Wind Concertos

Four concerti for wind instruments
“Man is the measure of all things.” Mozart expert and fortepianist Robert Levin speaks highly of the “anthropomorphic” in Mozart’s concertos, the human form. There are many parallels between his solo concertos and his arias. By harmonizing virtuosity and dramatic expression, Mozart portrayed different characters in an ingenious manner. The “vocal” nature of the solo parts is, logically, strongly present in the works for wind instruments. After all, singing is based on breathing, and naturally this is also the case in wind music. Between 1774 and 1791, Mozart composed at least one solo concerto for each wind instrument commonly available in his day. The concertos were based on the form handed down from the Baroque, which consisted of three movements: fast – slow – fast. As a rule, the first movement was written in sonata form, and the last as a rondo.