Divertimento for String Trio (Mozart)

The Divertimento in E♭ major, K. 563, is a string trio, written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1788, the year in which he completed his last three symphonies (nos. 39–41) and his "Coronation" Piano Concerto. It is his last divertimento and different from his other divertimenti not only in its instrumentation but also in its compositorial ambition and scope.[1][2]

The work was completed in Vienna on September 27, 1788, and is dedicated to Michael von Puchberg, a friend and fellow Freemason, who lent money to Mozart.[1] The premiere was in Dresden on April 13, 1789, with Anton Teyber taking the violin part, Mozart playing viola and Antonín Kraft playing cello.[3] At the time Mozart was conducting a tour of German cities, on his way to Berlin (see Mozart's Berlin journey).

Movements

The work is in six movements:

  1. Allegro (E♭ major, sonata form, 4
    4    )
  2. Adagio (A♭ major, sonata form, 3
    4    )
  3. Menuetto (Allegretto) – Trio (E♭ major, ternary form, 3
    4    )
  4. Andante (B♭ major, theme and 7 variations "intertwined", 2
    4    ) The first 8 measures are the first phrase of the theme; the next 8 are first phrase of Variation 1; mm. 17–32 give the conclusion of the theme; and mm. 33–48 the conclusion of Variation 1. This pattern of treating the Variations in pairs continues with Variations 2 and 3 in mm. 49–96 and Variations 4 and 5 in mm. 97–144. The 6th variation, in B♭ minor, is contrapuntal and chromatic, and the 7th returns us triumphantly to B♭ major, with the skeleton of the theme in the viola. This last variation melts seamlessly into a very brief coda which concludes the movement.
  5. Menuetto (Allegretto) – Trio I – Trio II (E♭ major, rondo form, with the first trio in A♭ major and the second trio in B♭ major, 3
    4    )
  6. Allegro (E♭ major, sonata rondo form, 6
    8    )

Recorded performances of the Divertimento range from 41 to 50 minutes.

Critical reception

As Alfred Einstein writes in Mozart: His Character, His Work (and as excerpted in the notes to a Kennedy Center performance), Mozart's only completed string trio shares with most divertimenti this six-movement format, but from that no lightness of tone should be understood – rather, "it is a true chamber-music work, and grew to such large proportions only because it was intended to offer ... something special in the way of art, invention, and good spirits. ... Each instrument is primus inter pares, every note is significant, every note is a contribution to spiritual and sensuous fulfilment in sound." Einstein called it "one of his noblest works".[2]

Mozart's Divertimento in E♭ major is "one of a kind," according to the notes to an Emerson Quartet performance. "It is not only Mozart's only finished composition for string trio – it also appears to be the first such work by any composer."[4] Though probably the first substantial work for the combination, it is not the first work written for string trio; there were works for violin, viola and cello written at least five years earlier, by Wenzel Pichl, and works for two violins and bass, probably based on the trio sonata, written much before that.

References
  1. Richard Freed. "Divertimento in E-flat major for String Trio, K. 563 – About the Work" (program note). Kennedy Center. Archived from the original on 30 September 2019.
  2. Einstein, Alfred (1962). Mozart: His Character, His Work. Translated by Arthur Mendel; Nathan Broder. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 139. ISBN 0-19-500732-8. OCLC 511324.
  3. Berger, Melvin (2001). Guide to Chamber Music (3rd, corrected ed.). Mineola, New York: Dover. pp. 310–312. ISBN 9780486418797.
  4. Notes to a concert of the Emerson String Quartet by Peter Laki
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