has passion.  Mozart worked hard, and some would have thought him arrogant to think it was the best Opera yet written, but… I don't know.  Sure, he writes to his tastes. So one could say he wrote the best according to his standard.   And maybe, history proved him right.  

But with any work, of any art form, it is like a child.  We love ours with a blind passion. And, we can get bitterly offended when someone attacks it.  On the other hand, what if a person is giving us solid advice on how to get your 'baby' to reach its full potential?  Which is worse?  A critical eye on one's work? Or, like the the emperor, an unwillingness to even see it? Hence a need to fight… 

So, just a strange aside: is it callous for people to hate the fact they show pictures of their children on social networks?

K. 33, Kyrie

K. 33, Kyrie

Its hard for me to get into heavy Gregorian sounding music.  K. 33 is a bit of that.   Kyrie Eleison ‘Lord have mercy’.  Why ask for mercy? And what music fits best such a plea?  Their grand tour was winding down.  Much of the family had nearly died on the trip. And, the 10-year-old boy wrote this piece.  But, it doesn’t seem the tones are a plea for mercy. The music seems, in fact, to declare, ‘God has been merciful.’ Soft and surrendered. 

If you want to hear a real music that captures real pleas for mercy, listen to the Kyrie of Mozart’s Mass in C minor.  K. 427.  That’s music of a pleading heart.

Top 5 most recognized Mozart melodies.

Everyone likes to try their luck with lists.  It's an easy concise way to say something.  Thought I'd try my luck with one.  Here what I believe to be Mozart top five most recognizable melodies.  There the ones that when I started getting in to Mozart, I said, 'Yeah. I've heard that.'

5. Symphony No. 40, Molto Allegro

I've heard this as a number of default cell rings.  I've also remember it on some old school CPU games.  

4. Piano Sonata in C, Allegro

Get any number of children's toys highlighting classical music and your likely to hear this ditty. 

3. Piano Sonata in A, Rondo alla Turca 

Another child's toy fav.  And, I hear a lot in commercials. The mystery show 'Who dunnit' had it as their theme song, and there's that 'feed the big' commercial that has a scene playing the song. 

2. Marriage of Figaro overture

The music is used quite often to express jubilation.  A Doritos a subway commercial come to mind as recent uses.  It is slathered all over the place.

1. Eine Kliene Nachtmusick, Allegro

Like Beethoven's Symphony no. 5 is to Beethoven, this work is quintessential Mozart.  Many not only know it, but link it with Mozart.  In addition, it is a classical music icon.  If someone wants to play a background piece the declares sophisticated classical, they'd likely pick this piece. (Along with Vivaldi's Four Seasons).

K. 466, Piano Concerto No. 20, A Broncos Fan Lament

Still listening, not writing much though.

What Troglodyte isn't a football fan? And, I happen to be a Broncos fan. Anyone following the recent events, can see a need for lament.  (Not that I am vainly seeking hope in a football outcome).   

I was thinking: How many people have as many career ups and downs as Mozart and Manning?  Regardless of whether either received his just reward, both will go and have gone down in history as some of the greatest in their field.  I thought it fitting to find a ditty that trebles the trials of Peyton Manning and the Broncos.

Piano Concerto No. 20.

The first movement begins at the end of the fourth quarter against the Ravens.  The orchestra opens dark.   The Broncos had chosen to kneel down with time remaining.  A looming doom declares the Ravens now have the momentum just after the Broncos had given it up. Overtime starts, the battle begins.  Manning throws an interception.  Raven's kick in double overtime.  Broncos lose. 

Enter Piano solo.

A head-hung depression. The Ravens charge through the playoffs, crushing every other team.  No other fought as hard as the Broncos.   The Brocs sigh, saying, "We'll get them next year." The music builds more and more hopeful.  Pulses of "We can do it," mixed with sighs.   The season starts.  Broncos storm through with fury.  Game after game, all the while the critics shout, "of course' Peyton can do it in the regular season.  But let's see what he does in the post season." He wins his first.  A sigh of relief.  He wins another. Their in.  Their in the Super Bowl.   The first movement ends at the precipice of the big game. 

Second movement. 

A hike for a Seattle safety.  The Broncos sigh.  "Let's calm down.  Collect ourselves." They stop them from scoring a touchdown.  5-0. That's doable.  They get the ball back, fail to score.  They keep Seattle to just a field goal again. Sigh. "Ok.  Come on. Take it easy.  It's not out of control yet."   Piano solo rattles dread, seasoned with a bit of hope.  Slowly, things unravel. Piano strikes growing  with intensity, chipping away any remaining hope.  Second half, Seattle scores on first kick-off drive.  Seattle: score after score and stop after stop. The music returns to the sighful laments.  "This is not their year." It says.  They still try, but critics and fans know it is over. 

Third movement. 

The music is celebratory, but with dark undertones.  The celebration of the enemy. Critics joking about the defeat.  The rival team celebrating.   The music suggests a few pats on the back, saying maybe next year. At first, no one's ready to think about that.   

