Music History 102 Born: Salzburg, January 27, 1756 Died: Vienna, December 5, 1791 At the age of four he could learn a piece of music in half an hour. At five he was playing the clavier incredibly well. At six he began composing, writing his first symphonies at the age of eight. He was constantly traveling all over Europe with his father, Leopold Mozart (1719-1787), a violinist, minor composer and Vice-Kapellmeister at the court of the Archbishop of Salzburg. The musical feats and tricks of young Wolfgang were exhibited to the courts (beginning in Munich in 1762), to musical academicians, and to the public. Between the ages of seven and fifteen, the young Mozart spent half of his time on tour. During these tours, Mozart heard, absorbed, and learned various European musical idioms, eventually crystallizing his own mature style.

Fully expecting to find an ideal post outside his sleepy home town of Salzburg and the detested archiepiscopal court, in 1777 Wolfgang went on a tour with his mother to Munich, Mannheim, and Paris. It was in Paris that his mother died suddenly in July, 1778. With no prospects of a job, Mozart dejectedly returned to Salzburg in 1779 and became court organist to the Archbishop. Mozart finally achieved an unceremonious dismissal from the archiepiscopal court in 1781, and thereafter became one of the first musicians in history to embark upon a free-lance career, without benefit of church, court, or a rich patron. Mozart moved to Vienna where he lived for a time with the Webers, a family he had met in 1777. He eventually married Constanze Weber in August of1782, against the wishes and strict orders of his father. Then for a time, things began to look bright for the young composer.

Beginning in 1782 with the Singspiel Die Entführung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Seraglio), Mozart began turning out one masterpiece after another in every form and genre. Mozart is probably the only composer in history to have written undisputed masterworks in virtually every musical genre of his age. His serenades, divertimenti and dances, written on request for the entertainment and outdoor parties of the nobility, have become synonomous with the Classical "age of elegance," and are perhaps best exemplified by the well-known Serenade in G major, which the composer called Eine kleine Nachtmusik (A little night music). In Vienna, Mozart became a regular at the court of Emperor Joseph II (1741-1790), where he wrote much of his greatest music. A sampling of Mozart's mature works comprise a virtual honor roll of musical masterpieces: the last ten string quartets, the string quintets, and the Quintet for clarinet and strings; the Mass in C minor and the unfinished Requiem; the Serenade for thirteen wind instruments, the Clarinet concerto, the late piano concertos, and the last six symphonies.

Mozart's more than twenty piano concertos remain models of the classic concerto form, developed by him over time into works of symphonic breadth and scope. The concertos often begin with an elaborate sonata form first movement, followed by a tender and melodious second movement, and usually conclude with a brisk, engaging rondo, as in the Piano Concerto no. 22 in E-flat. In his last three symphonies, the second of which is the great Symphony no. 40 in G minor, Mozart infused this form with a passion and expressiveness unheard of in symphonic writing until the advent of Beethoven . Of Mozart's operas, Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), composed for the Viennese court in 1786, is the earliest opera still found in the repertoire of virtually all of today's opera houses. Through his dramatic and musical genius, Mozart transformed such operatic comedies and characters into living, breathing dramas peopled with real human beings.

He found a kindred spirit in this regard at the Viennese court in the person of Lorenzo da Ponte (1749-1838), who supplied Mozart with the librettos of his three Italian operatic masterpieces. Figaro was followed in 1787 by Don Giovanni (Don Juan), written for Prague, where Figaro had been an overwhelming success. The intensity of Mozart's music in the penultimate scene of Don Giovanni, in which the title character is dragged down to hell, unrepentant, at the hands of an avenging spirit, might even be said to have helped usher in the Romantic era . Having scaled the heights of Italian opera buffa, Mozart turned again to the German Singspiel in the final year of his life. Again he produced yet another masterpiece, this time with the unconventional combination of low comedy and high ideals.

Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) tells of a young prince who successfully endures the trials put to him by a fraternal priesthood in a search for truth and love, while the everyman character of Papageno in his song Der Vogelfänger bin ich, ja yearns for the earthly pleasures of wine, food, and female companionship. During his years in Vienna, Mozart also made the acquaintance of composer Franz Joseph Haydn . The two became close friends and the older composer's music had a profound influence on Mozart. Between 1782 and 1785, Mozart composed a series of six string quartets which he dedicated to Haydn.

Upon playing through some of them together, Haydn said to Mozart's father, who was present, "Before God and as an honest man, your son is the greatest composer I know, either personally or by name." Yet through his mismanagement of money (and as a successful composer of operas and a reknowned piano virtuoso, he made a great deal), and the documented incidences of his tactless, impulsive, and at times childish behavior in an era of powdered wigs and courtly manners, Mozart seemed to find it difficult to make a successful living. By 1790 he was writing letters to friends, describing himself and his family (he and Constanze had six children, only two of which survived) in desperate circumstances and begging for money. He was also by this time seriously ill, and had been intermittently for some time, with what was most likely disease of the kidneys. With the success of The Magic Flute and a newly granted yearly stipend, Mozart was just beginning to become financially stable when his illness brought an end to his life and career at the age of thirty-six.

He was buried, like most Viennese in those days by the decree of Emperor Joseph, in a common grave, the exact location of which remains unknown. The influence of Mozart on the composers that followed cannot be emphasized too strongly. He was idolized by such late nineteenth century composers as Richard Wagner and Peter Tchaikovsky ; and his music came to influence the neo-classical compositions of Igor Stravinsky and Sergei Prokofiev in the twentieth century. Music History 102: a Guide to Western Composers and their music Designed, compiled and created by Robert Sherrane Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Biography - IMDb Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Jump to: Overview (4) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (1) | Trivia (27) | Personal Quotes (4) Overview (4) Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart Height 5' 4" (1.63 m) Mini Bio (1) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart grew up in Salzburg under the regulation of his strict father Leopold who also was a famous composer of his time.

His abilities in music were obvious even when Mozart was still young so that in 1762 at the age of six, his father took him with his elder sister on a concert tour to Munich and Vienna and a second one from 1763-66 through the south of Germany, Paris and London. Mozart was celebrated as a wonder child everywhere because of his excellent piano playing and his improvisations. In 1769 he became the concertmaster of the Archbishop and was knighted by the Pope in Rome. Working in Salzburg he nevertheless travelled around Europe to meet other composers and orchestras. But in 1781 after a dispute with the Archbishop he left Salzburg and went to Vienna where he married Constanze Weber from Mannheim. In Vienna he also started his friendship with Joseph Haydn and a time of many work pieces. In the last year of his life, for example, he wrote one of his masterpieces, "Die Zauberflöte". Although some of his operas were successful he could not make money from this and died in poverty at the age of 36, having even on his last day worked on a "Requiem".

