The Dutch musician Ton Koopman was born in 1944 and ranks among the
outstanding specialists in the field of historical performance practice. He
studied organ, harpsichord and musicology in Amsterdam and turned to
conducting during his training. From the very beginning, he used original
instruments and combined theory and practice into a fascinating,
historically well-founded interpretation of the works. In 1979 he founded
the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra. He is the principal conductor of the
Netherlands Radio Chamber Orchestra. As a performing artist and teacher,
Koopman has made decisive contributions to the renaissance of the music of
the 17th and 18th centuries. He has published many books and articles,
teaches at the Conservatory of The Hague and is an honorary member of the
Royal Music Academy in London. The Mozarteum Orchester Salzburg goes back
to the "Dom-Musik-Verein und Mozarteum" founded in 1841. Since 1938 it has
been an independent institution with professional musicians. It has been
the orchestra of the city and the Land of Salzburg since 1958 and, in
addition to its activity as opera and concert orchestra, it also performs
regularly at the Salzburg Festival and the Mozartwoche.
After his trip to Paris in 1778, Mozart spent only two and a half more
years in Salzburg before leaving the service of the hated Prince Archbishop
forever. During this period, his self-confidence seems to have grown
considerably, if we are to judge from the bold, ambitious Symphonies
K. 318, 319 and 338 that were the last he wrote in Salzburg before settling
in Vienna as a freelance musician. Written in the brilliant, formal key of
C major, the Symphony has a grand, majestic flow. The vigorous first
movement is followed by a graceful, rococo-like Andante for strings and
bassoons. The work closes with a lilting Allegro vivace in a tarantella
rhythm.
