Violin Concerto No. 3 (Mozart)

The Violin Concerto No. 3 in G major, K. 216, was composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Salzburg in 1775 when he was 19 years old. In a letter to his father, Mozart called it the 'Straßburger-Concert'. Researchers believe this epithet comes from the opening orchestral motive in the third movement, a local, minuet-like dance that already had appeared as a tune in a symphony by Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf.[1][2]

Violin Concerto in G major
No. 3
by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
KeyG major
CatalogueK. 216
Composed1775 (1775)
MovementsThree (Allegro, Adagio, Rondeau)
Scoring
  • Violin
  • orchestra

Instrumentation

The work is scored for solo violin, two flutes (second movement only), two oboes (tacet in the second movement), two horns in G and D, and strings.

Movements

The piece is in three movements:

I. Allegro

The Allegro is in sonata form, opening with a G major theme played by the orchestra. The main theme is a bright and happy discussion between the solo violin and the accompaniment, followed by a modulation to the dominant D major, then to its parallel key D minor. It experiments in other keys, but does not settle and eventually, heads back to the tonic, G major, in the recapitulation.

II. Adagio

The second movement is in ternary form in the dominant key of D major. The orchestra begins with the main theme, which the violin imitates one octave higher. The winds then play a dance-like motif in A major, which the violin concludes. The violin restates the main theme in A major, although the melody features A sharp instead of A natural, creating a brief modulation to B minor. It soon modulates back to A major, then to the home key of D major through the main theme. After the cadenza, the violin plays the main theme again, thus concluding the movement in D.

This is the only movement in the five violin concertos by Mozart where a pair of flutes are used instead of oboes.

III. Rondeau

The finale is a rondo in G major and in 3
8 time. Mozart inserts into the rondo a short G minor Andante section followed by a longer G major Allegretto section, both in cut time.[3]

Notable recordings
Year Violin Conductor Orchestra Record company Format
1962 Arthur Grumiaux Colin Davis London Symphony Orchestra Philips Records Vinyl[4]
1969 Henryk Szeryng Alexander Gibson New Philharmonia Orchestra Philips Records Multiple
1971 (03-23) David Oistrakh David Oistrakh Berliner Philharmoniker EMI Records Multiple
1983 Itzhak Perlman James Levine Wiener Philharmoniker Deutsche Grammophon Multiple
1984 Anne-Sophie Mutter Herbert von Karajan Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra Deutsche Grammophon Multiple
1987 Takako Nishizaki Stephen Gunzenhauser Cappella Istropolitana Naxos Records CD[5]
2007 Hilary Hahn Gustavo Dudamel Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart des SWR Deutsche Grammophon Multiple
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References
  1. Lempfrid, Wolfgang. "Wolfgng Amadeus Mozart: Konzert für Violine und Orchester in D-Dur, KV 218" (in German). koelnklavier.de. Retrieved 30 July 2019., EMI CD booklet contribution
  2. Steinberg, Michael (1998). The Concerto: A Listener's Guide. Oxford University Press. pp. 324–325. ISBN 978-0-19-513931-0.
  3. Irving, John. "Richard Tognetti - Australian Chamber Orchestra - Violin Concertos 3 & 5 - Sinfonia Concertante: Liner notes" (PDF). BIS Records. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
  4. "Mozart – Arthur Grumiaux – The London Symphony Orchestra, Colin Davis – Violin Concerto No. 3 In G Major, K.216; Violin Concerto No. 5 In A Major K.219". Discogs.
  5. "Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 3 / Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D major". Naxos Digital Services Ltd. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
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