He was buried in a communal grave which could not be precisely identified years later. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Volker Boehm Spouse (1) ( 4 August 1782 - 5 December 1791) (his death) (6 children) Trivia (27) Born at 8:00pm-LMT Son of well-known violin teacher and occasional composer Leopold Mozart In Salzburg, Austria, his birthplace, there is a Mozart museum, and the Salzburg Festival, held every year, is largely devoted to his music. Many shops and streets in Salzburg are named after him as well. Wrote "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" (a little night music) in one day. Had a photographic memory, and could play an entire piece of music after hearing it only once. Reports of his writing music without revisions were proven right. Sheet music in his hand exist that have no corrections or re-inclusions. Often worked as a musical tutor. Was so taken by the sound created by the "Glass Harmonica", a musical instrument invented by Benjamin Franklin, that he composed several pieces of music for it.

Children: Raimund Leopold (June 17 - August 19, 1783); Karl Thomas (September 21, 1784 - October 31, 1858); Johann Thomas Leopold (October 18 - November 15, 1786); Theresia Constanzia Adelheid Friedericke Maria Anna (December 27, 1787 - June 29, 1788); Anna Maria (b/d December 25, 1789); Franz Xaver Wolfgang (July 26, 1791 - July 29, 1844). Neither Karl or Franz married or had children. Described Constanze in a letter to his father: "She is not ugly, but at the same time, far from beautiful. Her entire beauty consists of two little black eyes and a nice figure. She isn't witty, but has enough common sense to enable her to fulfill her duties of wife and mother... she understands housekeeping and has the kindest heart in the world.

I love her and she loves me." In 1809, Constanze married Danish diplomat Georg Nikolaus von Nissen (1761 - 1826). A Mozart fanatic, he edited vulgar passages out of many of the composer's letters, and wrote a Mozart biography. Son of Leopold Mozart . Began playing the harpsichord at the age of three. The philosopher Søren Kierkegaard considered Mozart's opera "Don Giovanni" to be the greatest work of art ever made. He devotes an entire essay in his book "Either/Or" to defending this claim. Contrary to popular belief, Mozart was not buried in a "mass grave", but in a regular communal grave according to the 1783 laws. The original grave site in St. Marx Cemetary has since been lost, but memorial gravestones have been placed where he is thought to be buried. He preferred to be known as Wolfgang Amadé Mozart. The Latin Amadeus became popular because it is the name his widow used - both in the parish death register and when asking for a pension.

A benefit held in Prague in 1791 was billed as "Concert in memory of Wolfgang Gottlieb Mozart Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart is the Latin version of his baptismal names. The first two are saints names because he was born on the feast of St John Chrysostom. Theophilus, which means lover of god (or loved by god), is the Greek version (after his grandfather. Theophilus in German is Gottlieb, in French it is Amadé (which the multilingual Mozart preferred) or in Latin it is Amadeus. In honor of Mozart's 250th birthday, all the church bells in Salzburg were rung simultaneously at the exact hour of his birth. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Florentine Opera Company | Milwaukee, WIFlorentine Opera Company | Milwaukee, WI Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) Mozart was born in the city of Salzburg, the capital of the independent archbishopric of Salzburg, which today is part of Austria. His parents were Leopold and Anna Maria Pertl Mozart.

Mozart’s musical abilities soon became apparent, to the delight of his father who was also a composer and one of Europe’s leading musical pedagogues. When Mozart’s sister Nannerl was seven, she began to take harpsichord lessons from her father and although Mozart was only three years old, he soon began to play as well, often spending hours practicing. Throughout his childhood, he received intense musical training from his father, including instruction in clavier, violin and organ. Recognizing his children’s special musical talent, Leopold began to concentrate solely on their education and instruction. He was known to be an exacting taskmaster, who pushed his children towards perfection. Leopold decided to take his two children on a tour of Europe to display their abilities and in January 1762, the family left for Munich. Next, the group left for Vienna, where Leopold reported in a letter “We are being talked of everywhere…everyone is amazed, especially at the boy, and everyone whom I have heard says that his genius is incomprehensible.” Invitations from all over Europe poured in. Leopold tried to arrange as many concerts as possible.

Leopold felt that it was God’s will that he exhibit his children. While the public and private concerts and recitals were greatly successful, the work was grueling. In October of 1762, Mozart came down with what was is now believed to be a rheumatic nodular eruption now associated with tuberculosis. Although he was treated, this episode was most likely a sign of future health problems. The family continued to tour Europe, departing on June 9, 1763 for a three-year journey. Mozart spent the long hours on the road composing. While he could not record his work, since the jolting of the carriage made writing impossible, he would work out the music, carry it in his head, and wait until he had a chance to record it on paper. A typical tour included the following stops: Munich, Augsburg, Ulm, Ludwigsburg, Bruchsal, Schwetzingen, Heidelberg, Mannheim, Worms, Mainz, Frankfurt on Main, Coblenz, Bonn, Bruhl, Cologne, Aix-la-Chapelle, Liège, Tillemonde, Louvain, Brussels, Mons, and Paris.

On December 24, the family reached Versailles, where they would stay for two weeks, and were able to experience life in the most famous of European courts. Leopold wrote in his journal, “My Wolfgang was graciously privileged to stand beside the Queen, talking to her constantly, entertaining her and kissing her hands repeatedly, besides partaking of the dishes which she handed to him from the table.” That same month, two sonatas, dedicated to Madame la Comtesse de Tessé, were Mozart’s first published works. Three trips to Italy followed, from December 1769 to March 1773. A popular anecdote relates that Mozart heard Gergorio Allegri’s Misere performed once in the Sistine Chapel and was so inspired that he returned home and wrote it out in its entirety from memory, thus producing the first illegal copy of this closely-guarded property of the Vatican! During his trips, Mozart met a great number of important musicians and learned much about other composers. Johann Christian Bach, son of Johann Sebastian Bach, became a friend of Mozart. Even non-musicans caught Mozart’s attention.

He was so inspired by the sound of Benjamin Franklin’s glass harmonica that he composed several pieces of music for the new instrument. On August 4, 1782, Mozart married Constanze Weber. The two had six children, but only two sons survived infancy, neither of whom married or had children of their own. In the same year, his opera The Abduction from Seraglio opened and was a great success. He soon began a series of concerts at which he performed his own concertos and also served as conductor. Also during his early years in Vienna, Mozart met Joseph Haydn and the two became friends. Mozart would dedicate six quartets to Haydn throughout his career. Mozart’s adult life was fraught with financial trouble and health problems. In 1786 he moved into an apartment in Vienna and composed The Marriage of Figaro; this was followed in 1787 by Don Giovanni. Although not always celebrated in Vienna, Mozart found a receptive audience in Prague, where Don Giovanni premiered. In the years that followed, Mozart produced more compositions, including The Magic Flute.

