TITLE: Serenade No. 12 in C minor, K. 388 (1782)

• Newer Title: Partita No. 12 in C minor, K. 384a

COMPOSER: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

There were seven children born to Leopold Mozart and Maria Anna Pertl, however, only two survived, one being Wolfgang Gottlieb. The day after his birth, he was christened Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus. His father, Leopold was not only a gifted violinist, keyboard and organ player, he was also quite famous as a music pedagogue in Austria and Europe. Leopold, was very involved with his children's upbringing and success in music. He educated his children at home. Mozart was a child prodigy composing and performing in public prior to his seventh birthday. He toured Europe with his father throughout his childhood. The family lived in Salzburg. Mozart decided, against his father's wishes, to leave the service of the archbishop of Salzburg and move to Vienna. During this period, at the age of twenty-six, Mozart composed the Serenade No.12 in C minor .

MOVEMENTS: Four

1. Allegro 8' 25"
2. Andante 4' 20"
3. Menuetto in canone/Trio in canone al rovescio 4' 11"
4. Allegro 6' 15"

PERFORMANCE TIME: 23' 11"

INSTRUMENTATION: 8 Instruments

• 2 Oboes, 2 Bb Clarinets, 2 Bassoons, 2 Horns

EDITIONS: Available for Purchase

1. Edwin F. Kalmus Edition (preferred)

2. International Music Company Edition

COMPOSITION SKETCH AND MUSICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Mozart left a significant body of works written for wind instruments. His serenades, divertimenti and concerti, are staples of the repertoire, and it is difficult to name any works by any other composer which surpass these in beauty, clarity, inspiration and craftsmanship. Serenade No. 10 in C minor was the first major work of Mozart written in this key. While serenades frequently contain more than four movements, this work has four, and closely parallels the symphonic form and structure. The serenade begins with an open-ended phrase that extends beyond the initial motive. There is a large use of contrast between unsettled harmonic discourse and sudden dynamic contrasts that are followed by restless muted responses.

The opening Allegro is in sonata form. The lyrical themes are often accompanied by repetitive arpeggiation and tonguing in the bassoons and horns. The development begins with sudden fury, but is quickly extinguished for the arrival of an unexpected and early recapitulation. The Andante movement uses louvering, a compositional device that utilizes one instrument at the beginning of a melody and then passes the rest of the phrase to another voice in the ensemble. This triple metered lyrical movement uses chains of suspensions to feature tension and release in the movement. The most difficult of the movements is the canonic minuet with a canon in inversion. This counterpoint masterpiece demonstrates some of Mozarts most serious compositional techniques. The finale is often compared to the Piano Concerto in c minor. There is some controversy surrounding the final chord of the Serenade No. 10, for the autographed last page is missing.

The string transcription of this work for string quartet (K.516b/406) includes the third in the last chord, which has been eliminated in some of the wind serenade editions. It would be assumed that the third should be included since it was created from the original score of the wind serenade by Mozart himself.

SELECTED RECORDINGS:

RELATED WEBSITES:

Mozart Page - http://www.w-a-mozart.com/

Mozart Biography - http://www.sciortino.net/wambiog.html

Mozart Midi File Page - http://midiworld.com/cmc/mozart.html

Mozart's Music - http://mozart.composers.net/html/music.html