The Classical Music Book

128

THE MOST

TREMENDOUS GENIUS

RAISED MOZART

ABOVE ALL MASTERS

SYMPHONY NO. 40 IN G MINOR, K. 550 ( 1788 ),

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART

B

y the beginning of the

1780s, Mozart had written

more than 30 symphonies.

These works were influenced by

both musical and extra-musical

factors, including his work in the

archbishop’s court in his home city

of Salzburg, his tours of Italy’s

musical centers, his search for

employment in Munich and Paris,

and his visits to Mannheim, the

capital of the symphony during

the 18th century.

Classical zenith

After he settled in Vienna in

1781, Mozart wrote relatively few

symphonies, focusing instead on

piano concertos, chamber music,

and works for the theatre. Yet in

the summer of 1788, he wrote his

IN CONTEXT

FOCUS

Innovation in the Classical

symphony

BEFORE

1759 –1795 Joseph Haydn

composes more than 100

symphonies in the four-

movement format.

1764 Aged eight, Wolfgang

Amadeus Mozart composes

his First Symphony in E-flat

major, K.16.

AFTER

1803 Ludwig van Beethoven

completes his stormy, political

“Eroica” symphony.

1824 Beethoven finishes his

symphonic project with the

Ninth Symphony, including a

final movement featuring vocal

soloists and chorus.

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