Mozart remained ill and scholars disagree about the cause of his death at 1:00 am on December 5, 1791. Possiblities include trichinosis, mercury poisoning and rheumatic fever. Scholars also blame the practice of bleeding for causing Mozart to become substantially weakened as his health worsened. When Mozart died, he was working to finish his renowned Requiem. Constanze hired Franz Xavier Sussmayr, Mozart’s only pupil, to finish the work, which premiered the following year. Sources: Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART - Biography of Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born to Leopold and Anna Maria Pertl Mozart in Getreidegasse 9 in the city of Salzburg, the capital of the sovereign Archbishopric of Salzburg, in what is now Austria, then part of the Holy Roman Empire. His only sibling who survived past birth was an older sister: Maria Anna, nicknamed Nannerl. Mozart was baptized the day after his birth at St. Rupert's Cathedral. The baptismal record gives his name in Latinized form as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart.

Mozart generally called himself "Wolfgang Amadé Mozart"[1]as an adult, but there were many variants. Mozart was baptized January 28, 1756, the day after his birth, at St. Rupert's Cathedral in Salzburg as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart. The baptismal register of the cathedral parish contains the entry shown below, written down in Latin by city chaplain Leopold Lamprecht. The parallel five-column format of the original document, seen in the figure, is transcribed below in five consecutive paragraphs. Material in brackets represents editorial additions by Otto Erich Deutsch (see below), intended for clarification. Mozart's father Leopold Mozart (1719–1787) was one of Europe's leading musical teachers. His influential textbook Versuch einer gründlichen Violinschule, was published in 1756, the year of Mozart's birth (English, as "A Treatise on the Fundamental Principles of Violin Playing", transl. E.Knocker; Oxford-New York, 1948).

He was deputy Kapellmeister to the court orchestra of the Archbishop of Salzburg, and a prolific and successful composer of instrumental music. Leopold gave up composing when his son's outstanding musical talents became evident.[citation needed] They first came to light when Wolfgang was about three years old, and Leopold, proud of Wolfgang's achievements, gave him intensive musical training, including instruction in clavier, violin, and organ. Leopold was Wolfgang's only teacher in his earliest years. A note by Leopold in Nannerl's music book – the Nannerl Notenbuch – records that little Wolfgang had learned several of the pieces at the age of four. Mozart's first compositions, a small Andante (K. 1a) and Allegro (K. 1b), were written in 1761, when he was five years old.[2] During Mozart's formative years, his family made several European journeys in which the children were exhibited as child prodigies. These began with an exhibition in 1762 at the Court of the Elector of Bavaria in Munich, then in the same year at the Imperial Court in Vienna and Prague.

A long concert tour spanning three and a half years followed, taking the family to the courts of Munich, Mannheim, Paris, London,[3] The Hague, again to Paris, and back home via Zürich, Donaueschingen, and Munich. During this trip Mozart met a great number of musicians and acquainted himself with the works of other composers. A particularly important influence was Johann Christian Bach, who met Mozart in London in 1764–65. Bach's work is often taken to be an inspiration for Mozart's music. The family again went to Vienna in late 1767 and remained there until December 1768. On this trip Mozart contracted smallpox, and his healing was believed by Leopold as proof of God's plans concerning the child.[citation needed] After one year in Salzburg, three trips to Italy followed, this time with just Leopold, leaving Wolfgang's mother and sister at home. These took place from December 1769 to March 1771, from August to December 1771, and from October 1772 to March 1773.

The first trip resembled the earlier journeys, with the purpose of displaying the now-teenaged Mozart's abilities as a performer and as a rapidly maturing composer. Mozart met G.B. Martini in Bologna, and was accepted as a member of the famous Accademia Filarmonica. In Rome he heard Gregorio Allegri's Miserere once in performance in the Sistine Chapel then wrote it out in its entirety from memory, only returning to correct minor errors; thus producing the first illegal copy of this closely-guarded property of the Vatican. In Milan Mozart wrote an opera Mitridate Rè di Ponto (1770), performed with success. This lead to further opera commissions, and Wolfgang and Leopold returned twice from Salzburg to Milan for the composition and premieres of Ascanio in Alba (1771) and Lucio Silla (1772). Toward the end of the final Italian journey Mozart wrote the first of his works that is still widely performed today, the solo cantata "Exsultate, jubilate", K. 165.

Following his final return with his father from Italy (13 March 1773), Mozart was employed as a court musician by the ruler of Salzburg Prince-Archbishop Hieronymus Colloredo. Mozart was a "favorite son" in Salzburg, where he had a great number of friends and admirers,[4] and he had the opportunity to compose in a great number of genres, including symphonies, sonatas, string quartets, serenades, and the occasional opera. Some of the works he produced during this early period are very widely performed today. For instance, during the period between April and December of 1775, Mozart developed an enthusiasm for violin concertos, producing a series of five (the only ones he ever wrote), steadily increasing in their musical sophistication. The last three (K. 216, K. 218, K. 219) are now staples of the repertoire. The E flat piano concerto K.

271 (1777), with its surprising interruption of the orchestra by the soloist at the start, is considered by critics to be a breakthrough work.[5] Nevertheless, Mozart gradually grew more discontented with Salzburg and made increasingly strenuous efforts to find a position elsewhere. The reason seems to be in part his low salary, 150 florins per year (Leopold, the vice-Kapellmeister, made 250).[6] In addition, Mozart loved to compose operas, and Salzburg provided at best rare occasions for opera productions. The situation became worse in 1775 when the court theater was closed, and the other theater in Salzburg was largely reserved for visiting troupes.[7] Two long job-hunting expeditions interrupted this long Salzburg stay: Wolfgang and Leopold (they were both looking) visited Vienna from 14 July to 26 September 1773 and Munich from 6 December 1774 to March 1775.

Neither visit was successful, though the Munich journey resulted in a popular success with the premiere of Mozart's opera La finta giardiniera[8] On September 23, 1777, Mozart began yet another job-hunting tour, this time accompanied by his mother Anna Maria. The visit included Munich, Mannheim, and Paris.[9] In Mannheim he became acquainted with members of the Mannheim orchestra, the best in Europe at the time. He also fell in love with Aloysia Weber, one of four daughters in a musical family. Mozart moved on to Paris and attempted to build his career there, but was unsuccessful (he did obtain a job offer as organist at Versailles, but it was a job he did not want[10]). The visit to Paris was an especially unhappy one because Mozart's mother took ill and died there, June 23, 1778.[11] On his way back to Salzburg Mozart passed through Munich again, where Aloysia, now employed at the opera there as a singer, indicated she was no longer interested in him.[12] Mozart's discontent with Salzburg continued after his return.

