Music
As you watch the video link at the end of this assignment of Mitsuko Uchida performing W.A. Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20 in D Minor for Piano and Orchestra, K. 466, consider how the work would have been performed in Mozart’s own time –
http://www.mitsukouchida.com
with the composer himself at the piano. We have learned that music in the Baroque era was conducted from the harpsichord. Music in the Classical era was conducted by the concertmaster (first violin, first chair), although with the tendency of older traditions not to be given up entirely in the face of new ones, Mozart very likely conducted this work from the keyboard, just as Ms. Uchida does in this video.
As you prepare this assignment, imagine yourself in 1785 Vienna seated in the audience next to Wolfgang’s father Leopold, who had come from Salzburg to visit his son. Below is a short excerpt from Neal Zaslaw’s book “The Compleat Mozart” on the concerto and the performance through a father’s eyes (although Leopold was not always so kind).
For your report, read the excerpt from Zaslaw’s book below and the biography on Mitsuko Uchida (see link below). Though somewhat flowery at the beginning, this article provides the necessary information. Consider these two sources to be the program for the performance. Incorporate information from Uchida’s biography and the excerpt as you write an evaluation of the performance. Combine the sources with your own reactions to what you see and hear from the video. The report should be around 1000 words in length. One thing to note as you listen is the level of drama in the music: Mozart is already predicting in some ways the Romantic fervor of the next century. If you wish you can be especially creative with this report and set it as a conversation with Leopold Mozart. Include both sides of the conversation, but be sure to address the required points above (biography, excerpt, and your evaluation).