Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 5 in A major | Nikolaj Znaider, Staatskapell...

Mozart with a twinkle in his eye: The Violin Concerto No. 5 in A major (K. 219) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, played by Nikolaj Znaider (violin), accompanied by the Staatskapelle Berlin and conducted by Julien Salemkour. The concert took place in 2006 at the Berlin State Opera. (00:00) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 5 in A major (K. 219) (00:28) I. Allegro aperto (10:28) II. Adagio (22:00) III. Rondeau Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791) is known for being a great piano virtuoso. In his early years, Mozart also gave violin concerts, and between 1773 and 1775 he composed five violin concertos, one of which is Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major, the most famous and most beautiful. Written in December 1775, when Mozart had just turned 19, it shows his familiarity with the stringed instrument. There are two ideas in particular that Mozart had which help characterize his Violin Concerto No. 5. The first is the initial time the solo violin plays, because it does not follow the tune of the orchestra, instead preferring to lose itself in a dreamy, improvized manner, before finally following the orchestra’s lead. However, that initial dreamy meander remains somewhat lost and unanswered. The third movement, Rondeau, is also noteworthy, because the ‘Alla turca’ movement is framed by a minuet. The minuet’s theme, which compromises of one of Mozart’s best known melodies as it seems sweet and has something dance-like to it, changes abruptly into a march with far more straight-laced melodies, and a stricter rhythm. Supposedly a Turkish march, Mozart had in fact already pencilled it down three years earlier, under the name ‘Le gelosie del Serraglio’. The ballet music had actually been composed to be part of an opera, but as Mozart never completed this opera, the ‘Alla turca’ music instead found itself way into his fifth violin concerto. Perhaps even more amazing is that the melody originates in an old Hungarian folk tune. Nikolaj Znaider plays Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5 with almost oblivious passion, at times combining it with a twinkle in his eye with the pleasure of the performance. Born in Copenhagen, Znaider is of Polish/Jewish heritage, and his full name is Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider. He is the recipient of many awards, including the Echo Klassik 2004. As a conductor, Szeps-Znaider has led countless orchestras, including for example the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra. His discography includes numerous violin concertos, ranging from Mozart to Beethoven to Brahms and to Elgar. Szeps-Znaiders’s personal violin is a Guarneri ‘del Gesu’ from 1741, which was formerly played by renowned violinist Fritz Kreisler, among others.