The question arises why Mozart, despite his talent, was unable to find a job on this trip. Maynard Solomon has suggested that the problem lay in conflict with father Leopold, who insisted that Mozart find a high-level position that would support the entire family. Wolfgang favored the alternative strategy of settling in a major city, working as a freelance, and cultivating the aristocracy to the point that he would be favored for an important job; this had worked earlier for other musicians such as Haydn. The plan Leopold imposed, coupled with Mozart's youth (he was only 21 when he left Salzburg), seems to have had foreordained failure.[13] In January 1781, Mozart's opera Idomeneo, premiered with "considerable success" (New Grove) in Munich. The following March, the composer was summoned to Vienna, where his employer, Prince-Archbishop Colloredo of Salzburg, was attending the celebrations for the installation of the Emperor Joseph II.

Mozart, who had just experienced success in Munich, was offended when Colloredo treated him as a mere servant, and particularly when the Archbishop forbade him to perform before the Emperor at Countess Thun's (for a fee that would have been fully half of his Salzburg salary).[14] In May the resulting quarrel intensified: Mozart attempted to resign, and was refused. The following month, however, the delayed permission was granted, but a grossly insulting way: Mozart was dismissed literally "with a kick in the arse", administered by the Archbishop's steward, Count Arco.[15] In the meantime, Mozart had been noticing opportunities to earn a good living in Vienna, and he chose to stay there and develop his own freelance career.[16] In fact, Mozart's Vienna career began very well.

He performed often as a pianist, notably in a competition before the Emperor with Muzio Clementi, December 24, 1781,[17] and according to the New Grove, he soon "had established himself as the finest keyboard player in Vienna."[18] Mozart also prospered as a composer: during 1781–1782 he wrote the opera Die Entführung aus dem Serail ("The Abduction from the Seraglio"), which premiered July 16, 1782 and achieved a huge success. The work was soon being performed "throughout German-speaking Europe",[19] and fully established Mozart's reputation as a composer. Near the height of his quarrels with Archbishop Colloredo, Mozart moved in (May 1 or May 2, 1781) with the Weber family, who had moved to Vienna from Mannheim. The father, Fridolin, had died, and the Webers were now taking in lodgers to make ends meet.[20] Aloysia, who had earlier rejected Mozart's suit, was now married to the actor Joseph Lange, and Mozart's interest shifted to the third daughter, Constanze.

The couple were married, with father Leopold's "grudging consent" (New Grove), on August 4, 1782. They had six children, of whom only two survived infancy: Carl Thomas (1784–1858) and Franz Xaver Wolfgang (1791–1844; later a minor composer himself). During 1782–1783, Mozart became closely acquainted with the work of J. S. Bach and G.F. Handel as a result of the influence of Baron Gottfried van Swieten, who owned many manuscripts of works by the Baroque masters. Mozart's study of these works led first to a number of works imitating Baroque style and later had a powerful influence on his own personal musical language, for example the fugal passages in Die Zauberflöte ("The Magic Flute"), and in the finale of Symphony No. 41. In 1783, Wolfgang and Constanze visited Wolfgang's family in Salzburg, but the visit was not a success, as Leopold and Nannerl were, at best, only polite to Constanze.

However, the visit sparked the composition of one of Mozart's great liturgical pieces, the Mass in C Minor, which, though not completed, was premiered in Salzburg. Constanze sang in the premiere.[21] At some (unknown) time following his move to Vienna, Mozart met Joseph Haydn and the two composers became friends; see Haydn and Mozart. When Haydn visited Vienna, they sometimes played together in an impromptu string quartet. Mozart's six quartets dedicated to Haydn (K. 387, K. 421, K. 428, K. 458, K. 464, and K. 465) date from 1782–85, and are often judged to be his response to Haydn's Opus 33 set from 1781.

Haydn was soon in awe of Mozart, and when he first heard the last three of Mozart's series he told the visiting Leopold, "Before God and as an honest man I tell you that your son is the greatest composer known to me either in person or by name: He has taste, and, furthermore, the most profound knowledge of composition."[22] During the years 1782–1785, Mozart put on a series of concerts in which he appeared as soloist in his own piano concertos. He wrote three or four concertos for each concert season, and since space in the theaters was scarce, he booked unconventional venues: a large room in the Trattnerhof, an apartment building; and the ballroom of the Mehlgrube, a restaurant.[23] The concerts were very popular, and the works Mozart composed for them are considered among his finest. Solomon writes that during this period Mozart created "a harmonious connection between an eager composer-performer and a delighted audience, which was given the opportunity of witnessing the transformation and perfection of a major musical genre."[24] With the substantial money Mozart earned in his concerts and elsewhere, his family adopted a rather plush lifestyle.

They moved to an expensive apartment, with a rent of 460 florins.[25] Mozart also bought a fine fortepiano from Anton Walter for about 900 florins, and a billiard table for about 300.[26] The Mozarts also sent their son Karl Thomas to an expensive boarding school[27] and kept servants. These choices inhibited saving, and were the partial cause of a stressful financial situation for the Mozart family a few years later.[28] Despite the great success of Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Mozart did little writing of operas during the years that followed it, producing only two unfinished works and the one-act Der Schauspieldirektor. He focused instead on his career as a piano soloist and writer of concertos. However, around the end of 1785, Mozart reshifted his focus again: he ceased to write piano concertos on a regular basis,[29] and began his famous operatic collaboration with the librettist Lorenzo da Ponte. 1786 saw the Vienna premiere of The Marriage of Figaro, which was quite successful in Vienna and even more so in a Prague production later the same year.

The Prague success led to a commission for a second Mozart-Da Ponte opera, Don Giovanni, which premiered 1787 to acclaim in Prague and was also produced, with some success, in Vienna in 1788. Both operas are considered among Mozart's most important works and are mainstays of the operatic repertoire today; their musical complexity caused difficulty for both listeners and performers alike at their premieres. In December 1787 Mozart finally obtained a steady post under aristocratic patronage. Emperor Joseph II appointed him as his "chamber composer", a post vacated the previous month when Gluck died. It was not a full-time job, however. It paid only 800 florins per year, and merely required Mozart to compose dances for the annual balls in the Redoutensaal. Mozart complained to Constanze that the pay was "too much for what I do, too little for what I could do."[30] However, even this much proved important to Mozart later on when hard times arrived.

Court records show that Joseph's intent was explicitly to help make sure that Mozart, whom he esteemed, did not leave Vienna to seek better prospects elsewhere.[31] Toward the end of the decade, Mozart's career declined. Around 1786 he had ceased to appear frequently in public concerts, and his income dropped.[32] This was in general a difficult time for musicians in Vienna, since between 1788 and 1791 Austria was at war (see Austro-Turkish War (1788–1791)), and both the general level of prosperity and the ability of the aristocracy to support music had declined.[33] By mid 1788, Mozart and his family moved from central Vienna to cheaper lodgings in the suburb of Alsergrund.[34] Mozart began to borrow money, most often from his friend and fellow Mason Michael Puchberg; "a dismal series of begging letters" (New Grove) survives. Maynard Solomon and others have suggested the Mozart suffered from depression at this time, and it seems his output rate sank somewhat (see Köchel-Verzeichnis).

