The History Book Club discussion

This thread is dedicated to the Mozart and his music.



Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (German: [ˈvɔlfɡaŋ amaˈdeus ˈmoːtsaʁt], baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791), was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era.

He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music. He is among the most enduringly popular of classical composers.

Mozart showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood in Salzburg. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty.

At 17, he was engaged as a court musician in Salzburg, but grew restless and travelled in search of a better position, always composing abundantly. While visiting Vienna in 1781, he was dismissed from his Salzburg position.

He chose to stay in the capital, where he achieved fame but little financial security. During his final years in Vienna, he composed many of his best-known symphonies, concertos, and operas, and portions of the Requiem, which was largely unfinished at the time of Mozart's death. The circumstances of his early death have been much mythologized. He was survived by his wife Constanze and two sons.

Mozart learned voraciously from others, and developed a brilliance and maturity of style that encompassed the light and graceful along with the dark and passionate. His influence on subsequent Western art music is profound.

Beethoven wrote his own early compositions in the shadow of Mozart, of whom Joseph Haydn wrote that "posterity will not see such a talent again in 100 years."

See full article and source:

Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfgang...

< img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia..." />

I read by Maynard Solomon several years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. Solomon bases much of his work on Freudian ideas of father and the whole Oedipus thing and that sometimes gets a bit over-speculative.

That said, it's a wonderfully well written book with an enormous amount of information in it. I recommend it to anyone interested.

Excellent posts Max with some great information, thanks for sharing. Is the book you are going to read next on Mozart the biography by Peter Gay?

by Peter Gay

Yes, it's a small book but provides all the information to get you interested in Mozart. It was the first book that I read on him but it came with some CD's to listen to as well while you are reading about him.

Thanks Max for the list. When you have a chance, it would be great to have links to the others for those folks who may be sampling Mozart for the first time.

Can someone recommend a good biography of Mozart? I love the movie Amadeus, but I believe that's not an accurate representation of his life. Oh-oh. I see I should have looked further up in this thread. Never mind.

Vicki wrote: "Can someone recommend a good biography of Mozart? I love the movie Amadeus, but I believe that's not an accurate representation of his life. Oh-oh. I see I should have looked further up in this ..."

Vicki, there is a "new" film out on Amadeus Mozart, or better his sister, Nannerl. It came out in France in 2010.
As far as I know it has also been released in the US - as Mozart's Sister.

Here's the link to imdb - where you can watch the trailer and take a look at some of the stills.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1653911/

André wrote: "Vicki, there is a "new" film out on Amadeus Mozart, or better his sister, Nannerl. It came out in France in 2010.
As far as I know it has also been released in the US - as Mozart's Sister."

Thanks, it's already on my Netflix Save list. It looks really interesting.

LOVE Mozart!! So relaxing and particularly love listening to on a rainy day staying in nice and cozy with some tea and a good book (or whatever else you enjoy doing).

Symphony #40:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hJf4Z...

Another of the musical geniuses who was not appreciated in his lifetime as he has been by posterity.

Mozart

by Johannes Jansen (no photo)

Synopsis;

Wunderkind, genius, rebel: the short life of a great man In the whole history of classical music, is there anyone to equal Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Familiar with the pianoforte aged 3, composing at 5, if there is an argument for a genetic predisposition to genius, then surely this Austrian "meister" will be first on anyone's lips. His vast oeuvre is equalled only by his turbulent and colourful life. The stuff of legend, a player, composer and conductor, in 35 explosive years he threw out the rule book and changed every form he worked within. Who else has written tens of symphonies, and operas ? such as "The Magic Flute" and "Cosi Fan Tutte" ? that to those in the know are a match in their medium to Shakespeare. Whether in concertos, quartets or sonatas, Mozart imbued his scores with both a dazzling gaiety and an undercurrent of melancholy, the combination of which makes his music resound with the universal experience of being human. Despite suspicions surrounding his early death he lives on as one of the giants of sonic creativity, and was popularised for a new generation in the Oscar-winning "Amadeus." It's this simple: To many Mozart is music. We rest our case

In Amadeus, there is a line that Mozart wrote music as if he "was taking dictation from God". Although Amadeus has been criticized in terms of accuracy, this does seem to hit the mark.

