Hannah Gaston

Musc211
Dr. Purciello
October 30th 2014

Rondo in G Major, K 250 from the Haffner Serenade (1776)

Mozart (1756-1791)
Arranged by Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962)
The very name Mozart is recognized by most everyone in the 21st century. Born in Salzburg,
Austria on January 27, 1756, Mozart was the only surviving son of Leopold Mozart. Leopold
took a personal interest in his sons training and by the age of six the Mozart family was
traveling around Europe to show off the young prodigy. After touring for several years Mozart
took a post as court musician in his hometown. After several years he felt confined and soon
moved to Vienna. Here he quickly gained a reputation as one of the most influential and
competent composers of the time. Despite his fame and popular concerts, Mozart struggled to
manage his finances. He fell deep into debt which no doubt contributed to his mental state in his
later years. On the 5th of December 1791 Mozart met his death. The exact cause is still unknown.
Known for his operas, piano works and choral music, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart also wrote
many pieces for his friends and family. This particular piece was written and named after
Mozarts boyhood friend, Sigmund Haffner. Haffner commissioned Mozart to write the music to
accompany the festivities for the wedding of his sister, Marie Elizabeth. The serenade was first
heard on the 21st of July 1776 on the eve of the wedding ceremony. Later on Mozart felt
unsatisfied with the serenade and turned it into a full symphony. The new version was performed
as Mozarts first public concert in Vienna. In 1865 the manuscript was given to King Ludwig II
of Bavaria for his twentieth birthday.
The Rondo in G major is the fourth movement from the overall symphony. Although the original
composition featured the violin it was not until Fritz Kreisler arranged the movement for solo
violin and piano. Kreisler, a violinist in his own right is known for his arrangements of other

Hannah Gaston
Musc211
Dr. Purciello
October 30th 2014

composers. Kreisler was the youngest person to be accepted to the Vienna Conservatory at the
age of seven where he was paid in candy for his earliest performances. It wasnt until a chance
meeting with Brahms did Kreisler become influenced to arrange works of other composer for
solo violin. Kreisler began to arrange the Rondo in G in 1913 when he was called away to war.
He became seriously injured in 1914 returned to home to finish this work among many others.
This arrangement features spiccato bowing (where the bow is lightly bouncing off the string) and
intense chords that stay true to Mozarts original composition. The chords alone can rival any
virtuoso skills. To make the piece even more impressive Kreisler added his own flare by adding a
series of multiple cadenzas throughout the work. You can hear each theme building in the
cadenzas until the very end when they combine the spiccato bowing and chords for a dramatic
finish. It is only with the combination of the two geniuses, Mozart and Kreisler, that this piece is
such a staple in any violinists repertoire.

Hannah Gaston
Musc211
Dr. Purciello
October 30th 2014

Bibliography
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October 30, 2014. http://www.jstor.org
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De Saint-Foix, Georges. "The Haffner Music." In The Symphonies of Mozart, 222. First ed. New
York: Dover Publications, 1968.
Gay, Peter. "One. The Prodigy." In Mozart, 177. New York: Lipper/Viking Book.
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Lochner, Louis. Fritz Kreisler. New York: Macmillan, 1950. 455.
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Mozart, Amadeus. Symphony No. 35 in D, K. 385 (Haffner Symphony). Urtext ed. New York:
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