MOZART, Wolfgang Amadeus
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 17 in G major K 453
II. Andante
Zoltán Kocsis, guest conductor and soloist
Sony Chamber Orchestra of the Reina Sofía School of Music
At the beginning of the movement, Maestro Kocsis plays the theme on the piano to indicate to the orchestra how to interpret it, integrated in tempo, phrasing, etc. He gives some indications as he conducts and plays the piano, and stops at bar 64 to correct a certain note played erroneously in rhythm in the winds.
Once that first reading together is finished, he comments that in this 2nd movement there is a love triangle between bassoon, oboe and flute, and the piano would be the judge who mediates with the rest of the orchestra, interceding. The character is restless, pleasant, giocoso as well as expressive… and for Kocsis the strings must have a role of assisting and helping, they have sounded too loud all the time. They also discuss issues related to articulation, sound balance, tempo and phrasing. Playing expressively does not mean playing with more dynamic intensity.
Regarding the balance, the professor points out that the most interesting thematic material is what should be on top. At one point he points out a “typical error” in Mozart’s writing that has to do with how the melodies played by the different instruments interpenetrate, generating dissonances (he comments that Mozart composed 27 piano concertos). They continue to review the movement, especially in aspects related to expressiveness, articulation, dynamics and sound balances, and the dialogue between melodies of the different instruments.
Language: English
