Mirror Duet
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Gurn Blanston
July 1st, 2004, 01:47 AM
In another forum today, someone posted about playing Mozart's "Mirror Duet", and said it was pretty lame because of the constraints put on the composer to make the music playable upside-down and backwards as well as forwards, the premise being that two violinists face each other with the music on a table between them and each plays what is facing him. I "Googled" "Mirror Duet" and actually did get a couple of Mozart references, but no details at all. Certainly I understand the premise, my question is this, if Mozart actually wrote such an intriguing little item, how come it took me 15 years to hear about it, despite the wealth of books on my shelf and consorting with known Mozartians such as yourselves in this lovely new playground that has been assembled for us? :)
dennis
July 1st, 2004, 02:21 AM
The pieces you refer to are referred to as mirror canons or table canons for 2 Violins. The 4 attributed to Mozart are listed in the Koechel Catalogue under Anh C10.16. These 4 Canons were edited by Fritz Jode in 1928 in Wolfenbuttel, based on an only one known lithographic print in Nurnburg, without publisher details, carrying the title "Four Playful Duets [Scherzduette] by W.A. Mozart for two Violins". By the time of K6 another print had been found, titled "Three[!] Duos favorites for two Violins...", printed by Edouord Guillaume Mayer in Rothenbourg. Although this printing had no publisher number it was supposed to have originated before 1850.
I have tried to find a copy of these "Spiegelkanons" in libraries I frequent without success. However keep in mind that Einstein in K3 (repeated in K6) clearly stated "the Canons surely did not originate from Mozart". How either of this two printings came to have Mozart's name on them I have no clue.
Also in the Hoboken Catalogue of Franz Joseph Haydn's works within the spurious works is a Violin Duet called "Ein musikalischer Schertz" (Group VI: G4). In the remarks section is a similiar "Musical Joke" found in the library of Sandor Wolf in Eisenstadt titled "Duo facile et Curieux pour deux Violons par Mr. Mestrino". The incipit given of this 29 measure "mirror canon" is identical to that in Koechel under K.Anh C10.16, Nr.4. Mestrino was a Violin player in Prince Esterhazy's Capelle from 1780 to 1785.
If you are interested in the sheet music to Nr.1 of these Duets go to (and scroll down looking for "Der Spiegel":
http://icking-music-archive.sunsite.dk/ByComposer/Mozart.html
Dennis Pajot
Gurn Blanston
July 1st, 2004, 02:52 AM
Dennis,
Outstanding! Thanks for the information, super as always. As a concept, I find these intriguing. I suspected some sort of a canon, but beyond that I was out of my element.
Regards,
Gurn
DonW
July 1st, 2004, 04:27 AM
There is great music in a mirror form, perhaps somewhat different from the one you describe. I am thinking fugues from J. S. Bach. Contrapuncti XVII and XVIII from The Art of the Fugue (a Kalmus edition numbering). I am sure there are others
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