Leonard Bernstein once said, “Mozart is all music; there is nothing you can ask from music that he cannot supply…bathed in a glitter that could have come only from the eighteenth century...It is a perfect product of the age of reason – witty, objective, graceful, delicious. And yet over it all hovers the greater spirit that is Mozart’s – the spirit of compassion, of universal love, even of suffering – a spirit that knows no age, that belongs to all ages” (Kenyon 19-20). Mozart’s effervescent spirit is apparent in letters that he wrote to his family and friends. These letters show that Mozart lived a life full of family feuds, heartbreaks, romance, triumphs, and failures in the short span of thirty-five years. Mozart’s letters prove that he took the music of the eighteenth century and reinvented it using perspective gained in the course of events in his lifetime.
(Johann Chrysostom) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria on January 27, 1756 to composer, violinist, and theorist Leopold Mozart and his wife Maria Anna (Sadie 276). Wolfgang was the ultimate definition of a child prodigy. He mastered one of his sister’s music books at the age of four and wrote his first compositions, Andante and Allegro K1a and 1b, at only five years old (277). The public first witnessed young Mozart’s talent when he performed a dancing role in Sigismundus Hungarie rex at Salzburg University in September of 1761 (277). Mozart flourished in the spotlight and began to tour Europe with his father and sister, Maria Anna (affectionately referred to Nannerl), in September of 1762 (277). Both children were extremely talented musicians and they often performed for the courts or gave public concerts (277). The family returned home to Salzburg ...
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Kenyon, Nicholas. The Pegasus Pocket Guide to Mozart. New York: Pegasus Books LLC, 2006. Book.
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Marshall, Robert L. Mozart Speaks: Views on Music, Musicians, and the World. New York: Schirmer Books, 1991. Book.
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Spaethling, Robert. Mozart's Letters, Mozart's Life. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, Inc., 2000. Book.
Wright, Craig and Bryan Simms. Music in Western Civilization. Boston: Schirmer Cengage Learning, 2010. Book.
Peyser, J. (1986) The Orchestra: Origins and Transformations. New York: Charles Scribner’s and Sons. Sadie, S. (1980) New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians.
...eview Dance Board. (2010, February 13). Mark Morris on Mozart. Retrieved February 28, 2010, from The Harvard Art Review: http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~harvardartreview/wordpress/2010/02/24/mark-morris-on-mozart-2/
The event I attended for MUS111 was Mozart’s Opera Buffa, Abduction from the Seraglio, first presented in Vienna July 16, 1782. The opera was presented by Opera Atelier with musical accompaniment by Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra at Toronto’s Elgin Theatre. The Abduction from the Seraglio is an opera Singspiel in three acts. It is an irreverent comic opera based in the commedia dell’arte tradition. The Abduction from the Seraglio, or in the original German, Die Entführung aus dem Serail, was written in German for Vienna’s new national Burgtheatre, established by Emperor Joseph II as a venue for German language operas (Osborne 181). Opera Atelier’s production was sung in German with English surtitles and recitatives. Opera Atelier specializes in opera, ballet and drama from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Opera Atelier’s productions draw from the aesthetics and ideals of the period represented, and feature period ballet, costumes and original instruments (OA Program 39).
Susskind, Pamela. "Clara Schumann." The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Ed. Stanley Sadie and George Grove. 1980. Print.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was one of the most prolific and important musical innovators we have ever seen. His style of music helped re-shape music and the Classical period. Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria in 1756. Mozart was a child prodigy, claiming most success as a youth. At the age of six, Mozart could play the harpsichord and violin, improvise fugues, write minuets, and read music perfectly. At the age of eight, he wrote a symphony and at eleven, an oratorio. Then amazingly, at the age of twelve he wrote an opera. Mozart's father was Leopold Mozart, a court musician. Both Mozart and Beethoven had help from their fathers in different ways. Mozart's father helped him travel around as a young musician and with this he traveled many places and seen many well-known people and aristocrats. With Mozart's early successes came many challenges to his life. He had greater expectations from the community and from his father. Unlike, Beethoven, Mozart was a bit spoiled as a youth and because of this he would not tolerate to be treated as a servant. He completely relied on his father to help him and would not work with the archbishop. This would become a problem when Mozart did not develop enough initiative and could not make decisions on his ow...
This is the second volume of Richard Taruskin's historical work, and it highlights composers of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. He examines the progression of different styles and eras of music.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, The Magic Flute, The Monteverdi Choir and the English Baroque Soloists, John Eliot Gardiner, Deutsche Grammophon 449 166-2, 1996.
