Klarinet Archive - Posting 000532.txt from 2004/08

From: ormondtoby@-----.net (Ormondtoby Montoya)
Subj: RE: [kl] The making of K. 581
Date: Wed, 18 Aug 2004 13:17:49 -0400

Dan Leeson wrote:

> Second, in general, compositions did not have (or
> were not perceived as having) any long term life.
> [snip] The sequence was: write it, play it, forget
> about it. Who would play it? Certainly not the
> average music lover.

Returning again to the issue of the less elaborate markings in the first
engraved edition of K.581:

If a composition was viewed as not having long-term value, does this
increase the likelihood that the person who paid for copying performance
parts from a score, etc may have cut corners?

May not it have been tempting to tell a performer whom you knew well
(such as the Stadler/Mozart pair) something on the order of: "You've
played enough of my work to know what I intend when I write (say) an
ascending 'p expressivo' phrase. Let's save the money that it would
cost to copy all of these markings. Especially if I hear you rehearse
this, I can make comments if necessary."

....so, who paid in those days for producing parts from a manuscript?
Do we know if the payee was short of funds at the time, etc?

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