The Grammy winning Mexican guitar duo Rodrigo y Gabriela have shared a new rendition of the classic “Symphony No. 25 in G minor, K. 183, First Movement” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The cover acts as part of a two-track single along with the duo’s recent cover of Radiohead’s “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi,” released late last month.
Splitting with the violins, cellos and other strings the piece is normally played with, Rodrigo y Gabriela have arranged a version of the piece consisting of seven guitars. Also notable is the duo’s change in the structure of the piece, shortening the movement’s nearly 8 minute runtime into an easily digestible 4 and a half minute one. The use of guitars as the focal point of the cover creates a brand new feeling and texture, giving the piece a new sense of openness with a lot of breathing room, while also allowing for dynamic and explosive moments.
In a statement, the duo’s Rodrigo notes the inspiration he took from various sources for this cover, specifically focusing on the rendition coming from the classic film “Amadeus,” stating: “This piece of art has been with me since I saw the trailer for the Milos Forman film, Amadeus,” says Rodrigo. “I was probably 10 or so, and I loved it forever. The film is one of my favorite films ever, but that piece had something very special and stuck with me. Last year while we were on hold, I started messing with it and started to record. I don’t read music, so I listened to many different versions played by the best orchestras in the world and picked by ear each line from the oboes to the cellos to the violins and started putting together the arrangement for 7 guitars. So, I recorded my lines and worked on Gab’s lines, I didn’t think she’d be interested in putting this out as Rodrigo y Gabriela. Once she saw her lines and recorded them, she was well up for it! We love the result because we had to use different tunings for some of these lines but it worked!”
Listen to Rodrigo y Gabriela’s cover of “Symphony No. 25 in G minor, K. 183, First Movement,” as well as the rendition from the score of Amadeus, below.
This latest two-track single follows Rodrigo y Gabriela’s 2021 cover of Metallica’s “The Struggle Within.”