In 1783 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed two duos for violin and viola. It is said that Mozart’s friend Michael Haydn had become ill, and was unable to complete a set of six duos for his boss, the Archbishop Colloredo. Mozart supposedly wrote his two duos to be passed off as Michael Haydn’s work.
Mozart’s treatment of the viola part was highly innovative for its time in that the two instruments are treated as equals, and each has his turn to shine while the other is in a supportive role.
Listen now to one of these amazing works, the Duo KV 423:
