Symphony No. 25 (Mozart)

The Symphony No. 25 in G minor, K. 183/173dB, was written by the then 17-year-old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in October 1773, shortly after the success of his opera seria Lucio Silla. It was supposedly completed in Salzburg on October 5, a mere two days after the completion of his Symphony No. 24, although this remains unsubstantiated. Its first movement is widely known as the opening music in Miloš Forman's film Amadeus.

This is one of two symphonies Mozart composed in G minor, sometimes referred to as the "little G minor". (The other is the Symphony No. 40; see also Mozart and G minor.)

Movements

<score>

\relative c {

 \tempo "Allegro con brio"
 \key g \minor
 g8 g4 g g g8 |
 d8 d4 d d d8 |
 es8 es4 es es es8 |
 fis,8 fis4 fis fis fis8 |

} </score>

The symphony is laid out in standard classical form:

1. Allegro con brio, ⁴
   ₄ in G minor
2. Andante, ²
   ₄ in E-flat major
3. Menuetto & Trio, ³
   ₄ in G minor, Trio in G major
4. Allegro, ⁴
   ₄ in G minor

This symphony is scored for two oboes, two bassoons, four horns and strings.

Style and influence

With its wide-leap melodic lines and syncopation, this symphony is characteristic of the Sturm und Drang style. It shares certain features with other Sturm und Drang symphonies of this time, and is likely inspired by Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 39, also in G minor.

Performance history

The work was first performed in the United States by the Boston Symphony Orchestra on October 27, 1899, under the direction of Wilhelm Gericke. It was not performed again in the U.S. until 1937, when rendered by the Alfred Wallenstein Sinfonietta. John Barbirolli and the New York Philharmonic performed it again in 1941 as part of their centennial season.

External links

• Sinfonie in g KV 183 (173dB): Score and critical report (German) in the Neue Mozart-Ausgabe
• Symphony No. 25: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
• Symphony No. 25 (Mozart) at the Mutopia Project (the Allegro con brio movement)
• Symphony No. 25 (Mozart) at the Mutopia Project (the Andante movement)
• Symphony No. 25 in G Minor mp3 by the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra (1950 recording)