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.
At the age of the Enlightenment, Antonio Salieri becomes the most triumphant musician in the city of Vienna, however, without any warning his harmonious universe comes to an utter halt. Salieri’s absolute faith in the world, in himself, and in God is all at once diminished by this spontaneous child composer. When the two opposite ends meet, there emerges a fury, a rage, and a passion in Salieri to sabotage the boy that has secured Salieri’s deserved God given talent; to destroy the one pubescent child that has made him so mute and naked now in a world of discordance. Salieri’s entire reputation and boyhood prayer to attain fame thus rests on his ability to annihilate that child prodigy, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.In analyzing the two composers, Salieri and Mozart, there is a distinct line that clearly divides them. Salieri’s operas receive astounding receptions, making them the “talk of the city,'; shaking the roofs, buzzing the cafes, and even the name Salieri “sounds throughout all of Europe'; (2,3). The reason for Salieri’s success, as well as many musicians of the eighteenth century, is because they have become enslaved by the well-to-do and hence are “no better than servants'; (1,3). This applies especially to the king. For example, in Amadeus, His Majesty forbid any ballet in his operas. Imperial commands such as this are not to be interpreted in any way, in other words, they are to be merely obeyed without any dispute. Since operas tend to the needs of the high society in order to obtain recognition, the operas must communicate through the language of the nobility, that is, Italian. In addition, since the majority of the audience is made up of the upper class, the subject matter of the operas must consist of elevated themes. Such as, mythological heroes, kings, and queens, and so forth. According to the eighteenth century view, operas are supposed to be a sublime and an aggrandizing art. The elevated subject matter is then chosen in order to venerate and honor the nobility. It’s purpose is to “celebrate the eternal in man'; says Van Swieten (2,4). Meaning that there is an element in a noble person that lasts without any end, like God who is immortal. God represents the everlasting and the eternality of existence, thus God gives inspiration to operas that...
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,
Mozart wrote The Magic Flute in 1791, just after the French Revolution and just before he died. Haydn had introduced Mozart to Freemasonry, and the opera is full of the ideas (the autonomy of the individual, self-determination, appalling sexism), the ideals (power, wisdom, beauty), and the symbols (aprons, hammers, compasses, a pyramid with an ...
...as he paved the way for composers of the Romantic period like Ludwig van Beethoven, Gioachino Rossini, and Franz Schubert. No one can doubt the finality that mirrors Mozart’s life in his final symphony and his final farewell.
I hope by reading this letter gives my student (Music major or Non-Major) to have a better idea on how approachable classical music is and lets everyone enjoying something with humor. There are enough required materials that showcase seriousness in classical music. On one hand, it's good to give students (Music Major and Non-Major) something that's unique and more “fun” yet educational to read. On the other hand, it also will benefit many performer students who hate their academic studies to have a better time understanding and enhance their historical performance skill. People in today's society take classical music too seriously (from a concert setting to all the crazy analysis by scholars). Despite it allows us to have a deeper understanding of the structures of music, it also took away that simple purity of essence of innocence that we should have when we are approaching these great works. Finally, I want my students to question themselves what makes music by Mozart different to some of the pop music in today's culture. Does the lyric that Mozart offer in works like Difficile lectu mihi Mars, K. 559 so different to pop music lyric? In addition, I want people to question the difference between the humor that Mozart and Haydn provide in their
The Classical Period brought forward new musical innovation. The sudden change in emotion and contrast in the music from the classical era is one of the many fascinating topics. However, the topic most talked about to this very day is Mozart’s Requiem. The mystery of which parts were composed by Mozart puzzles many. Even the rumor that surrounds Mozart’s cause of death is fascinating. Peter Shaffer’s play Amadeus, added more controversy to this intriguing mystery.
As an adult Mozart his career was not as successful as when he was younger. But he kept on composing anyway hoping one people would appreciate his work. He lived in poverty for the great majority of his life. In 1769 he became a concertmaster to the archbishop of Salzburg, which was another one of his jobs that afforded him little financial security. In 1777, he left on another concert tour. But, the courts of Europe ignored Mozart ‘s search for a more beneficial assignment. In 1782 he earned a living by selling compositions, giving public performances, and giving music lessons, which once again was a low paying job. The composer never did find a well paying job. The bizarre thing was is that even that he had ton of trouble finding jobs, he was still considered one of the leading composers of the late 1700s.