The violin sonata in Mozart's time evolved less from the Baroque sonata for violin and continuo than from the keyboard sonata with optional violin accompaniment, and Mozart's early efforts in the genre reflect that origin. From the beginning, Mozart was feeling his way toward the balance that would eventually result in the violin-and-piano sonata of Beethoven's time, but there is something of the transitional about these sonatas. The violin part sometimes gets melodic material, most often restating what the keyboard has ...
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The violin sonata in Mozart's time evolved less from the Baroque sonata for violin and continuo than from the keyboard sonata with optional violin accompaniment, and Mozart's early efforts in the genre reflect that origin. From the beginning, Mozart was feeling his way toward the balance that would eventually result in the violin-and-piano sonata of Beethoven's time, but there is something of the transitional about these sonatas. The violin part sometimes gets melodic material, most often restating what the keyboard has already said, but it also has long passages of plain harmony notes. The unusual feature about the set of Mozart sonatas, written in Mannheim, Germany, in 1778, is that a harpsichord is used in the keyboard part. This may be of interest to historical-performance fans interested in Mozart, and the harpsichord, by Keith Hill after the Dutch builder Ruckers, is a splendidly clear and sparkling instrument. ~ James Manheim, Rovi
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