Divertimento No. 17 in D major, K. 334 (K.6 320b)
by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Mozart’s Divertimento No. 17 in D major, K. 334 (K.6 320b) belongs to his late Salzburg tradition of outdoor-leaning “table and terrace” music, probably written in connection with the Robinig family around 1779–1780. Scored with striking economy—two horns and strings—it achieves an unusually expansive, six-movement design whose scale and expressive range approach a small serenade rather than background entertainment.
Background and Context
In Salzburg during the 1770s, a divertimento could serve many masters: summer festivities, university celebrations, aristocratic dinners, or private commissions. Mozart (aged 23) was still employed under Archbishop Colloredo in 1779, producing a steady stream of practical music alongside more ambitious church works and symphonic projects. The year is often remembered for the “Posthorn” Serenade (Serenade No. 9 in D major, K. 320), completed on 3 August 1779—an emblem of the same Salzburg culture of Serenaden and Nachtmusiken that frames K. 334 as well.[1]
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What makes Divertimento No. 17 distinctive is not novelty of genre—Mozart had been writing such multi-movement “occasion music” since childhood—but rather the way it reconciles intimacy and breadth. With only two horns to color the string band, Mozart builds a work that can sound like chamber music enlarged, yet it stretches to a length and seriousness that listeners may not expect from the word divertimento. (Indeed, modern reference descriptions often call it Mozart’s longest divertimento.)[2]
Composition and Premiere
K. 334 survives without an autograph score; modern performers typically encounter it through later sources and critical editions.[3] Its date is usually given as 1779–1780 (Salzburg), and the work is frequently connected with the Robinig family—specifically Georg Sigismund Robinig—within the circle of Salzburg patrons and civic officials.[2]
A valuable glimpse into the work’s early life comes later, from Mozart’s Vienna correspondence. In a letter to Leopold Mozart dated 1782, he refers to “the musique I wrote for Robinig,” and the Mozarteum’s editorial note identifies this as Divertimento K. 334 (320b), associated with a March (K. 445/320c). The aside suggests that the piece was treated as functional repertory—something that could be lent, requested back, and reused—yet important enough for Mozart to remember and pursue.[4]
The precise circumstances of the first performance remain uncertain. Still, the most plausible context is a Salzburg celebration or commission rather than a public concert in the modern sense—music intended to accompany sociability, but crafted with the same compositional pride Mozart brought to more “serious” genres.
Instrumentation
K. 334 is a model of Salzburg practicality: festive sonority with minimal forces.
- Brass: 2 horns (natural horns, sounding in D in many parts editions)[5])
- Strings: 2 violins, viola, bass (typically realized as cello and double bass, often with continuo-like reinforcement depending on ensemble practice)[2]
The horns do more than provide “outdoor” brightness: they articulate cadences, broaden tuttis, and—crucially—help Mozart suggest orchestral breadth without importing winds such as oboes or bassoons. This economy of means also draws attention to the writing for first violin, which frequently behaves like a discreet soloist, recalling the concerto-like touches common in Salzburg serenade culture.
Form and Musical Character
K. 334 follows a six-movement plan typical of large divertimenti/serenades, but Mozart’s handling makes the sequence feel consequential—almost symphonic in trajectory.
- I. Allegro (D major) — A sonata-allegro opening that can sound like the first movement of a compact symphony, with horn calls lending ceremonial profile.[2]
- II. *Tema con variazioni* (*Andante*, D minor → D major touches) — The expressive center of the work: a minor-key theme with a set of variations that test how much drama and tenderness can be drawn from strings plus horns. The move to D minor is telling—Mozart is willing to darken the palette in a genre presumed to remain sunny.[2]
- III. Menuetto – Trio (D major; Trio in G major) — Courtly, but not routine: the Trio’s change of key softens the sonority and refreshes the ear after the variation movement’s concentration.[2]
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- IV. Adagio (A major) — A lyrical slow movement in the dominant, often described as being in sonata form; it offers a sustained cantabile line where horn writing can feel like warm shading rather than fanfare.[2]
- V. Menuetto – Trio I – Trio II (D major; Trio I in D minor; Trio II in B minor) — The most unusual “social” movement: two contrasting trios, both in minor keys, intensify the emotional range and deepen the central D-major frame.[2]
- VI. Rondo (*Allegro*, D major) — A lively finale in sonata-rondo orbit, designed for release and brilliance; it restores the extrovert D-major character and gives the horns a final, outdoorsy radiance.[2]
Taken as a whole, the piece deserves attention for how it dignifies “entertainment music” without betraying the genre’s purpose. The succession of a substantial sonata opening, a serious minor-key variation set, and two menuets (one with double-trio) creates the feeling of a curated evening rather than a string of light numbers. In other words, K. 334 is not merely pleasant: it is thoughtfully paced, and its tonal planning (notably the repeated pull into minor) complicates the easy label of background music.
Reception and Legacy
Although K. 334 is not as universally famous as Mozart’s late symphonies or the great Viennese concertos, it has remained a standard item in chamber-orchestral programming—partly because its scoring is practical, and partly because it offers a “Mozart in miniature” experience: formal poise, instrumental charm, and moments of genuine pathos.
Modern scholarship and performance practice benefit from the New Mozart Edition’s coverage of the relevant divertimenti repertory, including critical reporting on sources and related pieces (notably the associated march tradition that often prefaces Salzburg serenade/divertimento cycles).[6] For listeners, K. 334’s special attraction is the way it sits between worlds: sociable music that can still hold the attention of a concert hall, and a Salzburg occasional work that hints at the larger expressive horizons Mozart would soon command in Vienna.
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Sheet Music
Download and print sheet music for Divertimento No. 17 in D major, K. 334 (K.6 320b) from Virtual Sheet Music®.
[1] Wikipedia — Serenade No. 9 in D major, K. 320 (“Posthorn Serenade”): Salzburg context and completion date (3 August 1779).
[2] Wikipedia — Divertimento No. 17 in D major, K. 334/320b: instrumentation and movement list; general dating and context notes.
[3] Digital Mozart Edition (Mozarteum) — New Mozart Edition volume PDF (English preface) for Divertimentos; notes on source situation (no autograph for K. 334/320b).
[4] Digital Mozart Edition (Mozarteum) — Letter: Mozart to his father (1782), mentioning “the musique I wrote for Robinig,” with editorial identification of K. 334/320b and related march K. 445/320c.
[5] IMSLP — Divertimento in D major, K. 334/320b: general information and parts listing (horns and strings).
[6] Digital Mozart Edition (Mozarteum) — Neue Mozart-Ausgabe Critical Report (Kritischer Bericht) for divertimenti, including section on March K. 445 (320c) and Divertimento K. 334 (320b).