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Listeners will often hear MBS presenters say the words 'Kochel Number' after announcing a work by Mozart. If it's Bach, they'll hear “BWV” and so on. Usually they'll hear 'Opus Number', but just what does that mean? Many of these terms are confusing, even to music lovers, so here's a brief guide to the most common indexing systems:
Opus: (Latin: Work). Generally, the order in which a composer's works are published. Usually, but not always, an indication of when it was written. Low Opus numbers usually mean an early work and high numbers a later or late work. Some composers did not number their works (Haydn and Mozart). Some gave Opus numbers to some works but not to others (Elgar, Richard Strauss). Richard Strauss sometimes reallotted Opus Numbers causing great confusion to cataloguers. Sometimes one Opus Number covers a whole group of works (Beethoven's String Quartets Opus 59 Numbers 1,2 and 3 etc). Sometimes two or more versions exist of the same work and are numbered 'Opus 59a, Opus 59b' etc. In the case of someone like Anton Bruckner, it is very difficult to establish what is a definitive edition as the insecure composer sanctioned a variety of editions (generally shortening his works) so that they would be given a performance. Dvorak had his last five symphonies published first. What is known as the 'New World' symphony used to be the 'Symphony Number 5'. Nowadays, when his first four symphonies have been restored to the catalogue, it’s the 'Symphony Number 9'.
WoO: Werke ohne Opuszahl: a work without an Opus number. Often an early work not published in the composers' lifetime.
Kochel: Ludwig von Köchel (1800 - 1877) was an Austrian botanist and mineralogist who was passionate about Mozart's music. He compiled a catalogue of Mozart's works in chronological order first published in 1862. Others later revised it such as Einstein (not Albert) which meant that for a time, KE was used but the Kochel name seems to have prevailed and works are usually known as say; Piano Concerto Number 23 in A major K488.
BWV: Wolfgang Schmieder, a German musicologist, compiled a catalogue of the work of J S Bach which was published in 1950. Now almost universally used, it means Bach Werke-Verzeichnis or 'Bach work index'.
HWV: Friedrich Chrysander, a German critic and musicologist edited the complete works of Handel for the German Handel Society in many volumes published from 1859 onwards. HWV means Handel Werke-Verzeichnis or 'Handel work index'.
Kirkpatrick: Ralph Kirkpatrick was an American harpsichord player who studied with Wanda Landowska and Nadia Boulanger. Professor of Music at the University of California, he published a biography of Domenico Scarlatti and indexed his works. Nowadays, Scarlatti's works are often listed as 'Kirkpatrick No ? or 'K ?' (not to be confused with Kochel).
Deutsch: Otto Deutsch was an Austrian music critic who wrote a book about Schubert and produced a thematic catalogue (1951) giving all Schubert's works Deutsch (D) numbers.
Hoboken: Anthony van Hoboken was a Dutch musicologist who produced a definitive catalogue of Haydn's works (1957). Haydn’s works are given a 'Hob' number.
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