Mark Kac, a physicist, distinguished two types of genius:
[blockquote]
There are two kinds of geniuses: the ‘ordinary’ and the ‘magicians.’ an ordinary genius is a fellow whom you and I would be just as good as, if we were only many times better. there is no mystery as to how his mind works. Once we understand what they ’ve done, we feel certain that we, too, could have done it. it is different with the magicians... Feynman is a magician of the highest caliber.
[/blockquote]

and I heard Leonard Bernstein (I think it was him) compare Beethoven to Mozart, saying that Beethoven was the first type of genius, while Mozart was a magician.

Beethoven wrote slowly, he crossed out, corrected, etc.

Mozart simply wrote the music down out of his head.

Interesting post, Peter.

One of Mozart's most beautiful piece of music:

Lacrimosa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1-Tr...

A particularly well done biography of Mozart.

Mozart

by Paul Johnson

Synopsis:

Acclaimed historian and author Paul Johnson here offers a concise, illuminating biography of Mozart. Johnson’s focus is on the music—Mozart’s wondrous output of composition and his uncanny gift for instrumentation.

Liszt once said that Mozart composed more bars than a trained copyist could write in a lifetime. Mozart’s gift and skill with instruments was also remarkable as he mastered all of them except the harp. For example, no sooner had the clarinet been invented and introduced than Mozart began playing and composing for it.

In addition to his many insights into Mozart’s music, Johnson also challenges the many myths that have followed Mozart, including those about the composer’s health, wealth, religion, and relationships. Always engaging, Johnson offers readers and music lovers a superb examination of Mozart and his glorious music, which is still performed every day in concert halls and opera houses around the world.

REMEMBERING WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART



5th December, 1791, 12.55 AM, Vienna.

'Today' (dec 5, Vienna time, 1791), the world lost a talent never seen before or since - a one time wunderkind-turned-virtuoso who forever changed the course and sound of classical music. He may have existed more often than not, a pauper, but in terms of the legacy he left in the annals of music history, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart lived and died a King.

"I went into the kitchen; the fire had gone out. I had to light a candle and make a fire. I was thinking of Mozart constantly. The coffee was ready and the candle was still burning...I stared right at it and I thought to myself, 'I wonder how Mozart is?' and while I was thinking this and staring at the candle, it went out, as if it had never been alight.."

- Sofie, sister of Mozart's wife, Constanze, in the hours leading up to the composer's impending death.

-Rose.

Aside from the obvious liberties taken in the creating of that otherwise sublime film (Salieri’s involvement with Mozart and his Oeuvre), many viewers took issue with the actual depiction of Mozart’s character - with critics claiming he was inaccurately portrayed as a buffoon with crude humor. In fact, this facet of the Composer’s demeanour was actually true! A not insignificant amount of letters, written by Wolfgang Mozart and by the Mozart family were kept preserved by the composers father, Leopold. Originally published circa 1962 in a whopping seven volumes, they display a humor at best scatological, at worst, inappropriately suggestive and filled to the brim with exquisite word play (word reversals, and my personal favorite (as a budding yet amateur translator of libretti myself) - mixing the romance languages together in one letter). This humor, including, surprisingly, the scatological humor, was shared by other members of the Mozart family, including Wolfgang’s mother!

Take, for example, this excerpt from “Mozart’s Letters, Mozart’s Life”, as translated by Robert Spaethling (citation listed below) written by the composer while in Manheim to his cousin, Maria Anna Thekla Mozart back in Augsburg (and this is the TAME stuff!), dated 5th of November, 1777. (*Note the letters to his mother, and some additional letters written in the same vein to his cousin I have not quoted here due to their graphic nature. I am putting this otherwise tame example under a spoiler in the interest of ‘decency’. If any mods have an issue with the quote please inform me and I will remove it).

Spoiler: click to see quote at your own discretion. (Note: ***denotes editing by myself not present in the original letter.)

(view spoiler)[
“...Now I must relate to you a sad story that happened just this minute. As I am in the middle of my best writing, I hear a noise in the street. I start writing - get up, go to the window - and - the noise is gone - I sit down again, start writing once more-I have barely written words when I hear the noise again - I rise - but as I rise, I can hear something but very faint - it smells like something burning - wherever I go it stinks, when I look out the window, the smell goes away, when I turn my head back to the room, the smell comes back - finally, My Mama says to me: I bet you let one go? - I don’t think so, Mama. yes, yes, I’m quite certain. I put it to the test, stick my finger in my *** then put it to my nose, and-Ecce Provatum est! Mama was right! Now farewell, I kiss you 10000 times and I remain as always your
old young Sauschwanz,
Wolfgang Amadé Rosenkranz

From us two Travellers a thousand
Regards to my uncle and aunt.

