Obscure Mozart
An analysis of Mozart’s Five Divertimenti (K. 439b) for three basset horns.
What makes this music obscure?
Origin, Form, and Instrumentation
Mozart wrote Five Divertimenti (K. 439b) for three basset horns in the year 1785¹ and later published in 1803². Divertimenti are light pieces performed by several solo instruments in a chamber setting⁵. Movements of a divertimento often include various musical forms such as sonata, minuet and trio, and rondo.
While basset horn’s invention dates back to circa 1770, Mozart and Mendelssohn were among the few famous composers who wrote pieces for the instrument.
Today, this piece is often performed by ensembles containing a variety of woodwind instruments, as well as string ensembles under the title Five Viennese Serenades. Most popular is the anonymous arrangement of the divertimenti entitled Six Viennese Sonatinas for solo piano, originally published in 1805². This essay will explore the work and argue that the development of the modern orchestra diminished this wonderful piece into obscurity.
Analysis of Divertimento №4, Allegro
Divertimento №4 (Sonatina №1) in C Major, movement one, runs approximately three minutes including full repeats of the first and second section. This movement neatly meets the ex post facto requirements of sonata form. The four-measure tutti intro strongly establishes the key area of the work as C major. Measure five begins the introduction of a plainchant theme of C-D-F-E dating from the 15th century⁶ and is most famously recognized from the fourth movement of Symphony №41 “Jupiter” (K. 551), composed three years later, where it appears note-for-note in the same key.
This plainchant theme is restated as an accompaniment for a soprano melody that adds chromatic color and variation. The introductory theme returns in a modified and meandering form that cleverly modulates to G-major without the use of a dominant harmony but rather by melodic means culminating with an entire measure of three beats, containing only the note G. This harmonic shift (mm. 13–15) is elusive to the modern listener and the piece will remain in G-major until the end of the exposition. Our post-Beethoven ears are accustomed to being pushed harmonically by dominant-seventh chords; this moment feels more like a natural pause than a harmonic arrival. We arrive somewhere new and don’t even know how we arrived!
Measure 16 introduces the “B” theme in G major, but with a bass accompaniment similar to the modified introductory theme. This familiar accompaniment makes the introduction of the B theme even less pronounced — we aren’t sure if a new section of our “sonata form” exposition has been started, as it sounds like a continuing adventure from the previous 4 measures. A straight-repetition of theme B answers our concerns but leaves us on weak footing.
Theme B begins on a weak second beat, on scale-degree five. This dolce and meek statement is broken into an unequal pair of antecedent-consequent phrases consisting of a 5-beat long phrase ending on the leading tone followed by a brisk 3-beat response which finally lands the tonic on the strong beat.
Mozart plays briefly with theme B and uses two final repetitions of the consequent phrase of theme B combined with a strong harmonic bass accompaniment to end the exposition in a solid G major. This ending is significant because it is the first time that Mozart employs a strong harmonic cadence, and he combines it with the “melodic cadence” from above by including another three strong beats of G.
The “development” section begins with a strong three-note tutti like the intro, but very quickly brings us to the dark key area of d-minor. The development appears to have the same structure as the exposition, but instead of re-introducing the plainchant theme, Mozart employs a variation that appears to start on the second measure of the original plainchant. Regardless of the melody, the texture is clearly the plainchant theme. This modified plainchant theme is repeated almost three times as it fades to have our modified introductory theme return. Mozart alternates between C-major and G-major areas before performing a “melodic cadence” landing us in G. After much confusion of having several phrases — each of which exist in a different key — Mozart introduces theme B in the original tonic key of C major signaling the recapitulation of our sonata form movement. The composer concludes the movement with a coda that uses introductory theme, modified introductory theme, and the consequent phrase of theme B to end us firmly in the key of C major.
Remaining Movements
The menuetto and trio movements of the piece are a light dance that brings us from G major to F major and back. The adagio is a beautiful pastoral respite from the business of the other movements. The finale allegretto features a memorable theme that Mozart develops in a standard theme-and-variations movement.
Lack of Popularity and Performance
The Five Divertimenti remain obscure; well-known music publishers do not offer the piece for any instrumentation and relatively few recordings exist for purchase. This author blames the unfortunate demise of the basset horn and the decline of chamber music performance. The beautiful blend of textures, melodies, and harmony found in the five divertimenti are best appreciated when performed by three wind instrumentalists. As mentioned, finding sheet music is challenging, and the original basset horn music needs to be transposed from F to the key of a modern oboe, clarinet, or bassoon. Performance of this piece is technically challenging, demanding the utmost skills from performers. In our modern world, talented performers are most often employed by large ensembles to perform ballets, symphonies, operas, and other large works. The venue and opportunity for remuneration for the performance of chamber works such as these is tenuous. The basset horn fell out of use as the modern orchestra developed⁴, leaving few musicians learning the instrument despite its similarity to the clarinet.
The obvious solution to the difficulties of instrumentation, sheet music, and coordinating talented musicians is to perform the anonymous arrangement for piano. Sadly, the Sonatinas lack the beauty and richness of tone provided by reed instruments; the adagio performed on piano seems lacking and out of place when compared to the serene transcendence experienced when performed on original instrumentation. Mozart, being a virtuosic pianist and prolific composer, composed nineteen sonatas for solo piano and twenty-seven piano concerti. It is obvious that these works penned for the instrument by the genius composer himself are more deserving of performance than the anonymous arrangement of this woodwind trio.
Sources:
1. Solomon, M. (2006). Mozart. Milano: Mondadori. P.296
2. Petrucci Music Library (n.d.). 5 Divertimentos, https://imslp.org/wiki/5_Divertimentos%2C_K.Anh.229%2F439b_(Mozart%2C_Wolfgang_Amadeus)
3. Sapp, Craig Stuart. Mozart Viennese Sonatina, https://ccrma.stanford.edu/~craig/keyscape/mozartvs1/
4. Moffitt, Jim. The Bassett Horn Expalined, https://www.dansr.com/vandoren/resources/the-basset-horn-explained
5. Divertimento. (n.d.) In Encyclopedia Britannica online
6. Mozart Symphony 41. (n.d.) in Wikipedia online
Sheet Music K. 439b Copyright 2005 Luigi Cataldi — Used by Creative Commons License
