The Symphony No. 14 in A major, K. 114, was the first symphony Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote in Salzburg after the 14-year-old composer's second trip to Italy. Finished on December 30, 1771, Mozart wrote an additional seven symphonies in Salzburg in the next year and a further 28 symphonies over the next four years, an intensity of symphonic composition that no other composer has ever matched. Scored for winds and strings, the Symphony in A major is a four-movement Viennese work, elegant, graceful, and supremely witty. The opening Allegro moderato starts quietly and its main theme is really five superb thematic ideas with a short but fascinating development section. The horns fall silent in the following Andante, a gentle movement in triple time with a lyrical main theme and a central section featuring tenderly lyrical string counterpoint. The horns return for the Menuetto with its vigorous outer sections for strings shaded by winds and its quietly haunting minore Trio for strings alone. The closing Molto allegro opens with a twice-repeated fanfare for full orchestra, followed by a common chord change without a main theme and a series of graceful and delightful episodes. Apparently, the lack of a main theme indicates that the work was intended to be played at Salzburg's Carnival and the revelers were supposed to improvise a tune over the change. Those were the days.

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