Eventually, they slap their faces and a find the ever present optimists inside themselves… 

Well... at least, that's what the tucked-deep-optimist in me is hoping they're doing.  

K. 45a vs. K. 45 deest, Old Lambach vs. New Lambach

K. 45a vs. K. 45 deest,  Old Lambach vs. New Lambach

We’ve got some old manuscripts to sort out.  It is fun to dabble in some manuscript quibbles.  I am a theology major and have researched some of the Biblical text debates.  So, I have a concept of how they determine which texts are more reliable.  A lot of factoring of authenticity concerns comparing unknown work with the more reliable. 

Ok.  There are these Booky folks that have found two pieces from an abbey.  The Lambach Abbey. It is assumed they were gifts from the Mozarts when they visited.  K. 45a (Old Lambach) is attributed to Mozart. And, K. 45 deest (New Lambach) was inscribed from Leopold.  So one day, a scholar came up with a new theory and suggested the works were attributed to the wrong person. (Scholars—actually, people in general—want to strike it famous with new discoveries.)  I thought I’d listen to both, see if I can figure it out, and make myself famous.  Even though I’m a tonedeaf troglodyte, I’m a super genius.  So, I’ll figure it out.  Either way, it will still be fun to compare father and son.

Old Lambach

Some Scholars seem to suggest this is the least quality of the two.  It sounds mature to me.  More so than a lot of the other earlier Mozartian works I’ve heard. 

The intensifying strings building up in the first movement is a common theme in many of Mozart’s works.  I like the first movement’s adventurous feel.   The relaxing breathes in between seem to say, ‘that was fun. Again?’  There is one dark chunk that suggests maybe the last adventure wasn’t quite as exciting.  The second movement stirs moods of returning home from a long trip: glad to be back, yet remembering the good times on the trip.  The third movement is shorter, which if I remember correctly is a common element in his other works up to this point.  This movement is looking forward to the next adventure.  Over all, I’d say this peice has a similar feel to the other Hague works, just with a bit more spectacle. And, I guess that’s why those booky guys guessed it to being written around The Hague period.

New Lambach

First thing that caught my attention was that the strings don’t quite intensify the same way as is familiar to me in many of Mozart’s pieces.  But, they do sigh in a similar Mozartian manner, especially in the second movement.  All in all, I’d say this work is less catchy, but more refined.  (Refined doesn’t always mean more enjoyable.) It seems more like something Bach wrote.  Now, there is this element in the third movement, that I know is repeated in numerous of Mozart’s earlier work.  But, it is hidden in the background, popping its head out like a prairie dog after a fox left.  That ditty from the second allegro in K. 14. It’s there.  Why?  Is it there because, this song was written by Mozart? Did Mozart inherit something from Leopold? Vice versa?

Those are the comments. 

 

So who wrote which? In my extreme less-then-expert opinion… Ahhhhhh… I kind of wish someone would have just told me to listen to both without having done any research, and then guess.  I was biased big-time.  I’ll just agree with most the bigwig scholars.  New Lambach carries a baroque richness. Old Lambach has a youthful attitude.  At least, according to these tonedeaf ears.  

K. 32, Gallimathias Musicum (Quolibet)

K. 32, Gallimathias Musicum (Quolibet)

I think, not sure yet, but this is the last work I will dabble in from Mozart’s time at The Hague. For those who have been wondering, I have been away for so long because a chute load of changes have flocked my way.  We moved (I’ve mentioned that before). And, we’ve had our third son.  Without Internet, try working two jobs, wrangling three kids under 5 and finding time to work on a blog.  Anyway, I don’t have to make excuses.  I’m doing this mostly for me. 

So on to the Gallimathias Musicum.

This is a Quolibet, which I have just learned is a gob of melodies thrown into one work.  I guess, it is the classical equivalent of making an album.  Mozart wrote this work while at The Hague for the installation of Prince Wilhelm, ending it patriotically.  It is a collection of 17 Melodies.  I thought the best way to tackle this work is with a short comment on each melody.  So here you go (hopefully, I get it right where each new melody begins):

1. Reminds me of the opening of Mozart’s Symphony # 29.

2.  Spooky tones, with sighs, disappointed when they realize there is nothing to fear.

3. Triumphant, victory has come.

4. Epic, very powerful.  Has an Irish or Scottish feel.  Like something you’d hear from Braveheart.

5.  A royal piece.

6. A waltzy kind of piece.

7. More royal declarations.

8. A short sigh break in the middle of the quolibet.

9. Horns and Oboes find each other and dance.  Violins say, ‘Get it on.’

10. Spooky melancholy, like the end is near and a person is ready to give up.

11. Racing frolics, like that last gallop home after a long days ride.

12. Apprehensive curiosity.  A kitten peeking out from the hayloft for the first time.

13. Sounds like one of his earlier harpsichord sonatas.  Skipping on a cloudy day.

14.  I know this one.  It is definitely a repeat. I like it and will find out what it reminds me of.  But the mood says, ‘things are tough but they will get better.’

15. This one seems to suggest things will not get better.

16. Life is happy again.

17. The patriotic ending.  A tribute to his Dutch hosts.