Symphony No. 38 (Mozart)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed his Symphony No. 38 in D major (the "Prague"), K. 504, in late 1786. It was performed in Prague on January 19, 1787, a few weeks after Le nozze di Figaro opened there.
Prague
Although Mozart’s popularity among the Viennese waxed and waned, he was consistently popular among the Bohemians and had a devoted following in Prague. A piece appearing in the Prager Neue Zeitung shortly after Mozart’s death expresses this sentiment: "Mozart seems to have written for the people of Bohemia, his music is understood nowhere better than in Prague, and even in the countryside it is widely loved." The Prague Symphony was written in gratitude for their high esteem. It had its premiere in Vienna, on December 6, 1786, and was performed in Prague a month later.
Form
The symphony is made up of three movements: - Adagio—Allegro
- Andante
- Finale (Presto)
The first movement begins with an Adagio introduction, which is atypical for Mozart—he only does this in two of his other symphonies, No. 36 (“Linz”) and No. 39.
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