The major works of the period include the last three symphonies (1788: 39, 40, 41; it is not certain whether these were performed in Mozart's lifetime), and the last of the three Da Ponte operas, Cosi fan tutte, premiered 1790. During this time Mozart made long journeys hoping to improve his fortunes: a visit in spring of 1789 to Leipzig, Dresden, and Berlin (see Mozart's Berlin journey), and a 1790 visit to Frankfurt, Mannheim, and other German cities. The trips produced only isolated success and did not solve Mozart's financial problems. Mozart's last year was, until his final illness struck, one of great productivity and (in the view of biographer Maynard Solomon) personal recovery.[35] During this time Mozart wrote a great deal of music, including some of the works for which he is most admired today: the opera The Magic Flute, the final piano concerto (K. 595 in B flat), the Clarinet Concerto K. 622, the last in his great series of string quintets (K.

614 in E flat), the revised version of his 40th Symphony, the motet Ave verum corpus K. 618, and the unfinished Requiem. Mozart's financial situation, which in 1790 was the source of extreme anxiety to him, also began to improve. Although the evidence is uncertain[36] it appears that admiring wealthy patrons in Hungary and in Amsterdam pledged annuities to Mozart, in return for the occasional composition. Mozart also probably made considerable money from the sale of dance music that wrote for his job as Imperial chamber composer.[37] He ceased to borrow large sums from Puchberg and made a start on paying off his debts.[38] Lastly, Mozart experienced great satisfaction in the public success of some his works, notably The Magic Flute (performed many times even during the short period between its premiere and Mozart's death)[39] and the Little Masonic Cantata K.

623, premiered November 15, 1791.[40] Mozart fell ill while in Prague, for the September 6 premiere of his opera La clemenza di Tito, written in 1791 on commission for the coronation festivities of the Emperor.[41] He was able to continue his professional functions for some time, for instance conducting the premiere of The Magic Flute on September 30. The illness intensified on November 20, at which point Mozart became bedridden, suffering from swelling, pain, and vomiting. Mozart was tended in his final illness by Constanze, her mother Cäcilia Weber, her youngest sister Sophie Haibel, and the family doctor, Thomas Franz Closset. There is evidence that he was mentally occupied with the task of finishing his Requiem (see Death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart). However, the evidence that he actually dictated passages to Süssmayr is very slim.[42] Mozart died at 1 in the morning on December 5. His burial arrangements were exceedingly simple: Mozart's body was sewn in a linen sack, and transferred from a reusable coffin to a common grave with five or six other bodies.

No friends or family were present to witness the burial.[43] These procedures reflected common practice at the time, traceable to a decree of Joseph II from 1784 governing funeral arrangements; see Josephinism.[44] Maynard Solomon suggests that the simple funeral may have reflected Mozart's own wishes.[45] The cause of Mozart's death cannot be determined with certainty. His death record listed "hitziges Frieselfieber" ("severe miliary fever," referring to a rash that looks like millet seeds), a description that does not suffice to identify the cause as it would be diagnosed in modern medicine. Dozens of theories have been proposed, including trichinosis, influenza, mercury poisoning, and a rare kidney ailment. The practice of bleeding medical patients, common at that time, is also cited as a contributing cause.

However, the most widely accepted version is that he died of acute rheumatic fever; he had had three or even four known attacks of it since his childhood, and this particular disease has a tendency to recur, leaving increasingly serious consequences each time, such as rampant infection and heart valve damage.[46] Mozart's extremely spare funeral did not reflect his standing with the public as a composer: memorial services and concerts in Vienna and Prague were well attended.[47] Indeed, during the period following his death, Mozart's musical reputation rose substantially; Solomon describes an "unprecedented wave of enthusiasm"[48] for his work. Biographies were written (initially by Schlichtegroll, Niemetschek, and Nissen), and publishers vied to produce complete editions of his works.[49] Mozart's physical appearance was described by tenor Michael Kelly, in his Reminiscences: "a remarkable small man, very thin and pale, with a profusion of fine, fair hair of which he was rather vain." His early biographer Niemetschek wrote, "there was nothing special about [his] physique ...

He was small and his countenance, except for his large intense eyes, gave no signs of his genius." His facial complexion was pitted, a reminder of his childhood case of smallpox. He loved elegant clothing: Kelly remembered him at a rehearsal: he "was on the stage with his crimson pelisse and gold-laced cocked hat, giving the time of the music to the orchestra." Of his voice Constanze later wrote that it "was a tenor, rather soft in speaking and delicate in singing, but when anything excited him, or it became necessary to exert it, it was both powerful and energetic".[50] Mozart worked very hard, a great deal of the time, and finished works where necessary at a tremendous pace. When composing he often made sketches and drafts, though (unlike Beethoven's sketches) these are mostly not preserved, Constanze having destroyed them after his death.[51] Mozart also enjoyed billiards and liked dancing.

He kept pets (a canary, a starling and a dog), and kept a horse for recreational riding.[52] Mozart lived at the center of Viennese musical life, and knew a great number of people, including not just his fellow musicians, but also theatrical performers, fellow transplanted Salzburgers, and many aristocrats, including a fairly close acquaintance with the Emperor, Joseph II.

Mozart had a considerable number of friends, of whom Solomon estimates the three closest were Gottfried Janequin, Count August Hatzfeld, and Sigmund Barisani; others included the singers Franz Xaver Gerl and Benedikt Schack, Haydn (mentioned above), and the horn player Ignaz Leutgeb (with whom Mozart carried on a curious kind of friendly mockery, Leutgeb being always the butt of Mozart's practical jokes).[53] Particularly in his youth, Mozart had a striking fondness for scatological and sexual humor, which is preserved in his many surviving letters, notably those written to his cousin Anna Maria Thekla Mozart around 1777–1778, but also in his correspondence with his sister Nannerl.[54] Mozart even wrote scatological music, the canons "Leck mich im Arsch" ("Lick me in the arse") K. 231 and "Leck mir den Arsch fein recht schön sauber" ("Lick me in the arse nice and clean") K. 233.

Mozart was influenced by the ideas of the eighteenth-century European Enlightenment as an adult, and became a Freemason in 1785.[55] His lodge was specifically Catholic, rather than deistic, and he worked fervently and successfully to convert his father before the latter's death in 1787.[citation needed] Die Zauberflöte, his penultimate opera, includes Masonic themes and allegory. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart : Art & Culture : salzburg.info Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Retracing the steps of the ‘Wunderkind’ in Salzburg Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is still present in many places within the city of Salzburg. Evidence of the life and works of the ‘Wunderkind’ is omnipresent in the town of his birth. It’s difficult not to find traces of Mozart’s life in the old part of Salzburg, whether on a visit to the place of his birth, to his second home or on the town square that now bears his name. Mozart 2016 – many reasons to celebrate We encounter Mozart at many anniversaries during 2016.

