Mozart: Sonata in F major - Adagio

In the summer of 1763, Leopold Mozart came to the conclusion that it was time to move away from Salzburg and, once and for all, set off on a long tour across Europe with his son Wolfgang and his older sister Nannerl, who both had shown, from an early age, extraordinary musical talents. 

A year earlier, in 1762 —Wolfgang was not yet six— the children had successfully performed in Munich and, in September of the same year, dazzled the courts of Vienna gaining fervent applause, a watch, some elegant clothes and some kisses on the cheeks.

After returning from these 'flying' visits which normally took a couple of weeks (each way), Leopold began planning an extensive European tour. This, eventually, would last more than three years, leading them to travel throughout France and England. The aim of this tour was to present the world with what he called "the gift that God has given me" and expecting from it, naturally, some money.

Leopold was right. The tour resulted in a huge success and became useful in many ways: little Wolfgang, only seven, had a lavish premiere playing in the courts of great kings and princes, deepening his experience as a musician, improviser and composer. Above all, it made money, and plenty.

But this was not manna from heaven.

In fact, in the second half of the eighteenth century, Leopold Mozart behaved as a seasoned entrepreneur, as we should say today. Before coming to each village, Leopold, the producer, used to publish a notice in local newspapers announcing the arrival of these amazing children and reporting the marvelous things they could do with a keyboard, even if it was covered with a cloth avoiding the children to see the keys.

An advertisement in a London newspaper, in 1763, reads:

"To all Lovers of Sciences:

The greatest prodigy that Europe, or that even Human Nature has to boast of, is, without contradiction, the little German boy Wolfgang Mozart; a boy, eight years old who has, and indeed very justly, raised the admiration not only of the greatest men, but also of the greatest musicians in Europe. It is hard to say, whether his execution upon the harpsichord and his playing and singing at sight, or his own caprice, fancy and compositions for all instruments, are more astonishing. The father of this miracle, being obliged by desire of several ladies and gentlemen to postpone, for a very short time, his departure from England, will give an opportunity to hear this little composer and his sister, whose musical knowledge wants no apology.

Performs every day in the week, from twelve to three o'clock, in the Great Room, at the Swan and Hoop, Cornhill. 

Admittance 2s. 6d. each person."

If Leopold was an outstanding producer of cultural events, he was far less successful as a promoter of his son’s career. He tried hard to obtain for Wolfgang a stable position in a court other than Salzburg's. Fortunately for posterity, all of them were unsuccessful, which allowed Mozart to apply his mind at working for himself.

Sonata in F major - Adagio - Elisabeth Leonskaja

Although in 1762 the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria rewarded Wolfgang for his performance in Vienna with a little suit decorated with gold braids, later she was less well disposed towards him. In 1771, having received an inquiry from his son, the Archduke Ferdinand, about employing Wolfgang in his court, Maria Theresa advised him not to admit "composers or any other useless people like them", in particular, "none of the Mozarts, who drift around the world like beggars".

Maria Theresa is remembered as a great promoter of science and the arts; a genuine representative of enlightened despotism, even though in this case the anecdote shows that she was a little bit more despotic than enlightened.

The Empress left this world in 1780. So, we may assume that she might have been able to enjoy some of the three sonatas that Mozart, the beggar, composed in Paris in 1778.

The Sonata in F major is less well known than the Sonata in A major (with its popular Rondo alla turca or Turkish March) but it is equally beautiful and represents another illustration of the rich diversity of Mozart's instrumental output. This sonata has three movements and a conventional structure: allegro - adagio - allegro molto. The adagio is one of the sweetest and delicate slow movements of the keyboard music of its time.

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Schubert: Impromptu Op 90 No 4

The parents of Franz Schubert and those of Thérese Grob had known each other since they were young. They were neighbors in a suburb of Vienna –Liechtental– so the children of both families did play together, jumping and running one after another for much of their childhood. So, in the heat of those children's games, little Franz must have noticed the beauty of Thérese –a magic moment that history does not register.

Two years younger than Franz, as Thérese reached thirteen she was revealed to possess a beautiful soprano voice. In 1814, barely grown up, both will perform together on-stage at the premiere of the Mass in F for vocal quartet, organ and orchestra of the young master. Schubert, aged seventeen, conducts; Thérese, fifteen, is the soprano soloist.
All this was fine, but the girl's parents truly believed that the relationship had no future because Franz was just beginning an uncertain career as a musician and it was unthinkable that he could achieve any reputation in the short term.

