It was during a short stay in the German city of Mannheim that, in the late 1770s, Mozart wrote three of his four Flute Quartets. The third was written a short time later. At that time, the flute was benefiting from new construction techniques, which was reflected in improved sonic accuracy and expressive capabilities. Composers then began to explore these mechanisms with subtle sound variations. In this case, these are quartets that almost resemble small concertos, such is the protagonism of the flute. However, the intimate character of chamber music is never lost. Already from 1782, the Horn Quintet KV 407 reveals a Mozart who had just arrived in Vienna, when he was still trying to build his circle of contacts. It was dedicated to a childhood horn player friend of his who had also settled in that city. It is a meticulous exercise in timbric combinations, capable of harmoniously interweaving the peculiar sonority of the horn and the voluptuous register of the strings.
Flute with Mozart
Metropolitana’s Soloists
W. A. Mozart Quartet with Flute No. 3
W. A. Mozart Quartet with Flute No. 2
W. A. Mozart Quartet with Flute No. 1
W. A. Mozart Quintet with Horn
Nuno Inácio flute
Daniel Canas horn
Alexêi Tolpygo violin
Valentin Petrov viola
viola player to be announced
Nuno Abreu cello
