Piano Pieces to Try

About the Composer

Mozart was a child prodigy who, at the age of 5, already wrote a miniature allegro (K. 1b) and andante (K. 1a). His father, Leopold, was instrumental in the young composers' musical development. By 1762, Leopold took Wolfgang Amadeus and his equally gifted sister, Maria Anna, on a performance tour to various countries. At 14, the young Mozart wrote an opera which became a huge success. Among his famous works are Symphony No. 35 Haffner, K. 385 - D Major, Così fan tutte, K. 588 and Requiem Mass, K. 626 - d minor

About the Composition

Piano Sonata no. 11 in A Major, K331 has three movements:

The first movement is played andante grazioso (moderately slow and graceful) and has 6 variations.

The second movement is a menuetto or a minuet.

The third movement is played allegretto (moderately fast) and is the most well-known among the three movements. It is more popularly known as "Alla Turca," "Turkish March" or "Turkish Rondo"

Music Sample and Sheet Music

For this article we will concentrate on the third movement as it is really fun to play. Listen to the music sample of Alla Turca, don't be intimidated by how fast it is supposed to be played. There is also sheet music available at Free Scores.Com, you can download it for free. Don't be too concerned about the tempo, start off slow. Eventually as you learn the piece you will become comfortable to play it faster.