This compilation puts together 45 tracks of the music of
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the best-known composer of the Classical era, and to many, one of the greatest composers ever. What's found here are excerpts from works of every type, from sacred choral music to opera, symphony to concerto, and string quartet to sonata. Many of the selections will be familiar to anyone who has seen the film Amadeus, such as the Requiem excerpts, the Queen of the Night's aria from The Magic Flute, and the opening of the Serenade No. 10 "Gran Partita." But then there are some unexpected things that aren't usually found in best-of
Mozart compilations. There's the Minuet, K. 1 (written at the age of 6); a spurious Wiegenlied; a Freemason song; and a movement from a sonata for piano duet. There is also quite a variety of lesser-known artists, some of whom should be better known and some of whom do extremely well in
Mozart's music. There's tenor
Kurt Equiluz, the
Salzberg Mozarteum Orchestra, and the
New York Philomusica, just to name three. Other artists include the
St. Petersburg Soloists, the
Vienna Volksoper,
Bruno Zwicker and
Rosl Molzer, the
Endres Quartet,
Walter Klien, the
Capella Istropolitana, and more. The
Best 250 Minutes of Mozart might provide some interesting moments for those who know something about the composer, but it will definitely function as a budget-priced, basic introduction to
Mozart's music for more general consumers.