The latest topic for my online music talks Mornings with a Masterpiece may seem slightly obscure – Mozart’s Wind Serenades – but they provide a wonderful window into the life of Mozart at a critical time in his development. The three serenades which we will consider (K361, 375 and 388) are certainly masterpieces, including the astonishing Serenade for 13 wind instruments. The music is of the highest quality and covers a surprising emotional range, considering that the wind ensemble was generally seen as light-hearted background music. How is it that K388 is a deeply serious work in C minor?
All three works date from the years when Mozart was flexing his musical muscles, impatient at the strictures of his menial post in Salzburg, and then breaking away into Viennese musical life to risk a free-lance career. The topic is enlivened by the composer’s letters, which give a vivid picture of the life he was leading and of the musicians he met.
The talks take place on Zoom on Thursday 2nd and Thursday 9th February, and full details can be found here: https://mancent.org.uk/?page_id=5051
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