Program
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 37 in G Major, K. 444/425a
Felix Mendelssohn: Piano Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25—Sharon Hui, soloist
Max Reger: Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Mozart, Op. 132
Sharon Hui, winner of Arizona Piano Institute’s Inaugural Concerto Competition in 2019, joins the MusicaNova Orchestra for a pandemic-delayed performance of Mendelssohn’s First Piano Concerto. The piece features one of the composer’s earliest efforts to weave all three movements into a cohesive whole.
MNO’s music brings its renowned creativity to a program that transforms bits of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s music into something new and different. Mozart’s Symphony No. 37 is really the 25th Symphony of Michael Haydn (Joseph’s lesser-known younger brother), with Mozart tacking on a new opening movement for a hastily announced 1783 concert. Max Reger’s variations, built on a theme from Mozart’s Piano Sonata in A Major, is a gorgeous example of Reger dismissing the “musical anarchy” of the early 20th century by expanding the bounds of tonality in chromatic exploration.
Donations to API here are also gratefully accepted to help resume Concerto Competitions.