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Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 1-5
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Carl Friedrich Abel, Nicholas Ward
Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 1-5
Genre: Classical
 
  •  Track Listings (16) - Disc #1

Mozart's earliest music is pretty ephemeral. Yes, it's amazing that a child of seven or eight could be writing music, but no one should deceive themselves as to the quality of the result. In fact, it's pretty clear now tha...  more »

     
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CD Details

All Artists: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Carl Friedrich Abel, Nicholas Ward, Northern Chamber Orchestra
Title: Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 1-5
Members Wishing: 0
Total Copies: 0
Label: Naxos
Original Release Date: 1/1/1995
Re-Release Date: 5/23/1995
Genre: Classical
Styles: Historical Periods, Classical (c.1770-1830), Symphonies
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPC: 730099587129

Synopsis

Amazon.com
Mozart's earliest music is pretty ephemeral. Yes, it's amazing that a child of seven or eight could be writing music, but no one should deceive themselves as to the quality of the result. In fact, it's pretty clear now that a lot of Mozart's earliest music was actually composed (or assisted in large measure) by his father, Leopold, himself a very able minor master. These charming performances don't inflate the music beyond its modest ambitions, and at budget price you might find them worth a listen. --David Hurwitz

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CD Reviews

Charming souvenirs of a young musical genius
klavierspiel | TX, USA | 09/08/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Mozart's position as one of Western music's most wondrous prodigies needs no recounting; still, it is worthwhile listening to this recording of his first five symphonies (two of which are actually by other composers, "No. 2" by his father Leopold and "No. 3" by C.F. Abel) to be reminded anew just how precocious he was. The Symphony in E-flat, K. 16, written at the age of eight, reveals him already capable of writing a multimovement orchestral work that stands comparison with anything by his adult contemporaries. The first movement of K. 16 in particular has the unexpected turns of phrase, chains of suspensions that generate musical tension, and details in the orchestration that mark it as unmistakable Mozart. Indeed, it is clear if one listens to the first two symphonies in succession that little Wolfgang was even then a better composer than his father, whose Symphony in B-flat is dull and prosaic by comparison. The work by Abel has greater charm; indeed, Mozart thought highly enough of it to repeat one subsidiary phrase in the first movement exactly in his great, mature Sinfonia Concertante for violin and viola in the same key of E-flat. He also reused the opening theme of the finale of his own Symphony No. 5 in B-flat in the second-act finale of one of his greatest operas, The Marriage of Figaro. Throughout, Nicholas Ward and the Northern Chamber Orchestra make the best possible case for the music with their superbly polished playing. This CD is worth hearing not only as the record of a musical prodigy's first efforts and how favorably they compare to his contemporaries, but also as a vivid foretaste of the immortal that Mozart would become."