Fortepianos and their music

Eighteenth-century pianos shaped and influenced the music that was written for them. Although organological studies probe in ever more detail, and musical criticism focuses increasingly on the musical repertoire, the relationship between the two has not been properly examined.

This book concentrates on the keyboard writing of the last third of the eighteenth century, as inspired by the fundamentally different constructions of the German/Viennese and the English pianoforte. The highly articulated language of Mozart and his Viennese contemporaries, and the more robust, pre-romantic style of Dussek and his London colleagues reflect the very characteristics of these respective instruments. Beyond the scrutiny of the music, attention is given also to the players.

The differentiation between professionals and amateurs is addressed, and contemporary sources help provide a description of late eighteenth-century performing styles; such a survey offers new insight into the living art of the pianoforte during the first important period in its history.