Mozart & Salieri

Antonio Vivaldi: Concerto for Trumpet in B flat major
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Sinfonia concertante in E flat major, K. 364
Josef Matěj: Sonata for trombone, 12 strings and piano in A
Antonio Salieri: 26 variations on “La Folia di Spagna”

Petr Popelka conductor
Jiří Houdek trumpet | David Pokorný violin
Jakub Novák viola | Pavel Čermák trombone

The musicians of the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra will illuminate three different approaches to concertante compositions in this programme as soloists. Not only the modern virtuosity contained in the music of Josef Matěj, who preferred to compose mainly for brass instruments, but also the imaginative nobility of Viennese classicism embodied by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart contrast with the baroque idioms in the music of Antonio Vivaldi, who most often (but not exclusively) composed for the violin. The second motif of the programme is the relationship between Mozart and his older colleague Antonio Salieri, the imperial court composer from Italy who also worked in Vienna. Especially since Miloš Forman’s film Amadeus – but already under the impression of Pushkin’s drama, Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera and Peter Schaffer’s play – they have been perceived as bitter rivals, distinctly different in their creative approaches and talent.

According to legends and literary fictions, the mediocre Salieri either poisoned the “divine” Amadeus or at least gradually harried him to early death with his jealous hatred. In fact, there is no historical evidence to suggest foul play and the two composers had much in common. However, it is also true – in the words of one well-known singer – that Mozart was a “spouter” of ideas, while Salieri was their “sparer”. The latter was able to nurture musical ideas and develop them in a predictable way. The former, on the contrary, did not skimp on ideas and moved wastefully and carelessly from one motif to another... and although he came to Vienna later, he was always one step ahead of Salieri.

Ticket prices: CZK 990 | CZK 790 | CZK 590

The organiser reserves the right to changes in the list of scheduled performers.