This summer, at the Bowdoin International Music Festival, I couldn’t help but wonder how many great pieces of music by early composers remain untouched. My friend and I jokingly taunted each other about the kind of scenario in which a composer “arose from the dead” and created some new single to listen to, and that idea sparked the inspiration for this recurring column. Here, I will explore recently uncovered or forgotten pieces, shining light on music history and presenting it to modern listeners.
We’ll start with Mozart! One of the most exciting discoveries in recent decades is a previously unknown piece by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, titled A Very Little Night Music. The Serenade in C Major, K. 648, had been unheard for more than two centuries. Composed between 1766 and 1767, when Mozart was still a teenager, the work is scored for two violins, bass, and harpsichord and consists of seven short movements. Even in its modest scale, the piece demonstrates Mozart’s extraordinary melodic imagination, sense of structure, and early mastery of counterpoint.
The manuscript was found in the Carl Ferdinand Becker collection of the Municipal Music Library in Leipzig, Germany, by researchers from the International Mozarteum Foundation. The discovery was among the research for preparing the latest edition of the Köchel catalogue, documenting Mozart’s entire body of work. The verification was done under Dr. Ulrich Leisinger, confirming the work to be a piece from an early period in the compositional life of Mozart.
This serenade is significant in that it demonstrates the compositional skill of young Mozart. The alternating lively and lyrical movements, the playful conversation between the two violins, and the harmonic support of the continuo all show a masterful command of musical style at odds with his young age.
The very first live performance was performed on September 19, 2024 in Salzburg with Neža Klinar and Haruna Shinoyama on violins, Philipp Comploi on cello, and Florian Birsak on cembalo. The concert was performed together with the introduction of the new Köchel catalogue and was organized by the International Mozarteum Foundation.
Deutsche Grammophon released three world premiere recordings in early October 2024. The nearest to an authentic first version was recorded in the Viennese Hall of the Mozarteum Foundation with Leonhard Baumgartner and Margarita Pochebut (violins), Svenja Dose (double bass), and Oscar Jockel (harpsichord). The project was sponsored by the Stretton Society, which provides instruments, scholarship, and mentorship to young musicians.
In Leipzig, the Gewandhausorchester under Herbert Blomstedt recorded a version for chamber orchestra. The concert connected the rediscovery to the city of its manuscript, and opened up the work into a more symphonic context reminiscent of Mozart’s late Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.
The rediscovery and premiere of K. 648 illustrates the degree to which even the most familiar composers retain hidden works in waiting. Not only does this serenade add to our understanding of Mozart’s nascent style, it highlights the scholarship, performance, and patronage that endeavor to bring such lost music into being.
As the first entry of this on-going column, this article demonstrates the value of unearthing lost pieces, allowing us to cherish the variety of musical imagination that can otherwise remain unheard.
Serenade in C Major, K. 648 is also a reminder of Mozart’s early mastery and the continued excitement of encountering lost music.