Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s talent developed largely thanks to the good fortune of his circumstances: the place where he was born and the environment in which he grew up. The youthful works of Leopold’s son and pupil offer a fascinating preview of the magnificent compositions he would create in later years. Flautist Erik Bosgraaf and the Wrocław Baroque Orchestra will present a selection of Mozart’s early works alongside flute concertos by Antonio Vivaldi. The importance of these latter pieces in the legacy of the Baroque master is underscored by the fact that out of more than 500 instrumental concertos he composed, as many as 50 feature a solo flute part.

The innovative works of the Venetian composer, written at a time when compositions for this instrument were still rare, make his role in the development of this musical repertoire invaluable. He wrote the famous ‘Il Prete Rosso’ for various types of flutes – the recorder, the soprano recorder known as the flautino, and the transverse flute (traverso). In this field, he is especially renowned for a collection of six concertos published in 1729 in Amsterdam as Opus 10. This was likely the first-ever printed collection of such works for the flute in history. Bosgraaf and the Wrocław Baroque Orchestra will perform three works from that collection. Two of them, however, are variants of the original from that edition: the Concerto in G major, RV 101, and the Concerto in D major, RV 90, bearing the descriptive title Il Gardellino (‘The Goldfinch’), reminiscent of the nature-inspired imagery found in The Four Seasons. Another piece in the programme – the Concerto in G major, RV 435 – was probably written by the Italian composer specifically for that edition, as it is known only in the form in which it was published. Meanwhile, the final piece presented by the performers – the Concerto in A minor, RV 445, written for high-pitched recorder – has survived only in manuscript form.

The three-movement Symphony in E-flat major, K. 16, traditionally considered to be Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s first work in the symphonic genre, bears traces of the influence of Johann Christian Bach – the youngest son of Johann Sebastian. It was written by the Austrian composer between 1764 and 1765, during a 15-month stay in London, where the descendant of the Leipzig cantor was also residing. At the time, the young composer was only eight years old. His humorous Galimathias musicum is associated with the next stage of the Mozart family’s journey, namely their stay in the Netherlands. This piece, two excerpts of which will be included in the concert programme, was written by young Wolfgang to celebrate the inauguration of William V, Prince of Orange, as the country’s new stadtholder. Concluding the evening’s programme is Symphony No. 20 in D major, K. 133 – full of festive spirit, emphasised by the cheerful key as well as the inclusion of trumpets and timpani. It was composed in July 1772 by the then 16-year-old from Salzburg.