Tune of the Day: The Mirror Duet
This curious piece, popularly known as “Der Spiegel” (“The Mirror”) or “Table Music for Two” and traditionally attributed to Mozart, is what is known as a retrograde inversion canon. In its original form, it is a violin duet, but with a twist: the two performers are supposed to stand facing each other across a table with the sheet music between them, and read from the same score in opposite directions, with the first performer starting from the “beginning” and the second performer starting at the “end”. As if by magic, the result is a coherent piece!
It is highly unlikely that this piece was actually composed by Mozart, but it is listed in Appendix C of the Köchel Catalog as a “Doubtful or Falsely Attributed Work”.
In order to fit the range of the flute, we applied some minor modifications to measures 2, 17, 23, 55, and 61.
Thanks to Elan for suggesting this piece!