To every good friend I send
My greet feet; addio nitwit...” (hide spoiler)]

The quote used in this spoiler taken from

as edited by Robert Spaethling (no photo).

-Rose.


Vicki wrote: "... I love the movie Amadeus, but I believe that's not an accurate representation of his life..."

An interesting fact: A young Beethoven (16) actually had lessons with none other than Mozart himself! His teacher declared him “sure to become a second Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart” if he could continue to improve his already great talent!

-Rose.


Peter wrote: "...and I heard Leonard Bernstein (I think it was him) compare Beethoven to Mozart, saying that Beethoven was the first type of genius, while Mozart was a magician.

Beethoven wrote slowly, he crossed out, corrected, etc.

Mozart simply wrote the music down out of his head."

It is strongly suggested that Mozart only wrote, at least in his own hand, the first 8 bars of the Lacrimosa. Many scholars of this period note slight variations after this point, and it is believed that Mozart contemporary and fellow composer and pupil Franz Xaver Süssmayr completed it.

(Conductor Christoph Spering's "original", alleged "unfinished" version of the Requiem, without the Süssmayer additions, can be heard on youtube here.

In a biography sold shortly after his very tender-aged demise by his wife, Constanze Mozart goes as far as to state that the 8 bars of the Lacrimosa were the “last acts” of the dying Virtuoso.* This, however, is to be taken with some circumspection - the Widow Mozart was left largely in debt following the passing of her husband, and needed some means to support her new found status as such. It has been suggested that in order to enjoy fiscal freedom, both the authorship of the Requiem and it’s incomplete status was kept a closely guarded secret, as revealing any hint of inauthenticity or incompletion would drastically effect her from receiving both the commission for the work (believed to be from one Count Walsegg) and from receiving the top dollar from the public and various publishers who believed they were experiencing the rare occasion of immersing themselves in the ethereal sound of a man who was said to occupy a “direct ear to God”. It is also of interest to note that the Widow Mozart did, indeed go on to secure for herself substantial wealth following Mozart’s death, largely attributed to the careful selection and presentation of concerts and published works of her late husband, even earning herself a pension from the Emperor.

*Contrast this statement with that of her sister, Sofie, who also was at the dying composers’ bedside: “...The last thing he did was to try and mouth the drum passages in the Requiem. I can still hear that.”

-Rose.


Jill wrote: "One of Mozart's most beautiful piece of music:

Lacrimosa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1-Tr..."

This is partly true, but must be placed into context as to the role of a musician at the time Mozart lived. The age of glorification of the musical artist, unfortunately, had not yet dawned in Europe. Musicians, in this case, Composers - were seen not so much as entertainers of luxury, but rather as servants. It was remarkably difficult to secure a steady income or wealth as a composer, even in the 18th century, without securing an appointment, preferably a court appointment,** and even then, it had to promise a salary, a pension - in addition to fulfilling private commissions, subscriptions, and concerts the composer could only hope would yield a healthy lot of performances.

Mozart, all too aware of his genius, suffered the unfortunate syndrome of egoistic-driven self sustainability - a determined desire to go it alone, aspiring to create for himself an ‘empire’ of wealth built on the latter, ensuring the bulk of the proceeds drawn from subscriptions went directly to him in lieu of his publisher. While this strategy may make sense to us today, 18th century Europe was not quite ready for such a deviation from the status quo.

**Compare the composers Georg Friedrich Händel, who secured for himself Court appointment, and at the time of death in April of 1759 was estimated to have been worth £20, 000 (a sizable sum for that period) with the also noted and esteemed Composer W.F. Bach, who died in abject poverty in July of 1784.

Critically, Mozart enjoyed periods of great esteem and praise. In Vienna (July, 1782), the composer launched his first production of Die Entführung aus Dem Serail* - it was a ravishing triumph, and went on to become the greatest success of the young composer’s career. (Despite what the aforementioned film “Amadeus” would have us believe).

*This Opera Singspiel would later attract the praise of the literary elite in Goethe.

