Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy

Sinfonia XII

The Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung, Leipzig 1827, reports that Mendelssohn, between the ages of 12-14, and under the guidance of his teacher Carl Friedrich Zelter, composed 'symphonies for strings alone in the style of C. P. E. Bach, which were then performed in the house of his highly refined and cultivated parents.' These remarkably fresh and precociously accomplished works were presented during Sunday musicales held at the Mendelssohn family residence and performed by members of the Berlin Court Orchestra under the direction of the composer himself. The instrumental parts are based on the recently-published Eulenburg study scores of the 12 Sinfonias for strings, newly-edited by Boris von Haken from the extant autograph MSS in the collection of the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin - Stiftung Preussischer Kulturbestiz.