Mozart: Piano Concertos 5 & 6

 

Moving from Mozart's childhood exercises in Piano Concertos 1-4 to Piano Concerto no. 5 in D Major is a big leap forward...

These two early piano concertos still exist within the galante style, a sort-of early Classical Era reaction to the Baroque.

The most identifying hallmark of this earliest of Mozart piano concertos is the inclusion of trumpet and timpani, although the trumpet role is not particularly extrovert. Truthfully, when the trumpet sounds out, it reminds me of Haydn.

Otherwise, I find No. 5 rather gentille, with just the subtlest hint of the militaristic. On the other hand, I am much more involved as a listener with Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 6 in B-flat Major. There are a number of superficial traits I enjoy from this particular concerto foremost:

The opening movement's tune foretells of the fine melodic craftsmanship from the Classical Era composer. I love that Mozart swaps out oboes for flutes in the middle movement; I find the flute's timbre much more appealing in this music, especially as the songful center of the work. Also, the raised profile of the horn in the final movement is quite fun, not to mention a pleasant added texture to send the concerto off on the right note. All in all, I like the personality No. 6 provides compared to its predecessor; perhaps this is this performance, or more likely, the unfolding of a growing composer.

As to this particular recording, Sir Neville Marriner leads the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra well, keeping out of the way of the piano for the most part. I do wish the oboes were a touch drier, and would cut through a little more aggressively, instead of awash further back in the orchestral texture. Marriner outdid himself in the 80's with Alfred Brendel at the keyboard and the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, and is a strong preference in these two particular concertos.

This is my first entry into Mozart's Piano Concertos on the blog, and will be following the Christian Zacharias cycle for my initial look into these works. In Mozart's piano music, it is easy to prettify his music and hold it at arms length in the hopes it will never break. With Zacharias, I always find the pianist personally engaged, finding the music's inherent beauty alongside plenty of energy, yet also providing the listener music which has been lived in and not kept out of reach of us mere mortals.

His collaborations with many orchestras are nothing less than very good across the set, often quite excellent, and on some occasions, of the finest Mozart piano concertos one can find. As I revisit this set, I hope to further appreciate these wonderful works.

 

 

Works
Piano Concerto 5 in D Major, K175 (20.20)
Piano Concerto 6 in B-flat Major, K238 (19.46)

Soloists
Christian Zacharias, piano

Performers
Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra
Sir Neville Marriner, conductor

Label: EMI
Year: 1991

 

 

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