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| Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, c. 1786 |
Mozart penned the composition on extremely short notice: the 19-year old Italian virtuoso violinist Regina Strinasacchi had been called upon by Emperor and frequent Mozart patron Joseph II of Austria to perform before him for an upcoming soirée, and, wishing only to impress the Monarch, Strinasacchi sought out Europe’s leading composer (Herr Mozart) to pen for her an all-new, original piece which she could debut for the occasion.
Mozart agreed, and hastily set to work penning a 3-movement sonata for the virtuoso. April of 1784 was an incredibly busy time for the composer – having just finished a series of 17 subscription concerts for the Lenten Season, Mozart scarcely had time to breathe let alone write out a full length work on parchment: with the April 29th soirée deadline rapidly approaching and running short on time, Mozart penned only the parts for violin, and committed the piano section wholly to memory alone.
By the evening of the premiere, things seemed to be going off without a hitch: another astounding, jovial composition from Austria’s foremost maestro, and Strinasachhi dazzling the crowd with her musicians' elite aesthetics – that is, until the emperor raised his gilded opera glasses to his face, and noticed, to his horror, that Herr Mozart was performing on the piano from a blank sheet of parchment! A feat that would have surely astonished most did not sit well at all with the perfecting Joseph. According to Mozart’s widow Constanze, the testy Emperor at once halted the performance, and demanded Mozart bring the blank manuscript before his eyes so that he could inspect it’s pages up close – at which point an embarrassed Mozart was forced to explain himself!
Listen to the sonata that landed Mozart in hot water below:
-Rose.
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