Italy was also a great time of flourishment and accreditation for Mozart, who, within in two years earned himself an elected spot at the Accedemia Filharmonica of Bologna; nominated an honorary director to the Accedemia of Verona; commissioned to write another opera for Milan (Lucio Silla); his serenata Ascanio in Alba commissioned for the wedding of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria to Princess Maria Beatrice D’Este of Modeana in Milan, and the distinction of Knight of the Golden Spur, bestowed upon him by Cardinal Pallavicini - a distinction of particular note, as no other but one (a musician, Orlando di Lasso) had previously received the order in such a high grade. This distinction brought Mozart a meeting before, and esteem from, the Pope.

Mozart’s time in Italy also marked the period behind the infamous Sistine Chapel anecdote of a young Wolfgang, who, overcome with a state of prodigal reverie upon hearing Composer Gregorio Allegri’s exquisite “Miserere Mei Deus” (a composition whose ornaments were notoriously kept a guarded secret among the Catholic Church), rushed home to pen the choral masterpiece from memory.

The years prior to Mozart’s death were arguably some of the most productive years of the composers’ short life. They also brought with them much critical acclaim. One of Mozart’s last Operas, Le Nozze de Figaro, was noted for it’s splendor:

“...it contains so many beautiful things, and such a wealth of ideas, as can only be drawn from the source of inherent genius.”
- Wiener Realzeitung, 1786

Publicly praised by esteemed composers (the likes of Franz Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven) and their teachers alike, Mozart was anything but ordinary.

“Salieri listened and watched with great attention, from the overture all the way through to the final chorus, there was not a single number that did not elicit from him a “bravo” or “bello...” - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, in his last letter to his wife, Vienna, Oct 14, 1791 .****

-Rose.

****A note on suggested reading:

I have studied and own quite a few biographies on Herr Mozart, including some of the fine titles mentioned in this thread. For anyone seeking an in depth look into the character of the great Composer, I highly recommend the below mentioned title as a contemporary/autobiographical account of aspirations, accomplishments and failings both inside and outside of the musical sphere in which Mozart lived. To supplement any Mozart biography, "The Compleat Mozart: A Guide to the Musical Works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart" as edited by Neal Zaslaw is a must have.

****The excerpt taken from Mozart’s last letter to his wife can be found here:

, as edited by Robert Spaethling (no photo).

and Zaslaw's compilation of Mozart's vast oeuvre can be found here:

, as edited by Neal Zaslaw (no photo).

-Rose.


Jill wrote: "Another of the musical geniuses who was not appreciated in his lifetime as he has been by posterity....

Mozart: An Introduction to the Music, the Man, and the Myths

by Roye E. Wates (no photo)

Synopsis

Mozart: An Introduction to the Music, the Man, and the Myths explores in detail 20 of the composer's major works in the context of his tragically brief life and the turbulent times in which he lived. Addressed to non-musicians seeking to deepen their technical appreciation for his music while learning more about Mozart the man than the caricature portrayed in the 1986 movie Amadeus, this book offers extensive biographical and historical background debunking many well-established Mozart myths along with guided study of compositions representing every genre of 18th-century music: opera, concerto, symphony, church music, divertimento and serenade, sonata, and string quartet.

Classical Music for Studying and Concentration | Mozart Music Study, Relaxation, Reading

3 Hours of some of the best Classical Music for Studying and Concentration. The most relaxing instrumental music. "III. Rondeau – Allegro" from Concerto for Flute, Harp, and Orchestra by Mozart.

Here is the link: https://youtu.be/vwIUJbIU57s

Source: Youtube

Best of Mozart

6-Hour Mozart Piano Classical Music Studying Playlist Mix by JaBig: Great Beautiful Long Pieces

Tracklisting:

