Sinfonia Concertante (fragment) in A major for Violin, Viola, and Cello, K. 320e
ヴォルフガング・アマデウス・モーツァルト作
Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante for violin, viola, and cello (fragment), K. 320e, is an unfinished Salzburg project from 1779, when the composer was 23. What survives hints at Mozart’s fascination—fresh from his travels with the sinfonia concertante fashion—with balancing multiple string soloists against an orchestral backdrop.
What Is Known
The Sinfonia Concertante in A major for violin, viola, and cello, K. 320e, survives only as incomplete material rather than a finished, performable score.[1] The dating usually given is 1779 in Salzburg—placing it in the same productive period in which Mozart completed the celebrated Sinfonia Concertante for violin and viola in E♭ major, K. 364 (320d).[2]
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An autograph page from the fragment is documented and reproduced via the Digital Mozart Edition, confirming at least one surviving leaf in Mozart’s hand.[3] Beyond these remnants, the work’s original intended scope (full multi-movement design, specific orchestration, and whether Mozart planned cadenzas) cannot be securely reconstructed from the surviving state.
Musical Content
Even in fragmentary form, the premise is striking: three equal solo string voices (violin, viola, cello) in a concerto-like dialogue—an extension of Mozart’s 1779 interest in multi-soloist writing.[1] The manuscript suggests Mozart was testing a more adventurous role for the cello than his earlier string concertante practice typically required, treating it as a genuine melodic protagonist rather than continuo reinforcement.[1] In that sense, K. 320e reads as a workshop companion to K. 364: a Salzburg experiment in concerto rhetoric—ritornello returns, conversational scoring, and tonal brightness—left on the drafting table just as Mozart’s mature, fully realized solution was taking shape.
[1] Overview of K. 320e as an incomplete sinfonia concertante; notes on fragmentary status and cello writing.
[2] Boston Symphony Orchestra work note noting an early 1779 A-major sinfonia concertante attempt that “didn’t get far,” before K. 364 was completed.
[3] Wikimedia Commons file page for a manuscript image of K. 320e, sourced from the Digital Mozart Edition (dme.mozarteum.at).