Mozart wrote the rich and beautiful concerto for two pianos after a fateful trip to Paris in 1778. The journey must have given him a new confidence for this concerto breathes an air of great expressive assurance. Probably written for Mozart and his sister to play, it is both majestic and delightful, adjectives that apply equally to the symphony Mozart created for the large orchestra of the Concerts Spirituel in Paris, the first by him to feature clarinets.

The Parisians immediately took to their hearts the six so-called Paris symphonies Haydn created for their Concert de la Loge olympique. The glorious La Reine (so-called because of Marie Antoinette's fondness for it) even includes a set of variations on a French folk tune.

The Chaconne, by the Italian-born composer to the French aristocracy, Luigi Cherubini, is major recent discovery, and receives its first Australian performances at these concerts.