- Mozart probably composed this piece in early 1780.1
- At the time he way staying Mannheim with his mother. He had moved there for a potential court position but was rejected. He decided to try to make a living with freelance work until his next gig.
- Mozart acquired lodging for his mother and himself by giving lessons to a Councilor’s daughter, who paid Mozart in “lodging, including wood and light,” according to Frau Mozart.2
- Mozart probably composed this piece as part of a commission from music publisher Ferdinand Dejan, who offered Mozart 200 florins for a selection of flute concertos and flute quartets.3
- Mozart’s mother proudly wrote home to say that despite the court job rejection, Mozart in high demand in Mannheim:
“He has so much to do that he really doesn’t know whether he is standing on his head or his heels; what with composing and giving lessons he hasn’t time to visit anybody.”
Anna Maria Mozart4
Sources
- Maynard Solomon, Mozart: A Life (New York: Harper Collins, 1995), 140.
- Ibid.
- Ibid., 141
- Quoted in Ibid.
Cut IDs
21473