Felix Delbruck said:

>Another point to make is that unfortunately the merit of Mozart works,
>like those of Chopin, if we get to know them by listening, rather than by
>reading them, seems to depend very much on the acumen of the performer.
>Mozart, unlike much of Beethoven, does not seem to me to survive very well
>when left to speak for itself.

I've heard this argument before.  Conversely, I once read in a magazine
review that "The genius of Mozart is not in the notes"!

Surely the former argument goes for the works of many composers.  Also,
there are dozens and dozens of versions of most of the Mozart ouvre so
the word must be being spread correctly somewhere.

Here's another thought.  I don't think the works of M stand up as well as
works of other composers to period performance.  We are so used to hearing
the piano concertos in artificial way on modern instruments that many
people have a false view of their value.  Not wishing to sound facetious
but, I wonder, when you read the score, what performance do you hear in
your head modern or period.

Bob Draper
[log in to unmask]