Andante, K. 616 - Woodwind Quintet

for Woodwind Quintet-These two extraordinary works of late Mozart KV 594 and KV 608 were both composed to fulfill a commission for a memorial exhibit in Vienna to be played in a “mechanical clock organ.” The term “fantasy” or“fantasia” came to be affixed to these works later and is more descriptive and less cumbersome than the term Mozart listed in his own catalogue “Ein Stüke für ein Orgelwerk in ein Uhr.” They are also variouslytitled “Adagio und Allegro in f für ein Orgelwerk” and “Allegro und Andante (Fantasie in f) für eine Orgelwaltze.”The first of these composed between the monumental String Quintet in D and the Piano Concertoin Bb KV 595 is an A-B-A form comprised of an f minor Adagio opening and closing with a contrapuntal Allegro at its heart. KV 608 is more complicated opening with an f minor section reminiscent of a French Overture followed by a fugue in fminor then an Andante aria followed by a return to the opening and then a more complex version of the fugue.Despite the frustration that Mozart expressed (in a letter to Constanze) with the sound world of these mechanical devices KV 594and 608 are remarkable works which stand at an intersection incorporating what he learned about counterpoint studying at the foot of Bach while looking ahead to the emotional and harmonic poignancy of Schubert.

Paul Taffanel (1844-1908) was a French flautist conductor and composer. He contributed significantly to the repertoire of the Flute and his Wind Quintet also remains prominent to this day. In 1879 Taffanel founded the Society of Chamber Music for Wind Instruments reviving the wind ensemble music of Mozart and Beethoven. His Wind Quintet in G minor had been composed three years previously in 1876 and is made up of three movements; 1) Allegro con moto 2) Andante and 3) Vivace. For the repertoire of this popular ensemble arrangement Taffanel's Wind Quintet is an essentialaddition.

Score and Parts-Wallingford Riegger (1885-1961) was an American cellist and composer who is noted as being one of the principle proponents of Serialism and the twelve-tone technique in America. His Concerto (Op. 53) was commissioned in 1953 by the Koussevitzky Music Foundation and first performed at the Library of Congress. It is scored for Piano and Wind Quintet - Flute Oboe Clarinet Horn and Bassoon - and is comprised of three movements: Allegro - Andante - Allegro Molto.Receiving critical acclaim as soon as it was released the Concerto cleverly blends atonal and diatonic elements creating an animated condensed modern work thathas unfairly fallen out of the repertoire.