• Mozart wrote his first symphony at the age of eight when, already a renowned prodigy, he was on a visit to London as part of a European tour. While perhaps not a masterpiece, it has vim and flair. He completed the last, No 41 in C major, K551 “Jupiter”, in 1788, three years before his death at the age of 35. The first of a new series of Mozart symphonies on disc, The Beginning and the End (Aparté), includes both works, played by the period instrument group Il Pomo d’Oro. Maxim Emelyanychev, best known in the UK as principal conductor of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, conducts these effervescent, brisk performances, with fleet string figures and ripe, punchy woodwind. He is also the soloist, playing fortepiano, in Mozart’s piano concerto No 23 in A major, K488 (interesting to compare with the revivified – in abeyance for years – complete Mozart piano concerto cycle with fortepianist Robert Levin and the Academy of Ancient Music). If you prefer a more opulent sound for Mozart, this won’t be for you. I found it engrossing.
