WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART (1756-1791)
Any member who enjoys listening to classical music will no doubt be
aware that it was the 200th anniversary of Mozart's death last year.
Members with good memories will also remember me promising to run a
little item on the great composer himself in a forthcoming issue.
Well here it is at last albeit a little late for the anniverasary.
I would like to thank Miroslaw Bobrowski for sending in his classical
Mozart music programs, just when he was probably thinking that they
would never see the light of day. The following paragraphs will give
a brief overview of Mozart's life and will finish with a selection of
some of his best known pieces.
WOLFGAND AMADEUS MOZART (1756-1791)
Mozart was one of the great geniuses of music, whose vast output
during his brief life included 41 Symphonies, 27 Piano Concertos, 26
String Quartets, 17 Piano Sonatas, 15 Masses, an unfinished Requiem
Mass and 13 full scale Operas, including Il Seraglio (1782), The
Marriage of Figaro (1786), Don Giovanni (1787), Cosi fan tutte (1789)
and The Magic Flute (1791).
The son of a professional Violinist, Mozart began composing at the age
of five. From 1762 he toured extensively as a child prodigy, and in
the capitals of Europe met and learned from the great composers of the
day. In his youth he began an unhappy period of employment in the
service of the Archbishop of Salzburg, but broke lose in 1781 to
settle in Vienna as a freelance composer and performer, marrying in
the following year. Mozart earned very little from his music and died
in poverty.
The surface charm and technical brilliance of Mozart's music are
deceptive. Beneith the classic poise run deep emotions, felt
intensely; as all his letters show, he understood human nature in all
it's complexity, and found music to express this understanding.
The following menu allows you to listen to a few of Mozart's
compositions .... Press Return.