Mozart Essay, Research Paper

Mozart was born on January 27th, 1756. He was born to Leopold and Anna Maria Mozart. He had a sister named Maria Anna Mozart, who was also musically talented. Mozart was a young boy who showed talent from the beginning of his life. He never attended a proper school, which was a custom for children of that time. Instead of going to school, he was taught by his father who was a respectable man in Salzburg. His father held many professions such as concertmaster for the court orchestra of the Archbishop of Salzburg; violinist, composer and author. At the age of six, Mozart had become a performer on the clavier, violin, and organ. He was also skilled in sight-reading and improvisation. There are have piano pieces that were composed by Mozart when he was six years old and are still frequently played today. One of the pieces are “Twinkle Twinkle.” When he’s sister was at the age of ten and he at the age of six, their father took them to Munich and Vienna to play a series of concerts. In 1763, Leopold Mozart took a leave from his position at Salzburg court to take his family on a tour of Western Europe. Mozart and his sister performed in the major musical centers, including Stuttgart, Mannheim, Mainz, Frankfurt, Brussels, Paris, London, and Amsterdam. The family did not return to Salzburg until 1766. During that period of time touring, Mozart began to compose longer pieces with more structure and skill in them. He completed his first symphony at the age of nine and publishing his first sonatas in the same year. In 1769, Mozart and his father left the rest of the family to tour Italy for more than a year. They spent sufficient time in Rome, Milan, Florence, Naples, and Bologna. Mozart got to experience the taste of another culture. During those years, Wolfgang completed an opera called “Ro di Ponto,” which was celebrated in Italy. The same year, Mozart was appointed concertmaster to the Archbishop of Salzburg, and later in the same here, the Pope made him a chevalier of the Order of the Golden Spur. He also completed his first German operetta called, “Bastien une Bastienne,” in the same year. At the age of fourteen, Mozart was commissioned to write a serious opera. This work was called, “Mitridate, re di Ponto.” While Mozart was touring in Italy, the Archbishop of Salzburg died, and Hieronymus, count von Colleredo was the successor. This man cared little for music, and looked down upon Mozart. After five years of composing music for almost no money, Mozart obtained a leave of absence for a concert tour. In 177, he left with his mother for Munich. The courts of Europe ignored the twenty-one year old composer in his search for a more congenial and rewarding appointment. This was hard for Mozart, and at the same period of time his mother fell ill. His father, Leopold order his wife and Mozart to go to Paris. In Paris on July 1779, his mother died. He returned to Salzburg in 1779 and composed two masses and numerous symphonies, sonatas, and concertos. His work started to gain a unique style, and a completely mature understanding of musical media. In 1781, Mozart has a success of an Italian opera series called, “Idomeneo, re di Creta,” prompted the new successor to the Archbishop of Salzburg to invite Mozart to his palace in Vienna. A series of court intrigues and his exploitation at the hands of the court soon forced Mozart to leave. Friends rented the house in Vienna for him, Mozart hoped to sustain him by teaching. During this time, he composed a singspiel called, “The Adduction from Seraglio,” which was requested by Emperor Joseph the Second in 1782. When the Mozart family made their tip to Italy in 1769, they were introduced to the Webers. Franz Weber was a musician from Austria, living in Italy. He has a wife and two children who were named Constanze and Aloysia. Mozart loved this family, but his father disliked them for some reason. Mozart’s father didn’t want Mozart to be around this family, but Mozart dismissed his father’s wishes for and consorted with the two girls often. Being old enough to go off on his own, the trips made to Italy were partly because of the Weber girls. After many letters between Mozart and the Weber girls, Mozart decided to ask Aloysia Weber for her hand in marriage. Mozart’s father was furious at him and saying that the Weber girls would bring nothing but grief to his son, grief to his whole family. Mozart didn’t care about what his father said and asked Aloysia to marry him, and she said yes. The wedding day of Aloysia and Mozart came along, and many people came to the ceremony; including Aloysia’s sister Constanze, and Mozart’s father who came against his wishes. The wedding was looked like it could have gone perfect until Aloysia rejected the issued vows. Mozart was embarrassed, more so because his father had been proven right than because of his personal losses. For many years the Weber and Mozart families did not speak to each other. A year after the marriage incident, Mozart beings to once again visit the family, who have now moved to Vienna. On December 15th, 1781 Mozart informs his father on his marriage plans, and his father was enraged. He never liked his son’s acquaintance with the Webers. Mozart thinks his father is being unfair about the whole matter, and leaves Salzburg for Vienna to be married. On August 4th, 1782 Mozart marries Aloysia in St. Stephen’s Cathedral. Mozart’s father refuses his son’s invitation to the wedding, so does Aloysia. The couple