For example, Mozart celebrates his 260th birthday on January 27th. The “Cathedral Music Association” was established 175 years ago and remains a very significant Salzburg institution, though now known as the Mozarteum Foundation. In addition, Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg marks its own 175th anniversary, actually making it one year older even than the Vienna Philharmonic. 20 years ago, the Mozart Residence was reopened. Back in 1944, a bomb dropped during an air raid destroyed two thirds of the house in which the Mozart family had lived for 17 years. When it was rebuilt, every possible effort was made to restore the appearance of the building to how it had looked in Mozart’s day. Yet another anniversary is celebrated by the Mozart Audio and Film Collection, which has now been in existence for 25 years. The world’s biggest archive focused exclusively on the life and work of Mozart comprises 26,000 audio titles and 3,300 video productions.

To mark the occasion, two special museum weeks will take place: “Stringed Instruments” from 22 to 26 February 2016, and “Keyboard Instruments” from 21 to 25 November 2016 further information... Because Mozart’s music lives on and continues to captivate listeners, Salzburg hosts a wealth of musical highlights. A new concert series known as “Mozart in Residenz” has added an extra layer of Mozart enjoyment in the city since 2015. A twelve-musician chamber orchestra combined with excerpts from Mozart’s letters guarantee an extraordinary experience. learn more about “Mozart in Residenz”... Mozart’s birthplace… It is easy to retrace the steps of Mozart around the city of Salzburg. The narrow lanes in the historical part of the town have not lost any of their quaint charm down the years. Not far from ‘Staatsbrücke’ bridge the busy and popular Getreidegasse opens out into a protected square, at the top of which stands house no. 9 – where Mozart was born on the 27th January 1756; known as the ‘Geburtshaus’.

Today Mozart’s ‘Geburtshaus’ in the Getreidegasse is one of the most commonly visited tourist sights in Austria. In what was once the home of the Mozart family there is now a museum open all year round. Mozart’s home - inspiring creativity In 1773, when the Mozarts, a family of four, found this first apartment in Salzburg had become too small, they moved to another house on the other side of the River Salzach, to what is now no. 8 in today’s Markartplatz. It was in this house that Mozart wrote all the compositions in his remaining years in Salzburg, before he ultimately relocated to Vienna. Mozart composed a total of 150 works in Salzburg. His sister Nannerl lived in their second home until she married in 1784 and his father Leopold Mozart resided there until his death in 1787. On the first floor there is a museum; the exhibits tell the story of the building and document the life of the Mozart family. Memories of Mozart in Salzburg Salzburg cultivates the memory of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – lovingly and knowledgably.

Visitors from all over the world come to retrace the composer’s steps all over the city. Mozartsteg Bridge leads to a square now known as Mozartplatz. It has borne this name since the inauguration of the Mozart monument in 1842. On the building across the square at what is now no. 8 Mozartplatz, there is a plaque explaining that the building housed the final apartment of Mozart’s widow who lived there with her sister Sophie Haibl until her death in 1842. There is also a commemorative plaque for Constanze Mozart-Nissen on the wall of Café Tomaselli on the corner of Alter Markt square and Churfürststraße, who lived there with her second husband, Georg Nikolaus von Nissen, and their children from 1820 to 1826. Yet another plaque is to be found at no. 18 Universitätsplatz, where Mozart’s sister Nannerl lived after returning to the city from St. Gilgen. St. Peter’s Cemetery is considered to be one of the most beautiful graveyards in the world. Right next to Michael Haydn’s crypt is the grave of Mozart’s sister, Nannerl.

Wolfgang’s father Leopold, his widow Constanze and her second husband Georg Nikolaus von Nissen, were all laid to rest in St. Sebastian’s cemetery. International Foundation and Mozarteum University A key raison d'etre for the International Mozarteum Foundation is the cultivation and promotion of Mozart’s legacy. The ‘Cathedral Music Association and Mozarteum’ was established to this end back in 1841. In 1870 it became the International Mozart Foundation and subsequently in 1880 the International Mozarteum Foundation. The building that houses the Mozarteum today was ceremonially inaugurated in 1914. The Mozarteum is now also home to the Mozart library and archives featuring several treasures from his collected works and artefacts (autograph collection in Mozart’s second home). The Mozarteum University attracts students from all over the world. The Salzburg Mozarteum orchestra undertakes numerous international concert tours and is a significant feature of the city’s musical life. Mozart’s music is omnipresent in Salzburg The Salzburg Festival stages magnificent performances of Mozart’s operas.

His works are also played at the Salzburg palace concerts, at concerts held up in the fortress Festung Hohensalzburg, at large orchestral performances and sweet serenades. His ecclesiastical compositions are an integral part of the religious life of the town. His operas feature strongly in the repertoire of Salzburg’s puppet theatre, thrilling visitors from all over the world. Salzburg’s Mozart Week is held every year in January in the period around the composer’s birthday. This is always the first highlight of the musical year in the city. Mozart: Visit Salzburg & Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart home > general info > art & culture > mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Biography of a Genius Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, called Wolferl, was born on 27th January of 1756 in Salzburg. His birthplace , a 3-bedroom apartment in the Getreidegasse is now a museum, frequented by thousands of visitors every year. His father was the court composer and vice-provost of the orchestra Leopold Mozart, his mother Anna Maria Pertl was from St. Gilgen in the Salzkammergut .

Mozart was baptised to the names Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus . Leopold Mozart started to instruct his daughter Maria Anna, called Nannerl, who was five years older than her brother and Wolfgang at the age of only four years in music - violin, piano and composition. Two years later, Wolfgang started to perform in the public - at the age of six, playing his own compositions. After this early debut Wolfgang and Nannerl soon started to travel with their father and - occasionally - their mother to perform in front of the astonished nobility. After successful concerts in Munich and Vienna, the family started an extensive tour across Western Europe, which lasted three and a half years until they eventually returned to Salzburg on the 28th November of 1766. Mozart′s first tours Munich, Augsburg, Heidelberg, Mainz, Frankfurt, Cologne, Brussels, Paris, London, The Haag, Amsterdam, Paris, Bern, Zurich - a demanding trip for its time, during which little Wolferl turned into an early superstar. During this journey, Mozart composed among other things his first sonatas for violin and piano.

After the return to Salzburg, Mozart, then ten years old, composes the Opera "Die Schuldigkeit des ersten Gebotes" together with the much older Salzburg court-musicians Anton Cajetan Adlgasser and Michael Haydn. In September of the same year, the Mozarts travel to Vienna for the second time. From Vienna, they flee to Bohemia to escape from a smallpox epidemic. The children fall ill anyway and cannot return to Vienna until January 1768. At this time, Mozart keeps composing masterpieces such as "Bastien and Bastienne" or "La finta semplice" on order of Emperor Franz I. After 15 months in Vienna, the Mozarts return to Salzburg once again. In October, Mozart gets employed at the Duke Archbishop′s court orchestra, even though the job is unpaid. In December 1769, Wolfgang and his father depart to Italy, to the first of three highly successful tours. Mozart travels for three more years, plays for nobles, receives high honours from Pope Clemens XIV.

