Mozart's Last Three Symphonies - Nos. 39, 40 and 41

Mozart / Symphonies / Orchestral

Symphony No. 39, Symphony No. 40, Symphony No. 41

The Symphony No. 39 in Eb major, K. 543, completed on 26 June 1788, is the first of a set of three last symphonies that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed in rapid succession during the summer of 1788. Symphony No. 40 was completed 25 July and Symphony No. 41 on 10th of August. Austrian conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt argues that Mozart composed these three symphonies as a unified work, pointing, among other things, to the fact that the Symphony No. 39 has a grand introduction (in the manner of an overture) but no coda.

Symphony No. 40 in G minor, KV 550 is sometimes referred to as the "Great G minor symphony," to distinguish it from the "Little G minor symphony," No. 25. The two are the only extant minor key symphonies Wolfgang Mozart wrote. (Here's a favourite link: Lenny Bernstein conducting Symphony 40: Here.)

Symphony No. 41 in C major, K. 551, was completed by Mozart  on 10 August 1788. The longest and last symphony that he composed, it is regarded by many critics and music lovers as among the greatest symphonies in classical music... the pinnacle of Mozart's instrumental music. Its combination of simplicity and complexity, melodic invention and emotional depth remain unsurpassed. This work is nicknamed the Jupiter Symphony, a name stems not from Mozart himself but said as likely coined by the impresario Johann Peter Salomon. (Mozart: Sinfonie C-Dur KV 551 (»Jupiter«) ∙ hr-Sinfonieorchester ∙ Paavo Järvi. Uploaded by Frankfurt Radio symphony. Accessed June 26, 2015. Mozart Symphony 41 / Simone Young / 2018. YouTube, uploaded by micabrains. Accessed April 29, 2021.)



Video Credit:

Harnoncourt conducts Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 39-41. YouTube, uploaded by Mentor1954. Accessed June 26, 2015.  


Resources:

Symphony No. 39 (Mozart). en.wikipedia.org.

Symphony N0. 40 (Mozart). en.wikipedia.org.

Symphony No. 41 (Mozart). en.wikipedia.org.

Mozart's Symphony No. 31 in D major "Paris"

Classical Music / Mozart Symphony

The Symphony No. 31 in D major, K. 297/300a, better known as the "Paris Symphony," is one of the more famous symphonies by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The work was composed in 1778 during Mozart's unsuccessful job-hunting sojourn in Paris. The composer was then 22 years old. The premiere took place on 12 June 1778 in a private performance in the home of Count Karl Heinrich Joseph von Sickingen, the ambassador of the Elrectorate of the Palatinate. The public premiere took place six days later in a performance at the Concert Spirituel.




The work received a positive review in the June 26 issue of the Courrier de l'Europe, published in London.  Several other performances ensued, and evidently, it was popular. At a later date, the symphony was performed in the Burgtheater in Vienna on 11 March 1783 during a benefit concert for the singer Aloysia Weber, Mozart's sister-in-law.

Sydney Philharmonia Choirs ChorusOz 10th Anniversary Concert (2015)

Sydney Philharmonia Choirs Present

ChorusOz - Celebrating Ten Years

7 June 2015, 5 P.M.  Sunday




Year 2015 marks 10 years of Sydney Philharmonia Choirs's  ChorusOz, planned to be a spectacular event with a program featuring excerpts from every performance since its inception in 2004, founded by Brett Weymark, SPC's dynamic and charismatic music director. It is a chorus made up of SPC choristers and other singers from all over the world who assemble for the June holiday weekend to perform at the Sydney Opera House with a professional orchestra and soloists.

This 10th anniversary celebration is a chance for choristers to revisit favourite choral works and experience again (or for the very first time!) singing some of the most well-loved pieces from the choral repertoire.