Finger Exercises in C major, K. 626c
ヴォルフガング・アマデウス・モーツァルト作
Mozart’s Finger Exercises in C major (K. 626c) is a tiny pedagogical keyboard item, transmitted in an autograph source and dated to Vienna around 1780–81, when the composer was 24. More a technical study than a concert piece, it distills the “on the page” mechanics of even scale-work into a compact, utilitarian form.
Background and Context
In 1780–81 Mozart was active in Vienna, on the cusp of the decisive move that would soon make the city his principal base; alongside larger public projects, his surviving keyboard manuscripts also include brief functional items intended for practice and teaching.[1] The Finger Exercises (K. 626c) belongs to this private, workbench-like category: a short exercise preserved as an extant autograph leaf, rather than a published “piece” aimed at the marketplace.[1]
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Musical Character
The exercise is in C major and is written simply for clavier/keyboard, with the musical material organized around basic stepwise motion and familiar finger patterns rather than thematic development.[1] Its purpose is primarily tactile—cultivating evenness, independence, and a clean legato through repeated patterns that sit naturally under the hand—yet it also points to a hallmark of Mozart’s keyboard writing: clarity of line and a preference for transparent textures where articulation and balance are exposed.[2]
[1] Internationale Stiftung Mozarteum (Köchel-Verzeichnis): work entry for “Finger exercises” (Anh. H 19,03 / KV⁶ 626b/48) with key, dating (Vienna, 1781), and source information (autograph leaf).
[2] IMSLP: “Fingerübungen, K.626b (Mozart)” — public-domain score access and basic work identification used here only for general orientation to the item as an exercise/study for solo keyboard.