Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart baptized as Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart lived from January 27, 1756 to December 5, 1791. Mozart was a very influential and prolific composer of more than 600 works, including symphonies, concertante, chamber, piano, opera, and choral music. Regarded as a child prodigy, Mozart composed and performed in the European courts from the age of five, and was engaged at the Salzburg court at 17. Mozart’s musical style can be classified as Classical, although he learned from many of his contemporaries throughout his musical career. In order to better understand Mozart’s genius it is best to begin looking at his earliest contributions to the musical world as a child. From there, an exploration of his composition work in the employ of various patrons gives a more rounded picture of the development of Mozart’s musical style. Mozart is one of the most enduring composers, with his work continuing to resonate with modern audiences.
Mozart was born to a deputy Kapellmeister to the court orchestra of the Archbishop of Salzburg. Leopold, Mozart’s father, was also a minor composer and teacher. Mozart’s musical abilities were first noticed when he showed great interest in the music lessons of his older sister. By the age of five, the Mozart family was touring European courts. The young Mozart showed great ability in the playing and composition of small pieces, many of which were transcribed by his father, and survive today. Eventually, Leopold gave up his own composing to concentrate on the talents of his young son. Leopold was also the early teacher of all of Mozart’s studies. After extensive touring from 1762 to 1773, Mozart was given employ at the Salzburg court at the age of 17. There, he had the op...
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...followed him. Besides being a force behind developing the classical style, Mozart’s musical abilities inspired many aspiring musicians. Indeed, Mozart’s work continues to thrill audiences and imitators alike.
Works Cited
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"About Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart- Classical Archives." Classical Archives. classicalarchives.com, 2008. Web. 22 Jun 2010.
"Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart." Studio-Mozart. studio-mozart.com, 2000. Web. 22 Jun 2010. .
"Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart- Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia.org. wikipedia.org, 20 Jun 2010. Web. 22 Jun 2010. .
Sadie, Stanley. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Essays on his Life and his Music. United States: Oxford University Press. 1996, Print.
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Mozart was born to Leopold and Maria Pertl Mozart. Mozart’s father, Leopold, was a composer, violinist, and assistant concert master in the Salzburg court. Due to the fact that his father was deeply involved in music, Mozart was influenced at very young age. Mozart had begun learning how to play the piano as early as the age of three. Under his father’s advisement, Mozart and his sister,
The result of Mozart's discovered genius was not only the praise of hundreds across Europe during his childhood tour, but also the ever-watchful eye of Leopold Mozart, his ambitious and needy father. Because of Leopold's need to protect and constantly supervise his prized instrument, Mozart, Leopold grew dependent on his son and never ceased to remind Mozart of it. Eventually, like most child prodigies, the greater the parent's anxiety and the greater the pressure he puts on the child, the more internally resentful and conflicted the child becomes, stunting his transition into a grown man. In Leopold's letter to his wife and Mozart on September 25, 1777 from Salzburg, Leopold reminds Mozart to "ask for letters of recommendation and especially for a letter from the Bishop of Chiemsee." Leopold knows exactly how to reap profits and network through Mozart and doesn't fail to capitalize on that fact, even when Leopold is in Salzburg while Mozart is miles away on tour in Europe. After the tragic death of Maria Anna, Leopold Mozart's letter to his son on August 3, 1778 in Salzburg puts a large weight on Mozart, and even goes as far as to blame his son for Maria Anna's death. Realizing Mozart is no longer under strict scrutiny of a family member in close proximity, Leopold goes on to say, "rest assured, my dearest son, that if you stay away, I shall die much sooner." The situation Leopold presents his son is a complex one. Mozart is a young man seeking independence and fame now that his family is not following his every footstep, but his father has grown more dependent on Mozart than ever. Mozart is more internally conflicted between his ambitions and family obligations as ever, as he writes to his friend Abbe Bullinger on August 7, 1778: "You say that I should now think only of my father and that I should disclose all my thoughts to him with entire frankness and put my trust in him.
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So when the six-year-old Wolfgang had proved his extraordinary talents at the keyboard, Leopold was keen to exhibit those talents along with those of his gifted pianist daughter, Nannerl. Thus Leopold undertook a four month tour of Vienna and the surrounding area, visiting every noble house and palace he could find, taking the entire family with him. Mozart's first known public appearance was at Salzburg University in September of 1761, when he took part in a theatrical performance with music by Eberlin. Like other parents of his time, Leopold Mozart saw nothi...
