mozart - piano

[gastone73]

Hi
I would like to study some piano pieces by Mozart. However since I am not a pianist I need some title on IMSLP that is not too difficult.
Any suggestion?

Thanks in advance

[pianogirl23]

I would try:
Rondo in D
Rondo alla Turca
Fantasia in D Minor
Sonata in G K 283
Sonata K 494 (i think it's in F major?)
Sonata in C K 297
Sonata in C K 330
Sonata in A Minor K 310
12 Variations from 'A Vous Diraj je Maman' or Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in C
21st Piano Concerto Movement 2 (this can be played easily without an orchestra)
Piano Trio in G (find a version arranged for piano solo)

Mozart's one of my favorite composers. A tip for playing Mozart would be to play lightly, delicately, and with a lot of boyish fun. Don't play too tensely or with full out passion. Mozart should not be played too "loud". Mozart utilizes many trills, which should be played butterflyish. Make sure wrists are relaxed and free, but most of all...to play Mozart, you have to enjoy Mozart and let the happy swirl surround you.

[sbeckmesser]

A tip for playing Mozart would be to play lightly, delicately, and with a lot of boyish fun. Don't play too tensely or with full out passion. Mozart should not be played too "loud".

I find little "boyish fun" in the Fantasia in d -- I see tension and passion in this score. And a lack of full-out passion is likely to result in what I would call a typical Mozart performance -- far too pretty and not nearly as dramatic as it could be. Pulling back on the dynamics wouldn't help things either. Mozart probably played his loudest passages on his fortepianos as loud as they could be played (and the soft passages as soft as could be played). Remember that Mozart is one of top five opera composers and that his passion for passion and drama extends to many of his other works, including those for piano.

My advice: Emphasize any musical drama you find. Look for Mozart's musical surprises and make sure they sound that way. Play it the way you feel it and don't hold back the way you feel.

--Sixtus

[pianogirl23]

Let me clarify: I don't mean that you shouldn't play Mozart with passion.
I just mean be careful so that you make sure when you play Mozart with passion, it's still recognizable as a classic Mozart piece.
If you play Mozart with overdone drama, you could run into the problem of playing it insensitively.
There's a fine line between Mozart's opera and Mozart's piano pieces. Opera is dramatic, but the piano may be dramatic or it may be playful.
Mozart's piano music is definitely more on the playful side.
But I'm not saying hold you back from playing Mozart with your "whole heart". Just be careful...
You might want to watch/listen famous Mozart interpreters to see how they do it.
Such as:
Mitsuko Uchida
Karl Bohm
Brendel
Ivo Pogorlich
Happy playing!
Pianogirl23--concert pianist

[sbeckmesser]

I agree that many (perhaps too many) of Mozart's piano works are "pretty" (with the very important exceptions of the A and C-minor sonatas). His best writing for the instrument is by far in the piano concertos, nearly all of which can be characterized by both the word "dramatic" and the word "theatrical." That's why I prefer both playing and listening to Haydn's piano sonatas, especially the ones from his Sturm und Drang period and the later ones. To me Haydn wrote many more "interesting" piano sonatas than Mozart and was bettered in this aspect only by Beethoven. It is Haydn's piano concertos that are merely "pretty."

--Sixtus

[pianogirl23]

I agree to that.

[satchakel]

mmm, Fantasia in D Minor... one of the best pieces i've ever played. imo, every pianist playing Mozart should be able to play this piece

[pocoallegro]

Ah, the Mozart piano question ... I've argued with many a colleague about this!

As for easier pieces, you might want to seek out the Music for Millions series edited by Denes Agay. The earlier levels contain some lovely Minuets, Allegrettos, etc. that are not at all difficult and are often quite lovely.

The issue with the Sonatas is one I've often heard, but I think that they need to be taken as they are. Haydn certainly raised the bar with his Sonatas in their formal advances and use of the instrument (the A-flat sonata, in the Hb 40's, is particularly lovely) and to me seem to be the precursors of Beethoven's Sonatas. However, it should be noted that Beethoven was certainly aware of and influenced by the Mozart Sonatas. For example, the slow movement of Mozart's Cm sonata contains a theme that seems awefully close to the famous theme in the slow movement of the Pathetique. The later Mozart Sonatas also seem to pointing to greater things, but we all know how that ended.

In all I find Mozart's Sonatas to be wonderful instrumental counterparts to his operas, as most of his instrumental music seems to be. I think for sheer melodiousness they are the finest of the "first Viennese school."

[panagakid]

I think the best song in the history of songs is Mozart's "moonlight sonata" what do you guys think?

[KGill]

I think the best song in the history of songs is Mozart's "moonlight sonata" what do you guys think?

I had no idea Mozart wrote a Moonlight Sonata as well! And it's a 'song' to boot - so this is a vocal work?

[vinteuil]

Play nice.

Besides, Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata eventually turned out to be the inspiration for a very good song—"Because."