Rondo (3rd Movement) from Horn Concerto No.4
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) was a musical genius. His output of compositions was prolific and he probably achieved more in his short life than any other composer. He was born in Austria and was a child prodigy, both as a composer and a performer - and he had a very pushy dad to help him along the way! Despite his immense talent, Mozart enjoyed the good life, and he ended his days in poverty having squandered his wealth. He was buried in a common grave (with no standing in society) but is now thought to be the greatest composer of all time.
The French Horn is a brass instrument comprising of 12 to 13 feet of tubing, with a wide bell or flare. Notes are changed with the aid of rotary valves which shorten and lengthen the tubing to achieve different notes. The term 'horn' refers to its ancient origins in pre-history when animal horns were used to produce sound as a means of communication.
The word 'Rondo' is a musical term that describes the structure of this piece of music. Imagine the structure being the big building blocks that composers use to plan their music. It was a popular structure (there are lots of 'Rondos') and was written at a time when the structure in music was really important. This structure is based on musical ideas which are then assigned a letter. A musical idea can last quite a while and so becomes a 'block' in the structure. In Rondo, idea A is repeated - it comes 'AROUND' before the music visits other musical ideas. A typical Rondo = A B A C A D A