Church Sonatas - OB/EH/ORGAN

Edited by L J Drop. The Koechel Catalog contains 17 short works for church organ. The main instrumentation includes strings, using two violins, and bass (bassoon ad lib). In a few of the church sonatas more instruments are added forming miniature concertos with organ. The word "sonata" appears in smoe autographs. Primarily because of liturgical use, these works are now knows as church sonatas. All of these elegant and radiant sonatas can be dated to the years 1772 to 1780, and in some of them the date was entered in Mozart's own hand. An individual sonata was heard during the celebration of mass: for instance, sonata K336 was intended to be used with the missa solemnis K337. 

In the original compositions, forming the basis for the series of 3 church sonatas presented here, the obligatory church organ plays the melody together with the first violin, both alternately and by echo. The editor has used the same pattern in the present arrangement: the combination of oboe or English horn alternating with the church organ as concertante instruments.

The Adagio in C Major appears in the Koechel catalog with a date of 1789, and is scored for English horn, two violins, and cello. Similar arrangement patterns to the church sonatas have been applied by the editors.