Piano Concerto No. 04 in G major, K41 - II. Andante
Piano Concerto No. 17 in G major, K453 - II. Andante
Piano Concerto No. 22 in E-flat major, K482 - II. Andante
Piano Concerto No. 16 in D major, K451 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 09 "Jeunehomme" in E-flat major, K271 - III. Rondeau. Presto - Menuetto - Presto
Piano Concerto No. 26 "Coronation" in D major, K 537 - III. Allegretto
Piano Concerto No. 22 in E-flat major, K482 - III. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K466 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 09 "Jeunehomme" in E-flat major, K271 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 12 in A major, K414/385p - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 15 in B-flat major, KV450 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 12 in A major, K414/385p - II. Andante
Piano Concerto No. 13 in C major, KV415/387b - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 17 in G major, K453 - I. Allegro
Rondo in D major, K382
Piano Concerto No. 22 in E-flat major, K482 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major, K503 - I. Allegro maestoso
Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major, K467 - I. Allegro maestoso
Piano Concerto No. 26 "Coronation" in D major, K 537 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor, K491 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 27 in B-flat major, K595 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 19 in F major, K 459 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 18 in B-flat major, K456 - I. Allegro vivace
Piano Concerto No. 09 "Jeunehomme" in E-flat major, K271 - II. Andantino
Piano Concerto No. 18 in B-flat major, K456 - II. Andante un poco sostenuto
Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K488 - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K466 - II. Romance
Piano Concerto No. 10 (for two pianos) E-flat major, K365/316a - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor, K491 - III. Allegretto
Piano Concerto No. 07 (for three pianos) in F major, K242 - II. Adagio
Piano Concerto No. 27 in B-flat major, K595 - III. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 14 in E-flat major, KV449 - I. Allegro vivace
Piano Concerto No. 11 in F major, K413/387a - I. Allegro
Piano Concerto No. 27 in B-flat major, K595 - II. Larghetto

Here is the link:
https://youtu.be/E2LM3ZlcDnk

Source: Youtube

Mozart - Requiem

Link: https://youtu.be/Zi8vJ_lMxQI

Source: Youtube

Mozart Documentary - The Genius of Mozart 1/3 "Miracle of Nature"

Great BBC documentary of the musical genius Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart!

The story begins with the composer's father Leopold with whom Mozart conducted a passionate and tortured correspondence. It is Leopold who knows Mozart's secrets. And there is another voice: that of the music itself. Music is the key to unlocking the emotions of Mozart, starting in this film with the great piano works. Without this key, how can we ever understand the emotions that gave birth to some of the most beautiful sounds the world has ever heard? The first great phase of Mozart's brief life was that of the travelling child prodigy - gifted as a performer and writer of music - who grew into the genius who, working within the restrictions of his time, began to rewrite the musical rules.But there was another facet to Mozart - the adult thinker aware of the bigger picture, passionately attached to the progressive values of the Enlightenment - impressively well-read, a speaker of most European languages (even a little English), an Austrian Catholic, a Freemason and above all a composer at the height of his formidable powers, determined to succeed in the most difficult and lucrative area of all - Opera. Towards the end of his life, Mozart mastered the language of instrumental and orchestral writing - and how both love and loss provoked in him an extraordinary burst of creativity. This was essentially crystallised in three ambitious works that changed the future course of music: his last, great trilogy of symphonies - numbers 39, 40 and 41 - which he wrote in six short weeks. Written by BBC.

Part I - https://youtu.be/vrXpzOFknN0

Part II - https://youtu.be/zVwxFvjU5vk

Part III - https://youtu.be/VYEImmQdCz8

Source: Youtube

The Making of Amadeus (2002)

This riveting film takes a look behind the scenes at one of the 20th century's cinema classics and at one of contemporary cinema's most maddeningly brilliant directors, Milos Forman.

Movie Amadeus (1984) won 8 oscars and its a classical masterpiece.

Here is the link: https://youtu.be/uWeqBI-Xsj4

Source: Youtube

Bentley, I loved this movie!!

I did too. This is just a behind the scenes view but I thought folks would find it interesting.

W.A. Mozart by Hermann Albert

by Hermann Abert (no photo)

Synopsis:

Hermann Abert's classic biography, first published in German more than eighty years ago and itself based on the definitive mid-nineteenth century study by Otto Jahn, remains the most informed and substantial biography of Mozart in any language. The book is both the fullest account of the composer’s life and a deeply skilled analysis of his music.

Proceeding chronologically from 1756 to 1791, the book interrogates every aspect of Mozart’s life, influences, and experience; his personality; his religious and secular dimensions; and the social context of the time. In “a book within a book,” Abert also provides close scrutiny of the music, including the operas, orchestral work, symphonies and piano concertos, church music and cantatas, and compositions for solo instruments.

While the tone of Abert’s great work is expertly rendered by Stewart Spencer, developments in Mozart scholarship since the last German edition are signaled by the Mozart scholar, Cliff Eisen, in careful annotations on every page. Supported by a host of leading Mozart scholars, this immense undertaking at last permits English-language readers access to the most important single source on the life of this great composer.

The Best of Mozart

https://youtu.be/Rb0UmrCXxVA

Source: Youtube