Mozart / Divertimento in D major, K. 205

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

Divertimento for 2 horns, bassoon, and strings in D major, K. 205/167A (1773)

00:00 - Marcia (K. 290/167AB)
04:41 - Largo - Allegro
10:07 - Menuetto & Trio
13:11 - Adagio
20:01 - Menuetto & Trio
22:41 - Finale. Presto

Members of the New York Philomusica (1979)

Violin: Felix Galimir
Viola: John Graham
Violoncello: Timothy Eddy
Contrabass: Alvin Brehm
Bassoon: Donald MacCourt
Horns: Robert Johnson & Virginia Benz

"This work, one of the most immediately ingratiating [of Mozart's divertimenti], was supposedly written in 1773. It is the first of the divertimenti for strings with two horns -- a scoring for which Mozart composed some of his greatest occasional music. The combination was not his invention. Joseph Haydn wrote optional horn parts to his early string quartets, showing the kinship of quartet and symphony; his brother Michael used the combination for an occasional work that directly influenced Mozart [see K. 247]. From these historical antecedents, Mozart gradually evolved an instrumental style for these divertimenti that is remarkable for its flexibility and variety. The horns constitute an asset both supportive and coloristic. The orchestral instrument par excellence, the horn owes its ubiquitous presence in ensembles to its mellowness -- which blends superbly both with strings and winds -- and its wide dynamic range, which tends to define the overall contrasts of the ensemble in which it plays. Because 18th century horns were valveless, horn parts usually were limited to the tones of the natural overtone series. Mozart turned this limitation into a virtue. Apart from the general role of the horns, which is to support the harmonic and rhythmic texture, their most characteristic writing in Mozart consists of the pedal tones -- long notes held through changes of harmony, producing both beauty of sonority and harmonic stability.

K. 205 differs from the other string/horn divertimenti in two details of its scoring: first, it explicitly calls for a bassoon to double the bass line (however, the participation of the bassoon in all the divertimenti is possible); second, it is scored for a single violin, creating the lighter, more intimate scoring of the string trio. This scoring is not without its dangers: string trios by many composers involuntarily feature the leaping around of the hapless viola, desperately attempting to fill in the chord tones not sounded by violin or bass. Mozart artfully avoids the pitfall. The viola is most often the full partner of the violin: they alternate in solo passages and play duets, often in octaves, a sonority typical of the Salzburg works. At other times, the viola supports the melody in rhythmic unison with the bass, or plays an independent middle part that can include double stops (two notes played simultaneously) or broken chords in the louder passages. The latter sonority is the most harmonically complete, of course, but the scoring is never hollow.

The March (K. 290) -- which may antedate the divertimento by a year -- is Mozart's first that survives. It displays musical ideas of an abundance bordering on profligacy. In the 72 bars of the work, there appear 7 distinct themes, in addition to several smaller motives. (One of the closing themes recalls a similar passage in the D major quartet divertimento, K. 136.) Nothing is more typical of Mozart's style than this casual melodic wealth. Unlike Haydn or Beethoven, whose themes are virtually always developed thoroughly, Mozart often uses a new tune for the joy of its freshness, instead of reworking an earlier one. Many of his most memorable melodies are heard but once, in instrumental and vocal music alike.

The opening movement of the divertimento itself is one of the few in the series to have a slow introduction. While the tone of Mozart's introductions is most frequently solemn and majestic (cf. of the 'Linz' and 'Prague' symphonies and the E-flat symphony K. 543), there is another mood depicted in the introductions to the chamber works, typified by the reflective warmth of the first bars of the D major string quintet, K. 593. K. 205 begins with this introspective quality, which quickly gives way to an exuberant Allegro. The two epigrammatic minuets set off the lovely Adagio, a companion in expression to that of K. 131. Relaxed, tender, and tinged with longing, it suggests the summer evening in which its first reading was undoubtedly given. The exchange of the melody between violin and viola is most effective, as is a similar exchange between violin and horns in the second minuet. The zestful Presto finale is a rondo whose lively refrain alternates with four episodes. The grace of the previously heard march concludes the work with appropriate ceremony." - Robert D. Levin