In a legendary move, Mozart listens to a highly complex composition by Gregorio Allegri and writes down its notation without a single mistake from his memory - a notation that the Vatican had held strictly secret. Employment in Salzburg Mozart studies for a while with Padre Giovanni Battista Martini and becomes a member of the prestigious Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna, through which he meets some of the most important musicians of his time. In the following months, several operas by Mozart are played in Milan. However, after Mozart′s hope for an employment in Italy was not fulfilled, he and his father return to Salzburg in December 1771. In 1772, Hieronymus Franz Josef von Colloredo-Mannsfeld von Schrattenbach becomes the new Prince Archbishop of Salzburg - and employs Mozart as a provost of Salzburg′s court orchestra. This position means a tight schedule for Mozart, from which he tries to escape by continuing tours and journeys: a third tour in Italy lasts until 1773, followed by longer stays in Vienna and a number of other international commitments in the successive years.

In 1777, Mozart′s request for further suspensions is rejected and as a consequence, he gives up his position at the court and leaves in company of his mother to look for an alternative employment. He stays briefly in Munich, Augsburg and Mannheim in Germany. There Mozart meets Aloysia Weber, a singer with whom he falls in love. He moves on to Paris, where he arrives in March 1778. Shortly after his mother dies in Paris, Mozart is offered a position back in Salzburg as a court organist. Reluctant he accepts the offer, still looking for alternatives whilst the tours to Salzburg across Europe. Tensions between Mozart and the Prince Archbishop dominate the following moths: Mozart is not allowed to contribute to concerts in Vienna. In 1781 his opera "Idomeneo" is staged for the first time, for which he goes to Munich. From there, the Prince Archbishop orders Mozart to Vienna, where the two get into an argument after which Mozart gives up his position in Salzburg. Freelance composer in Vienna (1781 - 1791) Staying in Vienna, Mozart earns a meagre living through concerts and as a music teacher.

At this time, Mozart writes some of his greatest operas: "Die Entf�hrung aus dem Serail" in 1782, "La nozze di Figaro" in 1786, "Don Giovanni" in 1787, "Cosi fan tutte" in 1790, and "La clemenza di Tito" in 1791. In the same year, his masterpiece "Die Zauberflöte" ("The magic flute") is staged in Vienna. Mozart′s work of this period is strongly influenced by the Baroque composers Johann Sebastian Bach and Georg Friedrich Händel. On the private side, Mozart marries Constanze Weber in 1782 - the sister of his former love Aloysia. The Mozarts have six children (Raimund Leopold in 1783, Karl Thomas in 1784, Johann Leopold in 1786, Theresia in 1787, Anna in 1789 and Franz Xaver Wolfgang in 1791). Four of them die during their childhood, only Karl Thomas and Franz Xaver survive.

In 1787, Mozart′s father Leopold dies in Salzburg. In 1784, Mozart joins the freemasons in the loge "Zur Wohltätigkeit" ("To Charity"). Socially critical tones nourished by Masonic thought can be seen in "Die Zauberflöte" and "La nozze di figaro". His later operas are highly demanding to the audience and Mozart′s success fades. Since he still spends his money like he did in his better years, his financial situation deteriorates - despite the fact that he gets hired as a court musician for the Imperial Court of Emperor Joseph II. Mozart′s death: Syphilis or Poison? In an attempt to spark his popularity once again, Mozart travels across Europe again on several occasions between 1787 and 1790. However, his fall seems to be unavoidable. Only his final opera "Die Zauberflöte" proves to become a late success. A few weeks after the staging of his masterpiece, Mozart becomes too ill to leave his room.

On the 5th of December 1791, Mozart dies at the age of 35, only a few weeks before his 36th birthday. The circumstances of his death are unclear and controversial. Mozart had mentioned to Constanze few weeks before his death that he fears to be poisoned. After he dies, rumours go through Vienna, often pointing towards his competitor Antonio Salieri. However, syphilis, heart issues and the brutal medical treatments of the time might be more realistic causes for the death of Mozart. Mozart is buried in a mass grave at the St. Marx cemetery. The grave is later determined - as good as possible - and some remains are transferred to a musician′s honour grave and memorial in the Vienna central cemetery. Mozart was possibly the world′s first superstar in a modern sense - hiring him for a concert was at least 1000 gulden; whilst he paid his maid one gulden a month. Regardless of his enormous earnings, he frequently got into financial difficulties due to his excessive lifestyle.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Salzburg, born and raised as a child genius Salzburg, 9 Getreidegasse: Little Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Sees the Light of the World Panoramic view of the City of Salzburg Engraving by Johann Baptist Homann (1664–1724) c. 1712 (State and University Library Bremen) Source: Wikimedia 1756 Salzburg Leopold Mozart playing music with his children Wolfgang Amadeus and Maria Anna in Paris in November 1763 Watercolour by Louis Carrogis Carmontelle (1717–1806) 1763 (Musée Condé, Chantilly) Source: Wikimedia Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart first saw the light of the world on January 27, 1756, a bitterly cold day. Little Wolfgang was the seventh child of Anna Maria Mozart and the composer at the court of the prince-archbishop of Salzburg, Leopold Mozart. Music played a central role in the Mozart household.

Leopold Mozart was a renowned composer in the employ of Prince-Archbishop Count Schrattenbach and frequently performed with the court ensemble of Salzburg. Little “Wolferl” was his constant companion. Mozart’s Salzburg was one of countless small towns in the Confederation of German States – strictly Catholic and very provincial. However, the town with its many baroque churches and majestic fortress was extremely wealthy and working for the prince-archbishop was considered to be extremely lucrative employment. In Salzburg, little Mozart grew up in a loving middle-class environment. "I want to play the second violin!" At the age of three Wolfgang discovered the piano. Soon he was able to play his first pieces. At the age of four he was able to play the second violin in the rehearsal of a string trio composed by his father – faultlessly despite never having learned to play the instrument. A miracle! Without doubt Leopold Mozart realised that his son was someone very special. From there on Leopold dedicated his time and passion to the musical education of his son and his gifted daughter Nannerl. At times, Leopold Mozart even put aside his own musical career in favour of his children.

Leopold Mozart: Father, Role-Model and Teacher Leopold Mozart taught Wolfgang and Nannerl to play the piano and the violin. He supported his children with a great deal of imagination and encouraged them to find their own ways. Their musical development became his purpose in life, therefore Leopold Mozart in particular paved the way for the talent of his son Wolfgang to be fulfilled . Life Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra Browse Music Salzburg Returning to Salzburg after a third journey to Italy in 1773, the seventeen-year-old Mozart—no longer a child prodigy, but a young professional with professional expectations—quickly grew restless. The years 1773 to 1780 marked the longest consecutive period of time Mozart would spend in his provincial hometown since his infancy. And despite his international profile, Mozart—who by this time had performed for Louis XV at Versailles and premiered operas in Vienna, Munich, and Milan—held only a modest court position with a meager salary of 150 gulden per year.

