Mozart’s Enduring Influence

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Aisle Seating Package: $110 

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed his first piece at the age of five and, by six, was performing before European royalty. Though he lived only 35 years, his extraordinary output—more than 600 works—has secured his place as one of history’s most revered composers. Explore the breadth of Mozart’s talent with the lyricism of his Clarinet Concerto; the elegance of his Quintet for Piano and Winds, which Mozart considered one of his finest works; his buoyant Piano Sonata No. 10; and the turbulent Piano Sonata No. 14.    

Quintessential Classical: Bach, Haydn, and Mozart Masterworks 

Saturday, September 27 at 7 pm
Zipper Hall
Nicholas McGegan, Conductor
Minkyung Chu, Clarinet 

The season kicks off with three iconic orchestral works from classical music’s founding fathers. Opening the program is Bach’s beloved Orchestral Suite No. 3, which features one of the Baroque era’s most famous melodies: “Air on a G String.” Next, the rich sound of the clarinet takes center stage in a lyrical concerto by Mozart, his only one written for the instrument. Ending the concert with a bang are the percussive marches and trumpet fanfares of Haydn’s energetic “Military” Symphony.  

Program Information
BACH  Orchestral  Suite No. 3 in D Major
MOZART  Clarinet  Concerto in A Major
HAYDN  Symphony  No. 100 in G Major, “Military” 

Piano Poetry: Paul Lewis plays Mozart, Debussy, and Poulenc

Sunday, February 15 at 3 pm
Zipper Hall 

This intimate concert by award-winning pianist Paul Lewis, who’s been praised for his “impeccable technique and subtle artistry” (Boston Classical Review), features a series of Mozart and Poulenc pairings. The first half of this charming program includes Mozart’s energetic 10th piano sonata as well as excerpts from Poulenc’s Improvisations, a series of 15 short and diverse solo piano tunes. After intermission, Lewis performs the remaining Improvisations before concluding with Mozart’s turbulent Piano Sonata No. 14. L’isle Joyeuse (“Joyous Island”) by Claude Debussy divides the Mozart/Poulenc double feature. 

Program Information
MOZART  Piano Sonata No. 10 in C Major
POULENC  Improvisations Nos. 7–12
DEBUSSY  L’isle Joyeuse
POULENC  Improvisations Nos. 1–6 and 13–15
MOZART  Piano Sonata No. 14 in C Minor 

Quintet Conversations: From Mozart to Modern, with Jeremy Denk, Piano

Featuring Andrew Bain, Horn 

Sunday, April 26 at 4 pm
Thayer Hall 

Jeremy Denk, a MacArthur Genius Grant-winning pianist that “you want to hear no matter what he performs” (New York Times), joins Colburn faculty and students in this program of electric quintets. Opening the concert is Mozart’s Quintet for Piano and Winds, a work that masterfully balances the piano against oboe, clarinet, horn, and bassoon in what the composer described as “the best thing I have written in my life.” Edward Elgar’s Piano Quintet, composed in 1918 in the shadow of World War I, starts on an eerie tone before modulating towards a brighter, more symphonic end. In between these masterworks is Valerie Coleman’s Tzigane, a “passionate journey through woodwind virtuosity” inspired by Ravel’s similarly named Hungarian rhapsody for violin. 

Program Information
MOZART  Quintet in E-flat Major for Piano and Winds
VALERIE COLEMAN  Tzigane for Wind Quintet |
ELGAR  Quintet in A Minor for Piano and String Quartet