Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was an Austrian musician and composer, considered one of the most important and famous in history.
He was born on January 27, 1756 in Salzburg and died in Vienna on December 5, 1791, at the young age of 35.
Infant prodigy
Son of the Salzburg court violinist and Second Chapel Master Leopold Mozart, and Anna Maria Pertl, Wolfgang Amadeus was the last of the marriage’s seven children. Although he had six siblings, only his sister Maria Anna, surnamed Nannerl, survived.
Christened Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, he and his family lived in Salzburg. Today, the family home is a place of pilgrimage for music lovers from all over the world.
Influenced by his father’s teachings, Mozart stood out from an early age. At just four years old he played the harpsichord skillfully and composed his own melodies. At six, he was playing the harpsichord and the violin.
Knowing of Wolfgang’s extraordinary ability for music, his father organized his first auditions for the main European courts. His first exhibition was when he was just six years old.
Tour of Europe
On January 12, 1762, Mozart and his family traveled to Munich, beginning their tour of the major courts of Europe.
During these years, Mozart gave concerts at the courts of Vienna, Prague, Paris, London, The Hague, Zurich… In all the places he went through, the young musician reaped enormous success.
On these trips he met important musicians of the time. One of them was Johann Christian Bach who, it is believed, was one of the influences of the Austrian musician.
In November 1766, they returned to Salzburg, though they were soon off on another journey. Around the year 1768, Mozart and his father left for Italy.
Bologna was the first stop for the young musician. There, thanks to his virtuosity, he was accepted into the Philharmonic Academy, considered the epicenter of music in Europe.
The next stop was Rome. In the eternal city, Mozart and his father went to the performance of Miserere, the musicalization of Psalm 51, which took place in the Sistine Chapel. It was said that its reproduction was punishable by excommunication.
The young man from Salzburg rewrote it from memory at the inn where he was staying. Far from excommunicating him, Pope Clement XIV, fascinated by the young man, made him a Knight of the Order of the Golden Spur when he heard the news.
After Rome, Milan awaited them. In the Lombard city, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed different works, such as the opera Mitridate, re di Ponto, in 1770. Thanks to its success, he received several more commissions, such as one of his most famous creations: Exsultate, retire.
Many of the musicians at that time lived under the orders of a nobleman who acted as a patron, therefore the music they wrote (some masterpieces that have remained in history) were commissions. The composer seldom had the power to create to his liking.
Difficulty in Salzburg
Around 1773, Mozart and his father, Leopold, returned to Salzburg. There, they were met with the news that Prince-Archbishop Schrattenbach, one of the main supporters of the family, had passed away.
From then on, Mozart’s situation began to worsen. The relationship with the new archbishop, Hieronymus von Colloredo, was characterized by continuous disagreements that made Amadeus consider leaving his city.
His musical successes did not stop increasing, further fueling his fame. However, the discussions with the archbishop ended his patience and he began to look for another place where he could settle.
He passed through Vienna, Munich and Manheim, where he fell in love with Aloysia Weber. Due to lack of opportunities, around 1778 he moved to Paris.
In the French capital the luck of the musician and composer did not improve. His father was still determined to find him a good position in Salzburg, but Amadeus did not seem to be happy with what his father found him.
Finally, in July of that same year, his mother passed away. The following year, 1779, Mozart returned to Salzburg, where he accepted a new position.
Success in Vienna
After his return, Mozart lived for a few years tormented by the bad relationship that existed between him and Archbishop Colloredo. A series of disagreements made the musician decide to leave his city once again. He sought a new beginning in Vienna, around the year 1781.
His beginnings in the capital were good. Soon he became known as “Vienna’s best keyboard player”. His facet as a composer did not cease in these years. In 1782 he finished the opera El rapto del seraglio, premiered in July of that same year.
Fate wanted to put the Weber family on his path again. Despite his romantic failure with Aloysia and his father’s bad relationship with them, Mozart found love again in Constanze. He married her in Vienna and had six children, of whom only two survived.
The years in Vienna were most fruitful for Mozart. A reference to the singspiel, operas sung in German, he coincided with such prominent musicians as Joseph Haydn. In addition, he composed his most famous operas: the successful The Marriage of Figaro (1786) and Don Giovanni (1787).
His last years and death
It is believed that the last years of the musical genius’s life were marked by depression and a difficult economic situation. Many say that, after the death of his father in 1787, Mozart sank.
Many say that that same year there was a meeting with another of the geniuses of music: Ludwig van Beethoven. However, there is no certainty that this meeting actually took place.
Little by little, new pianists began to emerge in Vienna and Mozart began to lose interest. However, the last year of the master’s life, 1791, was a brilliant year for him. He composed one of his most famous works: The Magic Flute.
On December 5, 1791, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died in Vienna after going through serious health problems. Many theories revolve around his death: from the flu to the time he was poisoned, although the strongest theory is that the cause was rheumatic fever.
His sudden death, only 35 years old, made the legend of one of the most important musicians and composers in history grow.
