Two Church Sonatas in D and G (lost), K. 655 (D major)
av Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Mozart’s Two Church Sonatas in D and G (K. 655) are a pair of Salzburg liturgical instrumentals listed as completed in 1771, when the composer was 15, but they survive only as catalogue references rather than as music. In modern scholarship the attribution is treated as doubtful, and—without any surviving score—these works sit on the margins of what can responsibly be described.
Background and Context
In 1771, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) was back in Salzburg, still working within the court and cathedral world that demanded efficient, practical sacred music. The Köchel catalogue records two church sonatas—one in D major and one in G major—under K. 655, but notes that the transmission is lost (no score or parts are known to survive). The Internationale Stiftung Mozarteum’s Köchel-Verzeichnis likewise lists the pair as “lost,” dated Salzburg 1771. [1]
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
In Salzburg usage, such church sonatas (often called Epistle Sonatas) were brief instrumental pieces performed during Mass between readings, typically in a bright, single-movement Allegro style and frequently involving organ with strings. [1] For K. 655, however, neither the scoring nor any musical incipit is preserved in the principal modern listings.
The authenticity of K. 655 is widely treated as uncertain in the broader context of Mozart’s “lost” and dubiously attributed instrumental items, where missing autographs and the loose circulation of manuscripts can leave attributions resting on fragile documentary traces. [2]
Musical Character
Because no notation survives for either the D-major or G-major sonata, details that usually anchor a description—length, exact instrumentation (strings alone, or organ obbligato), thematic profile, and formal plan—cannot be stated. What can be said is functional: if these works did belong to the Salzburg Epistle Sonata tradition described in the Mozarteum entry, they were likely concise, forward-moving movements designed to fit a liturgical slot rather than to project symphonic breadth. [1] In that sense, K. 655—whether genuinely by Mozart or not—points to the kinds of modest, serviceable pieces that surrounded (and helped train) the teenage composer in Salzburg.
[1] Internationale Stiftung Mozarteum, Köchel-Verzeichnis: KV 655 “Two church sonatas in D and G” (status, dating, and Salzburg epistle-sonata context).
[2] Wikipedia: “Mozart symphonies of spurious or doubtful authenticity” (overview of attribution problems when autographs are missing and works circulate in copies; general context for doubtful/lost attributions).