To mark the end of the summer, Wilton's presents a week of major chamber works by Mozart. This offers the unique chance to hear the three ‘Prussian’ Quartets, played as a set, as they were intended, as well as Mozart’s last major chamber work, the E flat Major Quintet. The central concert focuses on the brilliant piano quartets, concerti in all but name, which Mozart wrote in the mid-1780s.
Each evening concert will be preceded by a free pre-concert presentation, exploring aspects of the programme in greater depth.
Concert 1
3 Last Quartets - 7 September at 6pm
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Kreutzer Quartet
K575 D major String Quartet
K 589 B flat major String Quartet
K 590 F major String Quartet
Michael Alec Rose (Dedicated to Wilton's)
Pre-concert event at 5pm
‘Musicians and Money: The end of patronage.’
In 1790, Mozart wrote three quartets for the King of Prussia. This was inspired by the fact that Luigi Boccherini had a lucrative position at the Prussian court, held in absentia. The King was a keen amateur cellist, and the greatest cellists of the day, the Duport brothers, performed at the court, so Mozart wrote concertante quartets. Typically, the late 18th century quartet focussed on the first violin, and are often violin concertos or sonatas in all but name. The concertante SPAN quartet typically shows of more of the players, although not necessarily all of them. Mozart’s ‘Prussian’ quartets give all of the players brilliant roles, with an especial focus on the cello part, to humour the King and his visiting virtuosi.
Tickets: £15, book for a second concert and get the second ticket for half price! The code is salzburg for online bookings.
