Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante KV 364, Rondos KV 382 & 386 & Horn Concerto No. 2 KV 417

Johan Dalene (violin), Eivind Ringstad, Alexandre Zanetta, Ariel Lanyi

Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, Howard Griffiths

This ninth volume in the Next Generation Mozart Soloists series brings together four young soloists under conductor Howard Griffiths and reveals the sheer breadth of Mozart's creativity. Mozart most probably heard a sinfonia concertante -- a work in which a group of solo instruments embarks on a dialogue with orchestra -- for the first time in Paris in 1778. He composed such a work for violin, viola, and orchestra the following year: the Sinfonia concertante KV 364. It is recorded here by Johan Dalene and Eivind Ringstad, who are full of praise for how Mozart gave the viola equal footing with the violin.

Mozart composed no fewer than four horn concertos in Vienna; the first that he composed is performed here by Alexandre Zanetta, who admits to being fascinated by its finesse, its complexity and its humour. The pianist Ariel Lanyi describes the two rondos for piano and orchestra KV 382 and KV 386 recorded here as perfect examples of simplicity and variety, as well as of passages that are truly operatic in style.