Symphony No. 33 in Bb Major, K. 319
2 oboes, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, and strings
Allegro assai
Andante moderato
Minuetto
Finale: Allegro assai
Program Notes by Martin Pearlman
This symphony, sometimes called a chamber symphony because of its light orchestration and transparent musical textures, is one of the last two that Mozart wrote before moving from Salzburg to Vienna. Mozart’s autograph, dated July 9, 1779, has only three movements, following the Italian custom, but when he presented it in Vienna several years later, Mozart added the minuet before the finale.
The three original movements share some interesting features. In the middle section of each, where a composer might normally develop and elaborate earlier material, Mozart extravagantly introduces entirely new themes, as if he has an endless supply. In the opening Allegro, that new theme is identical to the famous four-note theme that he would later use for the last movement of his "Jupiter" Symphony. But this symphony was written several years before Mozart began to study the music of Bach, and the counterpoint for this theme and elsewhere in the symphony is simpler and less developed than in his later works. It is not complexity but directness and youthful exuberance that make this such a brilliant and attractive work.
Boston Baroque Performances
Symphony No. 33 in Bb Major, K. 319
October 15 & 16, 2010
NEC’s Jordan Hall, Boston, MA
Martin Pearlman, conductor
May 7, 1994
NEC’s Jordan Hall, Boston, MA
Martin Pearlman, conductor
February 4, 1984
NEC’s Jordan Hall, Boston, MA
Martin Pearlman, conductor