Mozart Music Videos

Mozart's career predated most of the music video era (OK, he missed it by a good 200 years). But you can still find Mozart videos on YouTube (a search for "Mozart" returns about 100,000 results!). Many of them are recorded performances, while others are essentially musical slide shows. In the latter category there are a few "top 10" types of videos, with excerpts of the video maker's favorite Mozart compositions. I usually don't like to break up Mozart's work, preferring to listen to a full composition rather than selected movements. But some of the video slide shows are interesting, and may even serve to remind me of pieces I had forgotten about, such as the wonderful Horn Concerto in E flat (K.495).

The video here is a good example although they could have done a better job cross-fading between the excerpts. Whether this truly represents the "best of Mozart" is hard to say, but several of the pieces here are favorites of many people. If you don't know Mozart, you could perhaps start to get an idea of the richness and diversity of his work here - and if you hear something you like, seek out a complete performance on the web or at the library. Another approach is to go rent the movie Amadeus. While it takes major liberties with the facts of Mozart's final years, it captures some of his spirit, and it does contain an excellent selection of his music.

Here are the eight pieces excerpted in this 9 minute YouTube slide show, with the start time in minutes for each piece:

1. Overture from The Marriage of Figaro, K.492
2. Clarinet Concerto in B Flat, 1st Movement, K.622 (1:44)
3. Wind Serenade "Gran Partita," 3rd Movement, K.361 (2:28)
4. Piano Concerto 21, 2nd Movement, K.467 (3:30)
5. Symphony No. 40 in G minor, 1st Movement, K.550 (4:50)
6. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, 1st Movement, K.525 (6:03)
7. Horn Concerto No. 4: 3rd Movement, K.495 (6:50)
8. Requiem: Introitus (Requiem aeternam),K.626 (7:41)