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Mozart was born on Jan. 27, 1756, in Salzburg, Austria. His father was Leopold Mozart, a composer and a popular violinist. Mozart received his early musical training from his father. At the early age of 3 Mozart showed signs of being a musical genius. Then, at the age of five Mozart started composing. Beginning in 1762 Mozart’s father took young Mozart and his older sister, Maria Anna, on tours in Europe where they played the piano, harpsichord, violin, and organ, together and separately. Mozart learned to play the piano, harpsichord, and violin from his father. He gave public concerts and played at numerous courts and received several commissions.
Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophillus Amadeus Gottlieb Sigismundus Mozart (Latin form of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) was born at Nine Getreidegasse, Salzburg in January 27, 1756 to parents, Leopold Mozart and Anna Maria. Mozart’s middle names; Theophillus, Amadeus, Gottlieb, and Sigismundus mean the same thing only in different languages and means "Beloved of God." Mozart’s parents shortened his name when addressing him to Wolferl. Mozart was the seventh child in his family, unfortunately, five of Leopold's and Anna's children died during infancy. Mozart had a very musical background, his father, Leopold was a composer and was the fourth violinist for Count Leopold Anton von Firmian. Mozart always enjoyed being around instruments as his sister, Maria Anna "Nannerl" rehearsed on the violin and from this he shocked his family when he started to write his first piece of music at a very young age of six. Mozart started to compose music before he could write words on paper. Mozart's family moved endless around Europe and around trips, Mozart with his sister would worked Child Prodigies. They would work for three and a half long years, which spanned from London to Paris to Munich. Mozart's hard work finally paid off when he was accepted by Josef Myslivecek and Giovanni Battista Martini to perform in Accademia Filarmonica. In 1770, Moz...
As a skilled young genius, Mozart’s early life was full of many occurrences which led to his fame. At the age of four, Mozart was able to play minuets and scherzos on the piano, and his father, realizing his great genius, devoted much time to his son. When Mozart was six years old many people wondered at his extraordinary skill, and in 1763 he traveled all over Europe with his family playing for courts and learning many languages. Amazingly at the age of 13, he composed his first opera called “The Fake Simpleton.” And although he was knighted by the pope and popular with the people, the young teenager couldn’t find any work and spent the rest of his young life in Salzburg composing two more operas and the nine movement “Haffner Senerade.” After traveling to Parris in 1778 and then returning, Mozart became the part time organist in the court of Prince Archbishop of Salzburg but left in 1781 because of a disagreement with the Prince. Making his living by giving piano lessons, concerts and selling his compositions, Mozart soon married Constanze Weber. Finally becoming very successful in Vienna and in high demand, Mozart started writing his most famous opera “The Marriage of Figaro,” in 1785. Once this prosperous time was over Mozart began losi...
During Mozart’s thirty-five years he composed over 600 works. He was an Austrian composer who was taught from his father and by the age of six was a child prodigy. Mozart’s greatest impact on world was through his music, his music helped relieve pain from disease, reducing stress level from babes, increase students’ brain power, and had such popular music that we still use till this day, it’s a form of immortality.
He has all the music in his head and is not self-conscious about ever sharing his work and does not hid his genius. When Mozart plays his first opera we see him almost showing off his talent, further adding to the fact that he was a cocky individual. Mozart is also shown as someone that doesn’t adhere to rules and the norms of society back then. He did not make the same music as everyone else, he did what he wanted and composed the music he wanted, which was great music. What is also curious is the how the other characters view Mozart, one would think that even though he was an immature boy, they would recognize his talent and respect him, but instead they all just thought he was some kind of one hit wonder or a child prodigy that was fading.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is known as a wunderkind of music as he showed his talents from his childhood. He was a keyboard and string virtuoso. He composed many symphonies, concertos and operas which are famous and he was an influential composer in the Classical Period. ‘Great Violin Concertos: Benjamin Schmid Plays Mozart’ was performed by the Hong Kong Sinfonietta and the violin soloist Benjamin Schmid. This programme included two violin concertos composed by Mozart and two twenty centuries folk suites from Eastern Europe.
The 1984 film Amadeus, directed by Miloš Forman, told the story of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart story in such a way that an individual watching more than likely would have never imagined such a brilliant musician’s life having been the way it was portrayed in the film. When many people think of Mozart today, the thought of his skill to compose musical masterpieces is probably the first of many things to come to mind – his work speaks for itself; Mozart’s operas and symphonies are beautiful, so comparing it to the eighteenth century Classical era, Mozart’s work had to have been much loved and appreciated, right? Well, according to Amadeus, this was not necessarily the case.