Mozart Symphonies Observation

Erin R Eddins
Mozart Symphonies 39, 40, 41
Performed by The Berlin Philharmonic, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle
My first impressions of the conductor held fairly true throughout the performance. Sir Simon Rattle is perhaps the most enigmatic master of the baton I have had the pleasure of watching. This is quite an interesting observation, since he doesn’t use a baton. He stands in front of his orchestra, sans instrument himself, without even a podium or stand, and conducts using gestures, hand movements and facial expressions, that inspire and delight. I played the performance a second time just to watch him without distractions. Simon often departed from the standard patterns, and at times waked so closely to the first row of the orchestra,
that I almost expected him to move among them or turn their pages for them. It was very clear that he was enjoying his role, and that he had a very good relationship with his performers. His performance easily reminded me of the impressions of Mozart’s personality that we are left with by history.
He seems to be the perfect channel to bring these pieces to life. The ‘darling of the gods’ may well have blessed his choice to lead this orchestra and his path to this profession himself. The passion and personality are amazingly matched.
The audience ranged in appearance from casual, clad in jeans and jumpers, to semi-formal or business dress. This surprised me, as I would expect actual concert attire. If given the opportunity to attend a concert of this magnitude, I surely would have done much better than the wrinkled linen dress behind the
French horns. This prestigious orchestra deserves far better, in my opinion, than office wear and trendy blue jeans. I was also disappointed to see very few younger people in the audience. Most of the patrons seemed to be in their late fifties or older.
The performers, on the other hand, were dressed impeccably in their concert apparel. The men in their tuxedoes complete with white bow ties, and the few women in the orchestra in long black dresses. Sir
Simon conducted in a comfortable looking, but classic, all black mandarin-collared suit which added to his personality, without distracting from the performance in the slightest.
Overall, the experience was amazing, even at home on television. Even though there were pauses between movements, Sir Simon’s actions made it clear that we were to hold our applause to the end of each piece.
His obvious pride in his performers encouraged wave after wave of applause from the audience after each performance, and he seemed overjoyed to showcase individual members to the entire hall.
His interview on the season was entertaining, and his delight in his profession was infectious.
Mozart’s style epitomized the Classical period. He maintained the lyrical, almost ethereal quality, melodies that would almost sing to the listeners’ souls. Mozart’s symphonies maintained the typical fast-slow-fast- fast structure of the era, and his movements usually had some sort of mid-mark change up to them. His use of scales and arpeggios in both melody and harmony always intrigued me, and I have always found it beautiful. Unlike the Baroque era, where the composers would experiment with unsettling meters, composers of the Classical period like Mozart kept to simple meters. Common time (4/4), and the like present a more comfortable pattern to the ear in my opinion. Perhaps that is one reason that this has been one of my favorites since childhood.

Mozart’s particular talents didn’t run to developing new forms or styles, but in perfecting those that were already in vogue for the time. He could take three or four notes and use them to create the most beautifully haunting theme and build an entire sonata around it. The variations in dynamics in his
pieces keep the interest of the listener, and the diatonic harmony, especially with the major chords, seems easier on the ear.
The first piece in the concert, Symphony 39 in E flat Major, was familiar, as parts of it have been used in various media over the years – movies, cartoons, commercials, television, muzak, telephone hold music, even ringtones. The entire piece sings and even the performers seemed to flow with the melody. This symphony reminds me of spring, with the easy flowing melody and harmonies, without the disjunctive jumps and lurches from the Baroque era. The occasional booming and powerful phrases envision some light rainstorms or spirited chases.
Moving from movement to movement is relatively smooth, but each section retains its own identity within the whole. By half way through the third movement, the woodwinds and brass had blended so well, they sounded almost like a single instrument, and the call and answer of the clarinets was captivating. For such a small ensemble, the sound was amazing and set the mood for a wonderful evening.
This symphony, like many of Mozart’s works, seemed to feature many of what I have come to call ‘almost arpeggios.’ The more graceful melodies, moving up and down the register in a more step-wise manner instead of leaping up and down the scale has helped to endear the Classical era to me more than others, and Mozart seemed to be a master at using them. The ostinatos were another important tool that he seemed to use with ease, and quite a bit.
Symphony 40 in G minor seems to be a more emotional piece than the other two in this series, being slightly harsher in tone and slightly more disjunctive to my ears. It sounded more like Beethoven to me than the lighter, almost fanciful Mozart. The bow strokes were sharper in much of the pieces, and the drama was almost palpable. This piece, as well, is familiar because of its use in many media forms. The first movement
(or at least the first theme), is especially popular. The second movement especially maintained the ethereal quality, with the woodwinds and brass doubling the strings beautifully. The whole thing is dark, as many minor-chord symphonies tend to be, and the lack of tympanic accompaniment in this symphony was interesting, as well.
The final piece in this concert, Symphony 41 in C Major, or the ‘Jupiter’ Symphony, was the last symphony written by Mozart. I feel that it was well named, for more than one reason. The use of ‘space’ in this work serves to emphasize, at least to my ear, each phrase. The pauses before the powerful bursts that fade into the background only to rocket back into the forefront, up and down, loud and soft, the simple themes that
Mozart built and repeated capture the listener and keep the attention for the next round.
From the heart-breaking melody of the second movement and return of the arpeggios to the kettle drums, the build to the final movement and the flourished fanfare ending the piece in triumph convinced me that the Jupiter Symphony was truly fit for the King of the Roman Gods, a gift from their ‘little darling.’