Gigue in G, K. 574
Mozart's Gigue in G major, K. 574, written in Leipzig in 1789, is a short, advanced piece in 6/8, Octotune grade 7 of 8: a quick two-part dance in Bach's style, whose twisting, chromatic subject is imitated between the hands.
At a glance
| Composer | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | Advanced: grade 7 of 8 |
| Key | Key signature: 1 sharp (F♯) |
| Time | 6/8 |
| Tempo | 140 quarter-note beats a minute, as the app starts it (it can go slower) |
| Length | 38 measures, about 49 seconds |
| Hands | both hands |
| Right hand | A3 to D6 |
| Left hand | G1 to A4 |
It reaches past the staff: see ledger lines explained.
Levels in the app
| Version | Grade | Levels |
|---|---|---|
| Gigue in G, K. 574 | 7 of 8 | Melody, Melody and bass, Full |
Practice notes
In 1789 Mozart visited Leipzig, where J. S. Bach had worked for the last twenty-seven years of his life, and there he wrote this little gigue in Bach's manner. It is short, under a minute, but intricate. It is in G major (one sharp) and 6/8, the gigue's quick, skipping meter.
How it is built. The right hand starts alone with the subject: a twisting line in eighth notes, D B G, up to G, then F sharp and down to C sharp, full of unexpected turns. Four measures later the left hand plays the same subject an octave lower while the right hand goes on: two lines, each independent, in imitation, as in a Bach invention. The line is chromatic: it uses notes outside the key at every turn.
The tricky parts
- Accidentals. Sharps and naturals in nearly every measure. Read slowly, and pencil in note names where you need them.
- Independence. Each hand has its own line; neither simply accompanies.
- Leaps. The subject leaps widely, more than an octave in places.
- 6/8 at speed. Two beats in a measure, each of three eighths, light and skipping.
Practice plan
- The subject alone, right hand in Wait for me, until you can play it from memory.
- Each hand alone through the piece, very slowly.
- Both hands at 40% speed with the loop, two measures at a time; raise the speed only when both lines are clear.
Before you start: Bach's Inventions, which teach exactly this kind of two-part playing.
Questions
Why does Mozart's Gigue K. 574 sound like Bach?
Mozart wrote it in Leipzig in 1789, the city where Bach had worked, and wrote it in Bach's contrapuntal style: two independent lines imitating each other, with a twisting, chromatic subject.
Is Mozart's Gigue K. 574 hard?
It is an advanced piece, Octotune grade 7 of 8, though short. Its chromatic lines, full of accidentals, and the independence of the two hands at speed are the challenge.
Credits and license
- Music: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)
- Typeset by Maurizio Tomasi for the Mutopia Project
- License: Public Domain
- Source and printable sheet music: the Mutopia Project’s page for this piece