As if all this were not enough, Klemens von Metternich, the champion of conservatism in charge of the security of Vienna and all of Austria, had recently issued a decree prohibiting marriage if the future husband had no means of supporting his wife. As was exactly the case.
Three or four years of vain attempts will follow. Schubert will try to obtain a position as Kapellmeister or as director of some of the great Viennese theaters, but it was all to no avail.

Eventually, the parents of Thérèse will find a promising suitor for their daughter in a man employed as a baker. "At least there will be no lack of bread on the table", Madame Grob is reported to have said.
They will contract the sacred link in November of 1820. Little Franz is sheltered inside the house of the poet Mayrhofer, with his heart broken in pieces.

Impromptus Opus 90 No. 4 
This is the last of this series. It is marked allegretto, that is, fast but not too much. The introductory and main theme is articulated in descending arpeggios, that fall in cascade having some gentle chords as a response. After the natural development of this idea the central section begins, where the arpeggios have been replaced by chords that hold a melody with a certain air of lament or imploration. Then returns the main theme which is repeated exactly the same as before until the two chords marked forte appear with which the piece ends.

Krystian Zimerman is not only a great pianist but an accomplished musician. It is said that during a rehearsal with the New York Philharmonic he made a scandal because a cellist raised his hand requesting a break when the day was just beginning to pay off. Zimerman did not allow the break and the director was forced to ask the cellist to return to his seat and continue the rehearsal.

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JS Bach: The Goldberg Variations and Hannibal Lecter

You would not find a person in the world who would not believe that the so-called classical music soothes the soul and helps to eradicate our inner demons. Those people also see themselves as good folks, as sensitive souls that would be incapable of killing a fly. However, this is not always true.

The Goldberg Variations is a work that would confirm the perceived virtues of classical music. Composed for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach, it was completed around 1742, almost at the end of his life, while serving as kantor in Leipzig. The work includes an aria and 30 variations; it all ends with a shorter version of the initial aria, as if to remind us where everything came from. The complete piece lasts a little less than an hour and it is customarily played in one go, even though the interpreter generally takes a break after Variation 15th.

According to one of Bach's biographers, the Variations were composed at the request of a count in Dresden, to be performed by his harpsichordist (a certain Herr Goldberg) during the count's long sleepless nights. The purpose was successfully fulfilled and Johann Sebastian was generously rewarded.

Let us now listen to the Aria. The version is from the pianist Francois de Larrard.

Goldberg Variations - Aria:

 Many, many years later, The Silence of the Lambs, a novel by Thomas Harris, was published. Its male protagonist, the fearsome killer psychiatrist, Dr Hannibal Lecter, is a great lover of the music of Bach. Later, the homonymous film was unveiled; on it, we can see that minutes before Dr Lecter savagely killed the police officers who guarded him, the prisoner is enthralled to the aria of the Variations, just as we do it right now.

The officers are taking the supper to him and have to open the gate of the cage where Hannibal is locked. During this scene, parts of 6th and 7th variations can be heard.

6th Variation


7th Variation

While the hideous killing occurs, part of the 13th and 21st variations are played. Here you can listen to them in their entirety:

13th Variation



21st Variation

Dr Lecter got rid of his jailers. He devoured a chunk of the face of one of the guards and trashed to death the other one. Once the mission is accomplished, ecstatic, Hannibal enjoys the shorter, final version of the aria.
Sensitive souls can be found anywhere!

Following, the complete version, from the Russian pianist Evgeny Koriolov:

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JS Bach / J. Loussier: "Air on the G string"

Johann Sebastian Bach died in 1750, the same year an eminent English doctor who happened to be in Leipzig at the time, recommended the great musician an ophthalmic operation to avoid blindness. Overcoming his initial reticence, Johann Sebastian agreed. The eminent doctor carried out the operation, but it failed. Later on, the eminent doctor performed a second operation. This time, the father of Western music became completely blind.

Fortunately, Bach had already produced almost all the 1087 pieces included in the Bach Work Catalogue (BWV for Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis); he had tried practically all musical forms, with the exception of the opera, a genre he never tackled.

