8 Minuets (Acht Menuette), K. 315a (C major and related keys)
ヴォルフガング・アマデウス・モーツァルト作
Mozart’s 8 Minuets (K. 315a) are a compact set of courtly keyboard dances, probably written in Salzburg in late 1773, when the composer was 17. Preserved chiefly in an autograph keyboard version, the pieces offer a modest but telling glimpse of Mozart refining the minuet’s balanced phrasing and clear, singable melody in a domestic scale.[1][2]
Background and Context
In 1773, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) was back in Salzburg after his third Italian journey, working within the city’s courtly musical world while continuing to build fluency across genres—from church music to serenades and instrumental miniatures. The surviving source situation for K. 315a is unusually thin, but stylistic and paleographical criteria have led editors to date the minuets probably to late 1773 in Salzburg.[1] Although transmitted as a piano collection, the set is thought to reflect (or derive from) dances originally conceived for orchestra, then preserved in a keyboard form suitable for private music-making.[1]
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Musical Character
K. 315a comprises eight brief minuets (each paired with a trio), written in straightforward two-reprise dance designs: a minuet section followed by a contrasting trio, and then a return to the minuet. While often referred to as “in C major,” the set ranges across several closely related keys (including C major, A major, G major, D major, and F major), giving the sequence a gently varied harmonic profile while keeping the technical demands modest.[3] On the page, Mozart favors regular four- and eight-bar units, clear cadences, and tuneful right-hand lines supported by simple left-hand accompaniments—music that aims less at virtuoso display than at poise, clarity, and the quiet wit of small, symmetrical gestures.[1]
[1] G. Henle Verlag (PDF): commentary discussing provenance, likely Salzburg late 1773 dating, and relation to an earlier orchestral original (No. 83: Eight Minuets K. 315a/315g).
[2] Internationale Stiftung Mozarteum: Köchel-Verzeichnis entry for KV 315a “Acht Menuette” (work record and source notes).
[3] IMSLP work page for “8 Minuets, K.315a/315g”: basic overview and list of the individual minuet keys transmitted with the set.