Making matters worse, the Mozarts’ supportive patron and employer, Archbishop Schrattenbach, had recently died and been succeeded by the unsavory Hieronymus von Colloredo. Colloredo instituted reforms that ultimately diminished Salzburg’s artistic environment, such as eliminating instrumental music from church services and otherwise curtailing public concerts. His relationship with the Mozarts was particularly contentious; failing to appreciate (or acknowledge) the quality of music being produced by his Konzertmeister, Colloredo dismissively suggested that Wolfgang “ought to go to a conservatory in Naples in order to learn music.” While fulfilling his obligations to provide church music (with little effort and even less enthusiasm), Mozart, naturally, became steadily withdrawn from musical life in Salzburg. With an eye towards securing a post in Vienna, Munich, or Paris, he instead focused greater energy on instrumental and secular vocal composition, producing an excellent catalogue of symphonies , violin concerti , piano concerti, arias, serenades , and other works. Such compositions as the Sinfonia concertante had little chance of being heard in Salzburg. Nor was the imbalance of Mozart’s artistic energies lost on the Archbishop.

Sinfonia Concertante for Violin and Viola In January 1781, Mozart led the premiere of Idomeneo , his first mature opera, in Munich, which met with great success. Two months later, Mozart was called to Vienna to join Colloredo’s retinue at the celebration of Emperor Joseph II’s accession. Mozart’s offense at being treated again as a common servant, following the great success he had just enjoyed, precipitated his final break with the Archbishop. He remained in Vienna, the musical capital of the Western world, without a court position, in essence becoming history’s first major freelance composer. Vienna Mozart quickly established himself as the finest keyboard player in Vienna, and likewise steadily built his reputation as a composer. But his early years in the city were not free of difficulty. His marriage to Constanze Weber, whom he wedded in 1782, was a happy one, but plagued by constant financial difficulty, owing to Mozart’s expensive taste and apparent inability to manage the couple’s finances. Meanwhile, surviving letters reveal a simmering tension between Wolfgang and Leopold as the younger Mozart struggled to establish his independence, both professionally and psychologically.

By 1784, Mozart, two years shy of his thirtieth birthday, was the toast of Vienna. The following four years would represent the most successful period of his career, marked by frequent concertizing and publication. No less an authority than Joseph Haydn proclaimed to Leopold Mozart in 1785: “Before God and as an honest man I tell you that your son is the greatest composer known to me either in person or by name. He has taste and, what is more, the most profound knowledge of composition.” Between 1784 and 1786, Mozart played the dual roles of artist and impresario to great success, composing with astonishing prolificacy and independently presenting concerts to unveil his latest creations: typically a symphony, a chamber work, perhaps a keyboard improvisation, and a piano concerto. Meanwhile, Mozart yearned to continue composing opera, having tasted success in that realm with Idomeneo.

After encountering various obstacles to finding another operatic opportunity—not least of which was his long futile search for an appealing libretto—he teamed for the first time in 1785–86 with the Italian librettist Lorenzo da Ponte, a happy collaboration that resulted in Le nozze di Figaro . This partnership, which subsequently produced Don Giovanni and Cosi fan tutti, stands as one of the most celebrated in operatic history. Towards the end of the 1780s, Mozart’s star began to fade among the notoriously fickle Viennese public. His decline in popularity only exacerbated the Mozart family’s continuing financial hardship. Wolfgang and Constanze’s misfortune is our gain, as their financial woes encouraged the creative fecundity of Mozart’s last years. His final opera, Die Zauberflöte , remains one of the most beloved staples of the canon. The mellifluous tone of the clarinetist Anton Stadler inspired the Clarinet Quintet and, within two months of the composer’s death, the glorious Clarinet Concerto.

Left unfinished (and heard today in various scholarly completions) was the powerful Requiem, commissioned in July 1791 by the recent widower Count Walsegg-Stuppach (and not, as Hollywood would prefer, the treacherous Salieri). Mozart took suddenly ill in November and died on December 5 from rheumatic fever (again foiling Hollywood) at the age of 35. He was buried two days later in a mass grave outside the city—an indication simply of Viennese public health protocol, not of Mozart’s standing with the public. On the contrary, despite increasing criticism that his music had become too learned and complex, Mozart was nevertheless regarded highly at the time of his death. Vienna mourned the great artist they knew they had lost. A Prolific Composer Symphony No. 41, Jupiter Concerti Mozart left five violin concerti, four horn concerti, and one each for clarinet and bassoon, aside from others for flute, oboe, et al., of uncertain authenticity—but his twenty-seven piano concerti are an especial triumph. The piano concerto arguably represents Mozart’s signature medium.

From his childhood, he revered the form, as captured in an anecdote later shared by one Johann Andreas Schachtner with Nannerl Mozart: I once went back to the house with your honoured father, after Thursday service, when we came upon the four-year-old Wolfgang busy with his pen. Papa: What are you writing? Wolfgang: A clavier concerto, the first movement is nearly finished. Papa: Let me see. Wolfgang: It’s not ready yet. Papa: Let me see: it must be quite something. His father took it away and showed me a smear of notes, most of them written over rubbed-out inkblots.

(NB: not knowing any better, little Wolfgangerl had dipped the pen to the bottom of the inkwell each time, so when he put it to the paper a drop of ink was bound to fall off, but he could deal with this by drawing the palm of his hand across it, wiping it away, and then writing straight on.) We began to laugh at this obvious gallimaufry, but then your father began to give attention to the chief question, the notes and their composition and, after looking at the sheet for some time, he began to shed tears, tears of wonderment and joy. Have a look, Herr Schachtner, he said, see how correctly and properly it is written, but it is really no use as it is so extraordinarily difficult that no-one could play it. Then Wolfgangerl said: That’s why it’s a concerto, you must practice for a long time to get it right, you see, that’s how it goes. He played, and managed to get just enough out of it for us to know what he wanted. He had the idea at that time that to play a concerto and work a miracle were one and the same thing.

The piano concerto would serve as Mozart’s calling card at the height of his fame in Vienna. Mozart composed twelve of the twenty-seven (from K. 449 to K. 503) for his self-presented concerts between 1784 and 1786. Expressly designed to showcase himself as both composer and virtuoso, these works crystallized the piano concerto medium: the piano writing is in equal measures logically expressive and brilliantly virtuosic; the dynamic between soloist and orchestra is pitch-perfect. Writing for The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Cliff Eisen and Stanley Sadie identify the concerti written in these three years as “unquestionably the most important works of their kind.”

Question: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in which city?
Answer: Salzburg