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A Short Biography of Mozart

Mozart lived a short life--he was born on January 27, 1756, and died of illness on December 5, 1791. He was only thirty-five years old at the time of his death. Born Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theopilus to Leopold and Anna Maria Mozart, he was, along with his sister Maria Anna (Nannerl), among the two forunate surviving children out of the seven Anna Maria bore. Nannerl deserves special mention. Numerous historical sources describe her as a musician and composer of equal talent as her younger brother. However, the sad fact is that given the social context into which she was born, her musical abilties were not allowed to develop as rigorously as her brother's. Still, we have evidence of her extraordinary talent through descriptions and records that were kept by the courts at which she performed, as well as personal letters. From her correspondence with her brother before his marriage to Constanze Weber, scholars have also pointed out her remarkable intelligence. Who knows what she might have produced had she been allowed to become a fully fledged composer.

The Early Years Mozart, from an early age, amazed his father with his musical talent. At the age of three he was playing the keyboard, and by the time he was five years old was composing simple minuets. In 1763, Leopold embarked on a three-year journey with his two children to showcase their abilities before the nobility of Europe. The tour spanned a number of major European cities, including Paris, Versailles, where the Mozarts performed before Louis XV,King of France, Munich, London, The Hague, Zurich, and Geneva. The tour was, materially, a great success--Leopold was able to deposit a substantial amount into his bank account. More importantly, Mozart and his sister(although she would later not be allowed to actively perform) gained experience as musicians and were able to make connections to the courts of Europe. These connections later proved to be crucial when Mozart began to pursue his own career. Middle Years-Early Adulthood After returning from the extended tour, Mozart only had a short break before he resumed his travels--he made three trips to Italy between 1769 and 1773, and before returning for another tour in 1777, he had been appointed the concertmaster at the Salzburg court orchestra and written his first major opera, Mitridates. Early Adulthood-Move to Vienna In 1777 Mozart set off on another tour, this time with his mother, to try to gain a permanent court appointment. However, this failed. Mozart's mother Maria Anna died in Paris of an unknown illness. Mozart returned in 1779 to Salzburg, as a court organist. Mozart disliked this position and in 1781 he resigned and moved to Vienna, where he married Constanze Weber in 1782. During this time, tensions were increasing between Mozart and his father due to Leopold's desire to hold Mozart in Salzburg, where he could keep a watchful eye on him. Leopold also disagreed with Mozart's marriage. Vienna-Financial Problems

Mozart's life in Vienna was a fine one--he certainly enjoyed his luxuries, and made good money. By 1786, he had achieved success there with the premiering of operas such as The Abduction from the Seraglio and The Marriage of Figaro. However, this was the turning point. Mozart's income began to drop, and he was forced to take loans to support his finances. He made trips in an attempt to improve his fortunes, but to no avail. 1791-The Final Year 1791, the last year of Mozart's short life, saw a burst of productivity. It was around this time that he composed what are regarded to be among his finest symphonies, Nos 39, 40 and 41. Other famous compositions of this year include The Magic Flute, the Clarinet Concerto in A, the last Piano Concerto No. 27 in BFlat, and of course, the unfinished Requiem Mass in D Minor. Mozart's health began to decline in September 1791, and the composer was bedridden by November. Whether Mozart worked on the Requiem in these final months is unknown, although scholars suggest the chance is very small due to his condition at the time. Mozart died at 1 a.m. on December 1, 1791 and was buried in a common grave outside Vienna. http://cs.lafayette.edu/~yamagucm/mozart/content/bio.html