Lot 52
  • 52

Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus.

Estimate
80,000 - 100,000 GBP
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Description

  • Autograph manuscript of part of the Serenade in D major ("Antretter"), K. 185 (167a)
  • ink on paper
the working manuscript of bars 40-53 of the second movement, 'Andante', scored for an orchestra of two oboes, two horns and strings, including solo violin, notated in brown ink on eight staves per page, a few minor corrections and revisions, with an attractive watermark, 2 pages, small oblong 4to (16.2 x 21.7cm), 10-stave ('Klein-Querformat') paper, pagination number '45' and foliation number '17', both possibly by Leopold Mozart, at the upper right-hand corner of the recto, no place or date [1773], some very light spotting to edges

Condition

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing where appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

This is an attractive leaf from a major orchestral serenade by the seventeen-year-old Mozart.

The Serenade in D major, K. 185, was one of a number of remarkable instrumental works composed by Mozart in 1773. While the exact date of composition and purpose for which this splendid seven-movement work was written are still matters for debate, the general consensus is that the work was intended as a summer Finalmusik for the graduation from Salzburg University of the Mozart family's friend Judas Thaddäus von Antretter (born 28 October 1753): Köchel6 presumes that the work was written in Vienna between July and the beginning of August 1773.

The present leaf contains bb. 40-53 of the second movement, i.e. the closing bars of that movement's exposition section and most of the short link to the recapitulation. The orchestral texture is particularly exquisite here - a beautiful solo violin cantilena (one can imagine Mozart himself playing this) over gently pulsating strings. The second movement is the first of three in the work to contain solo violin in its scoring, the others being the following 'Allegro' and the first trio of the second minuet.

Mozart's score of K. 185 contained 58 leaves, of which the present manuscript is leaf 17. The serenade was originally bound together with the March K. 189 (167b) in one volume assembled by Leopold Mozart - the so-called Cranz volume no. 1, at one time in the possession of Franz Schubert's friend Leopold von Sonnleithner. (The third Cranz volume, containing nine symphonies by Mozart from 1773-1774, was sold in these rooms on 22 May 1987, lot 457.) In 1966, K. 189 was sold separately at auction in Germany, K. 185 being similarly offered for sale nine years later. The serenade manuscript was subsequently dismembered and the exact whereabouts of much of it are currently unknown. The distinguished British Mozart scholar Alan Tyson, who did not examine the present leaf, lists only 11 leaves of K. 185 in his catalogue of Mozart's watermarks (1992) - and none of these is from the second movement. A leaf containing bb. 29-39 of the second movement was offered at auction in these rooms on 19 May 2006 (lot 115); and one containing the last thirteen bars of the fifth movement appeared here in a sale of 26 May 2000 (lot 185).