William KINDERMAN - Beethoven’s Reply to Mozart: His Quintet Op. 16, Third Concerto Op. 37 and Fidelio
Abstract
Beethoven’s competitive response to Mozart can be illustrated through comparison of works in three genres: their respective quintets for piano and woodwinds, K. 452 and op. 16; their piano concertos in C minor; and their operas Così fan tutte and Fidelio. In each case, Beethoven can be seen to have engaged directly with the motivic substance, instrumentation, and expressive substance of Mozart’s compositions. As these comparisons show, Beethoven’s response to his esteemed predecessor did not involve passive assimilation or straightforward influence, but displayed an original, challenging and even rebellious response to Mozart’s legacy.
Keywords
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mozart’s Quintet K. 452, Concerto K. 491, Così fan tutte, Ludwig van Beethoven, Beethoven’s Quintet op. 16, Concerto op. 37, Fidelio, compositional influence.