OMS Essay
Comparison of two works by Mozart:
Piano Sonata K570 Bb, Mvt 1 [Uchida]
Piano Concerto #20, K466, Mvt 1 [Uchida, Salzburg Camerata]
Isaac Malitz 10/25/2009


[0] This analysis is based on the following recordings:

Piano Sonata K570 Bb, Mvt 1 [Mitsuko Uchida]  
YouTube Link

Piano Concerto #20, K466, Mvt1 (cadenza written by Beethoven) [Mitsuko Uchida piano and conductor, Salzburg Camerata]
YouTube Link Part 1   YouTube Link Part2  
The Beethoven cadenza (which begins in Part 2, 2:19) is considered simply as part of the performance.

Click here for the OMS Profiles ; click here for a legend for the profiles . 

The profiles reflect my personal assessments. There would probably be some variations in the profiles if done by other listeners.


[1]  The OMS rating for the concerto is much higher than for the sonata (almost double). Probable explanation: According to scholars, these two works were probably intended for different purposes:

Comment from John Irving Mozart's Piano Sonatas: Contexts, Sources, Style  :

[A historical quotation cited by Irving] contrasts the domestic, or chamber genre of the sonata with the public genre of, for example the symphony. It is essential, therefore, to keep in mind the respective roles of the sonata, a relatively small-scale piece best suited to conveying quite sophisticated musical ideas of an intimate nature, either within a purely domestic context (perhaps even for the private satisfaction of the player alone) or else to a semi-private gathering of cultivated music-lovers, and the altogether grander dramatic statements of a symphony or concerto, whose direct mode of expression properly belonged to a theatre or concert hall.

Comment from eminent pianist and scholar/analyst Charles Rosen  The Classical Style:

... the late B flat Sonata K570 of Mozart represents a deliberate attempt to accommodate the pianist with a limited technical (and even musical) equipment;

In what follows, I will generally avoid issues about history or Mozart's intent, and I will focus on observations from the OMS point of view.


[2]  Some key areas where the concerto is superior to the sonata in the OMS profile:

[a] Narrative, drama: The concerto is strong in these respects, compared to the sonata. There is certainly some narrative, drama in the sonata, but not nearly as strong or overt. The concerto's cadenza is highly dramatic.

[b] Richness and beauty of sound:  Not surprising, given that in the concerto Mozart has the resources of a piano and an orchestra. In the piano writing, there is a much greater range in the use of the piano (especially in the cadenza).

[c] "Emotion" (what OMS calls "mu-motion", which denotes emotion-like effects which are not literally full emotions in the formal psychological sense)

[d] Linguistic, physical, poetic: Stronger and more overt in the concerto

[e] Sense of space, topology

[f] Individuality: The concerto is not only strong in its individuality, it actually projects a distinct "persona". It is usually difficult to put a musical persona into words, here is my attempt: "Stormy, troubled, multi-layered, ambiguous, multilayered, veiled/indistinct at times."

[g] There are many other areas of difference, see OMS profiles for specifics.

[3]  The material in both works is (very) subtle in many places. So it is plausible that different listeners might evaluate these two works differently than me. However, I cannot imagine that a listener would find the two works highly similar to each other from an OMS point of view.


[4] Although the OMS rating is much higher for the concerto than the sonata, there are serious listeners who like the sonata a great deal. A sample quotation re this Mozart sonata:

One of the most enjoyable bits of gracefulness Mozart ever composed the opening Allegro is like a radiant heavenly sphere floating above us of its own sheen. This is Mozart at his most uncomplicated and masterful--if genius is the ability to grasp the complex and reduce it to its simplest truth, then Mozart indeed proves himself a genius indeed here.
[ Source:  http://mozart.sdrodrian.com/sonatas/

[5] I think we can take it as a given that Mozart's "compositional skill" is at a high level in both works. And some people like the sonata a great deal. So then, how can this be reconciled with difference in ratings for the two pieces? 

[a] I find scholar comments (see [1] above) plausible that the sonata was intentionally a modest piece of music, the concerto a "grand" concert work.

[b] It should be emphasized that "good music" begins at about 100; so both works easily qualify as very good music in any case.

[c] Given a choice of two pieces with different OMS ratings, some listeners will actually prefer a lower-rated work on some occasions (see [6] below for explanation):


[6] Personally, I usually prefer music with higher OMS ratings. However, music with lower OMS ratings has a certain advantage which can be very appealing to some listeners.:

From an OMS point of view, any good piece of music delivers a massive amount of stimulation - more than a typical listener (or even a sophisticated listener) can easily process. The dividing line seems to be around 100: Music with an OMS rating less than 100 is fairly straightforward to comprehend rather fully; but if the rating is higher than 100, then the music becomes very difficult to comprehend fully (i.e., listening to it is an overwhelming experience). So the difference between the sonata and the concerto may be analogous to two dinners at a Michelin 3-star restaurant: One dinner is light and perfect, just a few items exquisitely presented; the other dinner is a great banquet. (The restaurant critic Craig Claiborne once described two ideal dinners: One was the famous Great Wines dinner that he had in 1975, consisting of  31 courses and 9 very rare wines; the other dinner would consist of just 2 items, caviar and and a glass of Chateau Yquem.).