Concerto for Flute, Harp, and Orchestra (Mozart)

Mozart wrote the concerto in April 1778, during his seven-month sojourn in Paris. It was commissioned by Adrien-Louis de Bonnières, duc de Guînes (1735–1806), a flutist, for his use and for that of his eldest daughter, Marie-Louise-Philippine (1759–1796), a harpist, who was taking composition lessons from the composer, at the duke's home, the Hôtel de Castries. Mozart stated in a letter to his father that he thought the duke played the flute "extremely well" and that Marie's playing of the harp was "magnifique". As a composition student, however, Mozart found Marie thoroughly inept. The duke (until 1776, the comte de Guines), an aristocrat Mozart came to despise, never paid the composer for this work, and Mozart instead was offered only half the expected fee for the lessons, through de Guines' housekeeper. But he refused it. (For his tutoring, Mozart was owed six Louis d'or.) Little is known of the work's early performance history, though it seems probable that father and daughter played it first.[2]

In the classical period, the harp was still in development, and was not considered a standard orchestral instrument. It was regarded more as a plucked piano.[3] Therefore, harp and flute was considered an extremely unusual combination. Currently, there is much more repertoire for a flute and harp duo, especially without orchestra. Much of this repertoire was written by composers in the nineteenth century. Mozart's opinion of the harp, however, was perhaps dubious at best, for he never wrote another piece that employed it.

Mozart quite likely composed this work with the duke's and his daughter's particular musical abilities in mind. He probably composed the majority of this concerto at the home of Joseph Legros, the director of the Concert Spirituel. Monsieur Legros had given Mozart the use of his keyboard in his home so that he could compose. (Mozart perhaps also composed part of the concerto at his second Paris apartment where he stayed with his mother, which was on the rue du Gros Chenet.)

The piece is essentially in the form of a Sinfonia Concertante, which was extremely popular in Paris at the time.[1] Today, the concerto is often played by chamber ensembles, because it is technically and elegantly challenging for both the solo instruments it calls for. It is also often played by orchestras to display the talents of their own flutists and harpists.

The harp part appears to be more like an adaptation of a piano piece than an original harp part; this is especially evident in the patterns of five and ten notes throughout all three movements which would not fall under the fingers as easily for a harpist, as the fifth fingers are typically not used, though they were considered part of early harp technique. There are no full, rich glissandi, and although there is counterpoint in the harp part, it does not typically include lush chords. Mozart did not include any cadenzas of his own, as is normal for his compositions.[4] Alfred Einstein claims that Mozart's cadenzas for this work were lost. A few popular cadenzas are often performed, such as those by Carl Reinecke, but many flutists and harpists have chosen to write their own. André Previn has also written cadenzas for this piece.

The concert is scored for two oboes, two French horns, solo flute, solo harp, and strings.

The soloists in the piece will sometimes play with the orchestra, and at other times perform as a duo while the orchestra is resting. The flute and harp alternate having the melody and accompanying lines. In some passages, they also create counterpoint with just each other. Mozart concertos are standard in how they move harmonically, as well as that they adhere to the three-movement form of fast–slow–fast:

I. Allegro

The orchestra states both themes. The first is immediately present, and the second is introduced by the horn. Both themes fall under the conventional sonata form. The soli then re-work the already present themes.[4]

II. Andantino

The short phrases in this movement are introduced by the strings, and become lyrically extended. This further develops into four variations on the theme. The cadenza in this movement, by the end of the fourth variation, leads to a coda, where the orchestra and soli focus on the lyrical theme.[4] The key is in F major.

III. Rondeau – Allegro[5]

The form of this movement is: A–B–A–C–A–B–A, a typical sonata-rondo form. The only minor difference to the standard sonata-allegro form is the third appearance of the "A" theme in the parallel minor. The concerto ends with three forte C major chords.

In addition to the numerous cadenzas performers have to choose from, multiple editions of this piece also exist. One such example is by the harpist, arranger, and composer Carlos Salzedo. He edits fingerings in the first movement, re-writes trills to make the music easier on the performer in the second movement, and divides most of the right hand part between two hands in the third movement. However, by doing this, Mozart's style has been somewhat lost, and some people have accused him of "changing Mozart", in consideration that this is one of his more popular pieces, and is often performed in standard classical repertoire. Many professionals try to play the most original version of this double concerto, however due to a range of editions, this can be difficult. The cadenzas composed by Carl Reinecke are the most commonly used to perform this piece.[3]

Many recordings of this piece are available. James Galway has performed and recorded this piece many times, with harpists such as Fritz Helmis,[6] Marisa Robles,[7] and Ann Hobson Pilot.[8]

• List of compositions for harp

• Konzert in C für Flöte, Harfe und Orchester KV 299 (297c): Score and critical report (in German) in the Neue Mozart-Ausgabe
• Concerto for Flute, Harp and Orchestra: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
• Discography and online recordings, Mozarteum
• Live video recording on YouTube
• 2nd movement, 8:27 on YouTube