moved into a house in Vienna together and had six children, two of which survived. The two surviving children were named Franz Xavier, and Karl Thomas Mozart. Sickness and poverty plague the family until the day of Mozart’s death. Seven years after Mozart’s death, Constanze married another man. Mozart and his family moved often in Vienna. Prior to his marriage, Mozart moved to the house called, “Zum roten Sabel,” where he had lived as a twelve-year old. A few months later, he lived at Wipplingerstrasse 14, at Kohlmarkt 7, and at Judenplatz 3-4. In 1784, Mozart moved to one of the most representative houses in Vienna called, “Trattnerhof.” At the ceremonial hall of the Trattnerhof house, Mozart’s piano concertos K449, 450, and 451 were premiered. Mozart’s only home in Vienna preserved until today is the “Figarohaus,” which is located behind St. Stephen’s Cathedral. Mozart lived there from October 1784 until April 1787. It’s where he played his most mature compositions. Joseph Haydn paid visited here; Mozart dedicated six string quartets to him. Mozart Becomes a Freemason In December 1784, Mozart became an “apprentice” in the Masonic lodge called, “Zur Wohltatigkeit.” In this lodge, he became a “visiting brother.” After a month, he became a “journeyman.” His “Masonic compositions” are his contributions to certain Masonic celebrations. From January 1786, Mozart was a member of the lodge called, “Zur Neugekronten Hoffnung.” The Death of a Genius: Mozart was an extremely talented man who died at a very young age. Many different rumors were circulated about his death. Many of people even accused his long time rival Aontonio Salieri of murder. These allegations were not pursued, but to this day, no one knows the cause of his death. Some scientists say that he had Typhoid fever, others claim that “rheumatic inflammatory fever” was the cause of his death; but the secret of his death will never are known. The key to Mozart’s death was buried with him on December 5th, 1791, in an unmarked grave, as was customary for those of his social standing, in Vienna. Maria Anna “Nannerl” Mozart: Born: Salzburg, July 30/31 1751 Died: Salzburg, October 29, 1829 Maria was a gifted musician whose abilities were quickly overshadowed by her younger brother, Mozart. At first, Maria was seen as the musical equivalent of Wolfgang, half of a sister-brother act that toured the capitals of Europe. In 1765 in London, she received top billing in concert advertisements written by her father. That changed when the children grew older. Because Mozart was the younger of the two, and because he preformed his own compositions, Mozart became the star and Nannerl the supporting player. Mozart thought highly of his sister’s ability. In September 1781 he wrote to her from Vienna: “…believe me, you could earn a great deal of money in Vienna, by playing private concerts and giving piano lessons. You would be very much in demand — and you would be well paid.” But it was not to be. Nannerl indeed became a piano teacher, but in “this dull Salzburg,” as she called it. In the wake of her brother’s perceived rebellion, she surrendered control of her life to her father — even her choice of suitors who, one by one, were turned away by Leopold. In 1784, she married the magistrate John Baptist Franz von Berchtold zu Sonnenburg and moved to St. Gilgen; but she returned to Salzburg to give birth to her first son, and left the newborn there in Leopold’s care. Nannerl eventually grew more distant from Mozart, especially after his marriage to Constanze Weber. Their next time they met where after Leopold’s death, there affections for each other had all disappeared. Mozart’s brief letters to her dealt almost exclusively with the disposition of their father’s estate. After her husband’s death, Maria Anna returned to Salzburg and supported herself once again by giving piano lessons. When she died she was buried in the family plot next to Leopold where 13 years later Constanze would join her. Leopold Mozart: Born: Augsburg, November 14, 1719 Died: Salzburg, May 28, 1787 History has not been nice to Leopold Mozart. Biographers criticize him for being an overprotective and exploitative parent. Psychoanlysis detected a darker pattern of manipulation in Leopold’s relationship with his children, especially his relationship with his son. On stage and screen, scriptwriters present a picture of a narrow-minded, domineering old man. “On Whit Monday the 28th, in the year 1787, early, died our Vice Kapellmeister Leopold Mozart,” wrote family friends Dominicus Hagenauer in his diary. “He was born at Augsburg and spent most of the days of his life in the service of the Court here, but had the misfortune of being always persecuted here and was not as much favored by a long way as in other, larger places in Europe.” Musicologists are less willing to criticize Leopold. If his famous son had not overshadowed him, he would still be remembered as a talented composer and a gifted teacher. His treatise on musical instruction, Volinschule, was first published in 1756, eventually translated into several languages and became a standard test throughout Europe. He was also Mozart’s first and most influential mentor. Everything he knew, he taught to his son. Leopold was born on November 14, 1719, the son of Johann Georg Mozart who was a bookbinder, and his wife, Anna Maria, in the city of Augsburg. Leopold received his early education from the Jesuits in the Gymnasium and Lyceum. He may have been destined for