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Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) · sheet music

  • Key B-flat major
  • Time 2/4
  • Levels 4–5
  • Passages 7

Your turn · both hands

 

 

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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Austrian classical (1756–1791). The reading release has 7 passages from this piece at levels 4–5; the reader above opens on the easiest, bars 1–4 for both hands together.

Practice the hard bars →

The hardest stretch is bars 1–8 at level 5.

Your practice path

Learn it the way teachers do: each hand on its own, then together, then the hard bars. Each step is a real graded passage of Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3.

  1. Hands together · bars 1–4 level 4
  2. The hardest bars · bars 1–8 level 5

How to play Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3

  1. Tempo:Allegro in 2/4 should feel light and brisk, but the phrases are short and simple, so a moderate, steady pulse is better than a rushed one.
  2. Right hand:The right hand carries the tune in short two-note and four-note groups; play each phrase as one small breath and lift slightly at the end.
  3. Left hand:The left hand answers with simple chords on the off-beats; keep those chords short and quiet so the tune stays on top.
  4. Hands together:The hands alternate in the call-and-response style: check that the left-hand chord entries land exactly in the right-hand rests.
  5. Rhythm:Count in eighth notes, especially where a rest begins a phrase, so the off-beat entries arrive on time.
  6. Dynamics:Play the first phrase of each pair a little louder and the answering phrase softer, like a question and its reply.
  7. Practice:Learn it two bars at a time, hands separately and then together, and repeat the whole strain with a metronome before moving on.
  8. Reading:Note the two flats at the start and write in the B-flat and E-flat names on the first page until your eyes expect them.

Common mistakes

  • Forgetting the E-flat or B-flat from the key signature. Fix: Say the flat names aloud while you read the first line, and circle each one in pencil.
  • Playing the left-hand chords as long notes instead of short answers. Fix: Release each chord right after you play it, and count the rest before the next entry.
  • Making every phrase equally loud. Fix: Mark the louder and softer phrases and rehearse them as pairs.

Structure: two-part (binary) form with repeats

The piece is in two halves, each repeated, and the first half ends away from the home key rather than closing in B-flat. In the second half the opening material comes back in the home key, and both halves finish the same way, which is why theory teachers describe it as either a rounded binary or a small ternary-like design.

A · First half (B-flat major)
The opening idea announces B-flat major in short, balanced phrases, then the music leans toward a new key for its close; both hands play simply, so this is a good place to learn the shape.
B · Second half (B-flat major)
Fresh figures lead back to the opening idea in the home key, and the half ends with the same close as the first, now in B-flat.

About Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was six when this little Allegro was composed in Salzburg on 4 March 1762. It is the third numbered work in the Koechel catalogue, and like his other earliest pieces it was most likely written down by his father, Leopold.

It is preserved in the Nannerl Notenbuch, a bound book of 48 blank music pages inscribed "Pour le clavecin" that Leopold gave to Mozart's older sister for her name day in 1759. Most of its pieces are anonymous minuets, alongside works by Leopold and a few by other composers.

The engraving on this page is in 2/4 and two flats, and it is built from small phrases answered by small phrases, which makes it an easy way to practice reading Classical balance.

  • The notebook originally held about 64 pieces, and 52 survive in the 36 remaining pages.
  • Twelve pages were later removed from the notebook; eight have been identified and four are lost, and the surviving pages are held in libraries in Paris, Salzburg, New York and Leipzig, plus a private collection.
  • The notebook also includes works by Wagenseil and C.P.E. Bach, plus a table of intervals and five technical exercises.
  • The earliest dated Wolfgang entries in the notebook are from December 1761, only a few months before this Allegro.

Why the first passage is level 4

That passage is level 4 rather than 3 because a hand plays several notes at once, its key signature has 2 sharps or flats, it reaches 2 ledger lines, it needs both hands at once.

All seven excerpts on this page sit at level 4 or 5, in two flats and 2/4, and make a gentle introduction to hand-to-hand call-and-response.

Questions about Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3

How hard is Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3 to play?
Its passages grade from level 4 to level 5 on Real Sight Reader's ten-level reading scale, so the full piece sits around early intermediate. The hardest stretch is bars 1–8 at level 5.
Is there an easy part of Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3 for beginners?
Its easiest passage is level 4, so it suits a reader past the beginner stage. Start with bars 1–4 for both hands together, the level-4 passage in the reader at the top of this page; it is level 4 because a hand plays several notes at once and its key signature has 2 sharps or flats.
What key and time signature is Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3 in?
Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3 is in B-flat major, 2 flats. The engraving on this page is in 2/4 time.
Who composed Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3?
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Austrian classical (1756–1791). Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was six when this little Allegro was composed in Salzburg on 4 March 1762.
Can I practice Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3 online for free?
Yes. The reader on this page plays any of the 7 graded passages from Allegro in B-flat major, K. 3 in your browser, with an on-screen keyboard or a MIDI keyboard, and marks every note as you play. No signup.
How old was Mozart when he wrote K. 3?
Six. The Nannerl Notenbuch dates it to 4 March 1762 in Salzburg, and he was born in January 1756.
Who wrote down Mozart's earliest pieces?
His father, Leopold, most likely wrote them down. The notebook is also notable for containing no pieces written out by Nannerl herself.
What is the Nannerl Notenbuch?
A bound book of 48 blank music pages that Leopold Mozart gave to his daughter Maria Anna ("Nannerl") in 1759 for keyboard study; it later took in Wolfgang's first pieces.

Every passage, easiest first

The reading release grades 7 distinct passages of this piece. Open any of them in the reader:

Level 4
bars 1–4 both hands
Level 5
bars 1–8 both hands · bars 5–8 both hands · bars 17–20 both hands · bars 17–24 both hands · bars 21–24 both hands · bars 25–28 both hands

More pieces to sight-read

Score: public-domain engraving from the corpus (pdmx), graded by the piano-reading-v2-20261023-identity-audit reading release.

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