''These CDs contain, on the first, Mozart’s earliest six surviving symphonies, with brief excerpts from the family letters; second, the next four Mozart symphonies and one by someone else, with brief excerpts from the letters; and third, long excerpts from the letters, with brief extracts from the symphonies. Of course, the letters are read in the original German, and unless you have command of that language there is little point in considering this set other than for the music. Leopold Mozart’s letters are read by Nikolaus Harnoncourt himself; the few letters from Mozart himself and his sister are read by children, Maximilian and Laya Harnoncourt. There is no attempt to choose letters that relate in date to the music being performed, which would not be practical with this repertory, though they could have got a good deal closer.
The performances are typical of Harnoncourt’s style, energetic, well disciplined, sometimes rather forceful, and beautifully played by Concentus Musicus. Most of the finales strike me as rushed – try, for example, K19a, or K22, which is almost violent. I should sometimes like a little more warmth in the slow movements, for example in K19, although the textures in the Andante of K45a, the Lambach Symphony, are delicately handled, and that of K43 is beguilingly done. But why, in this symphony, does Harnoncourt dash off the trio far faster than the minuet, and why does he add so much slurring in the finale where Mozart’s staccato marks are perfectly explicit?
There is another rapid trio in K45, on the second CD, again with no evident justification; and it’s the other way round in K45b, a quick minuet and a slow trio. But I liked the graceful shaping of the K45 Andante and the jolly jig finale goes well. K48’s first movement has a good swing to the rhythm, though Harnoncourt doesn’t give the slow movement much of a chance at this speed: it’s an expressive little piece if taken somewhere near the specified Andante. Another good piece is K73, where Harnoncourt makes rather a lot of the dynamic contrasts in the first movement. The Andante, with flutes, is exquisite; but the minuet is reduced to nonsense by this rapid tempo, and by the absurdly slow trio. New interpretations are one thing but some of this is truly meaningless and certainly unhistorical. It’s a pity that Harnoncourt wastes space on K76, known to be spurious and never for an instant sounding like Mozart.
The best recommendation for the early symphonies on period instruments remains the Trevor Pinnock set (currently available in a box of the complete symphonies on Archiv), for well-judged tempi and stylish and euphonious playing.'' Gramophone