a career in the church; but he abandoned it upon the death of his father and in 1737 enrolled at the University of Salzburg. His studies there got off to a fine start. He passed a difficult examination at the end of his first year and was commended for his work. But perhaps the change to a secular course of study, and the move from Augburg, wasn’t enough to satisfy Leopold’s rebellious spirit. His academic performance slipped, and in 1739 he was expelled from the university. He made his own way in life by entering the service of Count Johann of Thurn-Valsassina und Taxis, a canon of the cathedral, and was given the tittle of Kammerdiener, or valet de chambre. But his duties were one of a musician. Within a few years, he was accepted as a chamber musician into the orchestra of the Prince-Archbishop. Being assured of a steady income, he married Anna Maria Partl in the cathedral on November 21, 1747 when he was 28 years old and his bride was 27. These two were a good match because years later it would be recalled that, “The two Mozart parents were in their day the handsomest couple in Salzburg.” Leopold would write from Italy on the occasion of their silver anniversary: “Today is the anniversary of our wedding day. It was twenty-five years ago, I think, that we had the sensible idea of getting married, one, which we had cherished, it is true, for many years. All good things take time!” The Mozart had seven children, five of which died in infancy. The two that survived were called Maria Anna Walburga Ignatia and Johann Chrysostom Wolfgang Gottlieb, proved to be a musical prodigy. Leopold’s own musical activity decreased as he became aware of his children’s talents and assumed the multiple roles of parent, teacher, collaborator and manager. He stopped composing and neglected his professional duties altogether to devote himself more fully to his children’s musical development. Of the five prince-archbishops that Leopold would serve in his 44 years in the court orchestra, two would greatly affect his career and that of his son. Count Sigismund Christoph Schrattenbach was fond of music. He appointed Leopold vice-Kapellmeister in 1763 and gave him much freedom to promote his son’s career. Agreeing with Schrattenbach’s blessing, Leopold and his family embarked on several trips including a “grand tour” of more than three years that took them as far as Paris and London. Count Hieronymus Colloredo elected archbishop in 1772, was personally very fond of music but slow to rationalize its use in his court and church. He also had a dictatorial temperament and booked no criticism. He treated the court musicians as servants, and would make no exceptions. This didn’t go well with Leopold, who by nature was resentful and suspicious of authority. His overriding goal became to secure employment for his son outside of Salzburg. In 1777, Colbredo refused to give Leopold leave to accompany his son on a job-hunting trip to Germany and France. Leopold made every effort to manage the tour by letter from Salzburg; he soon began to lose control of events. First, in Mannheim, Mozart tarried and fell head over heels in love with Aloysia Weber. Leopold saw this love a threat and urged Mozart to continue on to France. Second, in Paris, Anna Maria became ill and died. Leopold had a hard time comprehending his loss. He wrote: “It is mysteriously sad when death severs a very happy marriage — you have to experience it before you can realize it.” Third: the bond between him and his son been damaged. Leopold made it clear that he held Mozart responsible for Anna Maria’s death. Yet after his wife’s death, he realizes that he needed his son more than ever. After Mozart returned to Salzburg, he would do everything in his power to keep him there. Mozart was defying his father as well, a fact that became clear when he courted and married Constanze Weber against Leopold’s advice. At last, Leopold gave his consent, but he and his son both knew that is was only a matter of form. Mozart, who usually closed his letters to his father with the words “I am your most obedient son,” virtually stopped writing to him, because he became very busy with his own family and career. In his letters to Nannerl, Leopold stopped referring Mozart by name but by calling him, “my son” or “your brother.” In the fall of 1783, Mozart and Constanze went to see Leopold to set things right, and there is some evidence that Leopold’s attitude towards his son and daughter-in-law softened somewhat when he visited them in early 1785. In Vienna Leopold was able to experience Mozart’s popularity at its peak. “We never get to bed before one o’clock and I never get up before nine,” he complained in a letter home to Nannerl. “We lunch at two or half past. The weather is horrible. Every day there are concerts; and the whole time is given up to teaching, music, composing and so forth. I feel father out of it all. If only the concerts were over! It is impossible for me to describe the rush and bustle. Since my arrival your brother’s fortepiano has been taken at least a dozen times to the theatre or to some other house.” Earlier, Leopold had proudly recounted a conversation with Fraz Josef Haydn, one of the most respected composers on the continent: “: “Haydn said to me: ‘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.’ ” Shortly before Leopold’s departure from Vienna, he was admitted to Mozart’s Masonic lodge. Now they were more than father and son, they were like “brothers,” and it was in this spirit that Mozart would write to Leopold as he lay dying in Salzburg: “”This very moment I have received a piece of news which greatly distresses me, the more so as I gathered from your last letter that, thank God, you were very well indeed. But now I hear that you are really ill. I need hardly tell you how greatly I am longing to receive some reassuring news from yourself. And I still expect it; although I have now made a habit of being prepared in all affairs of life for the worst. As death, when we come to consider it closely, is the true goal of our existence, I have formed during the last few years such close relations with this best and truest friend of mankind, that his image is not only no longer terrifying to me, but is indeed very soothing and consoling! And I thank my God for graciously granting me the opportunity (you know what I mean) of learning that death is the key which unlocks the door to our true happiness. . . . I hope and trust that while I am writing this, you are feeling better. But if, contrary to all expectation, you are not recovering, implore you by . . . not to hide it from me, but to tell me the whole truth or get someone to write it to me, so that as quickly as is humanly possible I may come to your arms. I entreat you by all that is sacred — to both of us.” Mozart would never see his father again. On Whit Monday, May 28th, 1787, this intelligent and complicated man died at the age of 68. He has lived long enough to witness his son’s brilliance, and he probably understood that he himself had long been eclipsed. His greasiest success was at once his own most bitter personal failure. History has not been kind to Leopold Mozart, it is because it has never forgiven him. Anna Maria Mozart: Born: St. Gilgen, baptized December 25, 1720 Died: Paris, July 3, 1778 She was baptized on Christmas Day, 1720, in the parish church of St. Gilgen. The entry in the church register duly notes that she was the daughter of Eva Rosina and Nicolaus Pertl, deputy prefect of Hildenstein. Some years later, an anonymous hand would add: “Mother of the famous Mozart.” Despite her being the son of famous Mozart, she remains an unknown quantity, a background presence that rarely takes center stage in accounts of her son’s life. Her name has been the cause of some confusion. Whether through carelessness on the part of parish scribes, or because names once were more malleable than they are now, she is just as likely to be referred to as Maria Anna Mozart. She married Leopold Mozart on November 21, 1747. Five of their children died in infancy. The strongest survived six months, the weakest six days. Though back then, there was a bigger rate of in fact deaths, so it wasn’t surprising to have 3 children die. The two children who survived were Maria Anna Walbuga Ignatia and Johann Chrysostom Wolfgang Gottlieb. The children’s father was a composer and on internationally recognized violin instructor, nothing could possibly have prepared the children’s mother for what was to come. Their prodigious musical talents — and Leopold’s prodigious promotional talent — would carry Anna Maria far from Salzburg. She and her family visited the courts of Europe and got to be with with the royalty: Maria Theresa and her son, Joseph, of Austria; Louis XV of France; and George III of England. Even though she was left behind during her son’s three tours of Italy, circumstances led to her accompanying him on his fateful job-hunting expedition to southern Germany and Paris: because the Archbishop of Salzburg would not grant Leoplod leave to accompany his son, Anna Maria went instead. They left for Salzburg for Bavaria in September 1777. In her letters home, Anna Maria becomes suddenly tangible. They reveal an intelligent, optimistic woman possessed of a wry, self-deprecating wit. They also give us a good indication of the origin of Mozart’s fondness for scatological humor. From Munich, she wrote to Leopold: “Addio, ben mio. Keep well, my love. Into your mouth your arse you’ll shove. I wish you good-night, my dear, but first xxxx in your beaded make it burst. It is long after one o’clock already. Now you can go on rhyming yourself.” When things did not work out as planned in Germany, Leopold urged his wife and son onto Paris. Anna Maria agreed, and they left Mannheim in the spring of 1778. In Paris, the incessant rounds of socializing, teaching and job hunting meant that Mozart had to leave his mother alone for days at a time. She did not speak French. Neglected and isolated, she kept up a brave front. ” I don’t get out much, it is true, and the rooms are cold, even when a fire is burning,” she wrote on May 1. “You just to get used to it.” Her health began to deteriorate. A letter of June 12th is full of gossip but shorter than usual because, she reported, she had been bleeding the day before and couldn’t write much. Her last words to Leopold are in the postscript: “I must stop, for my arm and eyes are aching.” Three weeks later, Anna Maria was dead. “Her life flickered out like a candle,” wrote her son to a family friend. She was buried the next day in the churchyard of the parish of Saint-Eustache in Paris. The register read: “On the said day, Marie-Anna Partl, aged 57 years, wife of Leopold Mozart, ma?tre de chapelle at Salzburg, Bavaria, who died yesterday at Rue du Groschenet, has been interred in the cemetery in the presence of Wolfgang Am?d?e Mozart, her son, and of Fran?ois Heina, trumpeter in the light cavalry in the Royal Guard, a friend.”