JS Bach composed four orchestral suites, of which suite No. 3 is one of the best known of all his orchestral production. This suite, also called Overture, consists of a succession of the dances of the time, whose French names —allemande, courante, bourrée, sarabande and others, ending with a gigue— reflect the influence of the French court during XVI and XVII centuries, a period during which such structure was all the rage.
The second movement of Suite No. 3 is an “air” that has become even more popular than the suite itself. Its musical beauty is sustained by a central melody that effectively interweaves with other melodic lines lead by a violin and a viola.

JS Bach. Air from Suite No. 3. The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra

Following Bach’s death, these suites fell into complete oblivion. Like so many of Johann Sebastian’s other works, the suites were heard again only since February 1838, when a young musician named Felix Mendelssohn, aged 29, conducted the complete Suite No. 3 in Leipzig.

There are many versions of different instruments for this “air”. One of these, arranged for violin and orchestra by a German composer during the 19th century, was most influential in establishing the popularity of the piece. Transposing the “air” from the original D major key to G major, he made it possible to play the main melody on one string only, the G string of the instrument. Thus, the moniker, "Air on the G string" was born.

A jazzy version
Back in the 60s, the jazz pianist Jacques Loussier completely “modernized" it, creating a radical change in the atmosphere of the piece. Accompanied only by a bass and percussion, this jazz version would have struck with astonishment poor Johann Sebastian.
Thanks to Mendelssohn, we can say Bach is still with us. Thanks to Jacques Loussier, we can say Bach is one of us.

The Jacques Loussier Trio - Air on the G string

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Chopin: Funeral March - Interlude

It is said that the first meeting Chopin had with the novelist George Sand went like this:
–What a repulsive woman Sand is! –Chopin said to a friend. –I'm inclined to doubt it.
Almost simultaneously, on the other side of the room, Sand whispered to a friend:
–That Monsieur Chopin, is he a girl?

It was the fall of 1836 and both attended a soiree in a Parisian hotel, Chopin having been invited by Liszt, and Sand by Marie d'Agoult, Liszt's lover at that time. The evening was enjoyable and ended up without any reason to suppose that Frédéric and Sand would see each other again.
But life is full of surprises, and after a few months, the writer who wore trousers and smoked cigars could not get Frédéric out of her mind. Her beloved Chip, Chop, or Chopinski, as she began to call him later, gladly allowed himself to be cherished.

It was only in October 1838 when, after several attempts, Sand finally managed to take Frédéric to a vacation in Mallorca, accompanied by her children.
Everything went swimmingly until the Mallorcan summer changed dramatically in late November and Frédéric, George Sand, and her children were forced to spend the day within their calamitous rooms.

A gratifying Interlude
In January, the weather was unbearable. Ill sheltered from the rain and the wind that raged outside, Chopin composed, Sand wrote and, surely, the children were bored to death. But we could imagine that in the evenings they might have read together under the light of a candle and, who knows, an unexpected instant of grace occurred. All of a sudden, Frédéric might have rushed to the pitiful little piano (the only available before the arrival of the piano sent off to him by his friend Pleyel) to create the Interlude that goes right in the middle of the Funeral March, which, according to some, was composed during that horrible summer. Precisely those notes have now become the most suitable way of saying goodbye, a century and a half later, to JF Kennedy for example, or, who would have thought, to Stalin and Brezhnev.

It was also performed at Chopin's funeral, in addition to the Mozart's Requiem, which the departed had expressly requested.
The Interlude, quite a finding for its quiet beauty just in the midst of such solemnity, is preceded by a low octave, immediately following the first part of the most celebrated melody.


Composing at least one funeral march was de rigueur for the musicians of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Whilst living with George Sand, with whom he finally spent eight splendid years, Chopin has given the world the most famous of them all, the one that was going to take a life of its own. This was not always true. The piece was added as the third movement of the Sonata in B flat minor, composed in 1839. Chopinski was 29. He had returned from Mallorca more dead than alive but had already recovered.

You are invited to listen to Chopin's Funeral March, knowing that the very same notes were heard by those who marched behind the coffin of Frédéric from the Madeleine Church to the cemetery of Pére-Lachaise, Paris, one hundred and sixty years ago. (The Interlude begins at 3:00).

Chopin's Funeral March - Arthur Rubinstein

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