Violin Sonata No. 26 in B‑Flat Major

Mozart composed the beautifully elegant Violin Sonata No. 26 in Salzburg in 1779. As with many of his other duo sonatas from this period, the balance between the two instruments very much favours the piano, which almost always takes the lead in introducing the most important thematic ideas in the work’s three movements. But the violin also gets a chance to shine with a contrasting melodic idea near the opening of the first-movement “Allegro moderato”, and in particular during the middle of the second-movement “Andantino sostenuto e cantabile”, where Mozart suddenly expands the melodic line with decorative material that is unmistakably operatic in character. Musical features more closely associated with comic opera make an appearance in the middle of the “Rondeau” finale, where there is an unexpected change of metre (from the initial three to four beats in a bar) and a notable increase in tempo. Indeed, following this episode, the music becomes even more witty in character, particularly in the closing bars, where the piano restates the movement’s opening theme with the violin providing a gently plucked accompaniment.