Mozart: Sonata for Piano duet in B flat major, K358

Built in 1777, the Stein ‘Vis-à-vis’ is a glorious monster, half harpsichord, half fortepiano, with keyboards at both ends and a tonal range unsurpassed in the century that saw plectra cede to hammers. Brilliantly percussive, it is a veritable fun-fair for four hands.

As one of the great virtuoso pianists of his time, Mozart composed a wealth of piano concertos and sonatas that rank among his most famous instrumental works. Not so well known, however, are the duet compositions he wrote for the instrument and to which this CD is dedicated: together with the large body of arranged orchestral music that publishers released, they provide evidence of the healthy scene of domestic music-making in existence during the Classical period.

First to be featured on the compilation is the Sonata in C, KV19d – a composition whose authorship has been disputed but which has nevertheless become part of the traditional canon of Mozart’s piano duets. Moving on to KV381 and KV358 (which both date from the early 1770s), we encounter two sonatas whose galant sound world is reminiscent of the roughly contemporary ‘Salzburg Symphonies’. Their allusion to orchestral colouring is hardly surprising given the fuller sonority afforded by two players instead of one, and there is little doubt that Mozart wrote the works in order to perform them with his sister Nannerl, who was an excellent pianist.

Mozart would periodically return to four-hand piano music later in his career – the Fugue in G minor K401 and the Andante with Variations in G K501 date from the early 1780s and 1786 respectively. Comprising a charming collection of works, the compilation as a whole brims with musicality and includes historically informed performances from Modena and Gregoletto on fortepiano – a beautifully balanced partnership that convincingly argues for the duets’ equal standing alongside solo works.

New booklet note by David Threasher

As a special addition to this collection, the Dichters did a bit of digging and found two of Mozart's works that had received input—some might call it meddling— from later composers. Busoni was a skilled arranger— he may be best known for his demonic piano version of Bach's Chaconne—and, intrigued by Mozart's brilliant Fantasy, K.608—the one originally for Mechanical Clock—he rescored the piece for two pianos. The result is astounding and shows how Mozart's melodies can be adapted. But what may be the most unusual piece of all is the Sonata, K.545. This work was originally for one piano, but a century after Mozart composed it, Edvard Grieg decided to take this delicate piece and add a second piano part. Leaving the first piano exactly as Mozart had written it, Grieg added a second, independent part, played here by Misha Dichter.

Brilliance, fluency, clarity and extraordinary communicative powers – Mozart seems to have had them all. Little wonder he was hailed as the finest pianist of his generation – even rivals such as Clementi commented ‘I had never heard anyone play with so much spirit and grace…’ Of course we have no idea how Mozart the pianist sounded. We have the reviews and comments of those who heard him perform, and we have the instruments of his time. These do take us some way to understanding performance practice of the day, and the limitations of the instruments, and how composers of the late 18th century worked to test the instruments, and make greater demands upon the constantly evolving pianoforte.

On these 14 CDs, everything Mozart wrote for solo keyboard, or for 4-hands is here, from small works written down by his incredulous father Leopold when his son as just 5 years old, to the works of the child prodigy through to the masterpieces of the mature genius.

There is much that is well known here, but interestingly there are several first recordings. All the works are played on pianofortes of the period.

Extensive booklet notes on an accompanying CD-ROM.

Includes world premiere recordings.

First complete cycle using instruments of the period.

Van Oort plays on five different (copies of) period fortepianos to convey Mozart’s music as directly as possible without the necessary “translation” when playing a modern grand. This results in a great clarity of sound and structure.

Part of this issue represents an important addition to the Mozart repertoire. The Adagio in F major, K Anh. A65, the Modulation Prelude, K624 and the Ballet music from another opera, Ascanio in Alba, K111, are amongst the first recordings too.