Transcript Wolfgang Mozart - Garrett`s ePortfolio

Wolfgang Mozart
By Garrett Anderson
Birth
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Wolfgang Mozart was born January 27th 1756 in
Austria.
He was born to his parents Leopold and Anna
Maria Mozart.
He was born into a very musical family and only
had one sibling.
Family
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Mozart’s family was extremely musical and he
was introduced to music at a very young age.
Mozart grew up with only one other sibling, his
other siblings not surviving past child birth.
Mozart’s father Leopold was a
teacher/composer that mainly focused on the
violin.
Prodigy
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Mozart’s father Leopold quit his job wanting to
focus on his sons talents realizing he was special.
Mozart not only excelled in keyboard but also
the violin at a very young age.
Mozart wrote his first composition Andante in C
at the age of 5!
Touring Years
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Leopold took Mozart and his sister Maria
around Europe to tour for 11 years.
Throughout the tour, Mozart continued to write
multiple compositions, including his first opera,
La Finta Semplice.
At the end of Mozart’s tour, he was employed as
a court musician in Salzburg, his home-town.
Salzburg
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During his time working in Salzburg, Mozart
composed some of his most famous works.
Mozart also gained an enthusiasm for violin
concertos, but later turned to piano concertos.
In 1777, Mozart resigned his position as the
court musician in Salzburg and began searching
for another job outside of Salzburg.
First Opera
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Mozart’s first opera was titled Idomeneo.
His opera Idomeneo became very popular, and
earned Mozart a ticket to Vienna to perform on
behalf of his Salzburg employer.
While his initial experience in Vienna wasn’t an
enjoyable one, Mozart decided to stay in Vienna
to further his career as a composer and
performer.
Vienna
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In Vienna, Mozart flourished as a pianist,
performing for most of the population.
His opera Die Entführung aus dem Serail, gained a
lot of recognition and achieved success
throughout all of German-speaking Europe.
Marriage
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In Vienna, Mozart met his wife Constanze
Weber and they married in 1782.
Together, they had six children, but only two
survived past infancy.
Influences
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During his time in Vienna, Mozart began
acquainting himself with the works of other
composers and began to learn from them.
Some of these included Bach and Handel along
with other Baroque composers.
Mozart's study of these composers created a
baroque style that soon became evident
throughout Mozart’s works.
Baroque Style
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His most famous work that includes baroque
techniques is his opera Die Zauberflöte, also
known as The Magic Flute.
Mozart was also influenced by Haydn, whom he
frequently met with in Vienna.
Mozart appreciated Haydn’s quartets and then
created some of his own that were dedicated to
Haydn.
Concerts
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In 1782, Mozart began promoting himself with
concerts where he performed on his own.
He would present new piano concertos for each
season. Primarily, these concerts were small, but
they quickly grew in popularity.
Mozart’s income quickly grew as well, however
Mozart relished in his new income, and left
almost nothing to his savings.
Operas
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In 1786, Mozart composed one of his most
famous operas, The Marriage of Figaro, which
was quickly followed by his opera Don Giovanni.
Mozart quickly became the most well known
composer in all of Europe as his operas gained
more popularity.
Later Years
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As Mozart grew older, his circumstances began
to decline. He wasn’t making as much money as
he was before, and due to his lack of ability to
save, he became unable to keep up with his
lavish lifestyle.
He stopped performing in concerts, and the
popularity of music began to decline as well due
to the war.
Financial Struggles
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Mozart was forced to move his family into a
lower-income neighborhood, but this didn’t
really help his situation all that much.
Mozart tried to find ways of getting money, but
did so unsuccessfully. Eventually, he resorted to
borrowing money from friends.
Illness
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Mozart became ill in 1791.
The actual illness is still not known to this day,
but most the common theory is that it was a
military fever.
Although he suffered greatly from this sickness,
he managed to compose even more works that
acquired massive appreciation.
Final Years
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While Mozart was sick he composed his famous
Requiem K. 626.
Mozart advertised his opera The Magic Flute,
which gave him a stable enough income,
allowing him to begin paying off some of his
debts.
Death
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Mozart was buried in a common grave in the St
Marx Cemetery on Dec 7th.
Mozart was cared for by his wife and sister-inlaw until his death in 1791, leaving all his debts
to his wife.
After his death there were a lot of biographies
written and Mozart’s popularity grew very
substantially.
His Legacy
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Mozart managed to produce some of the
world’s most famous classical music, that is still
highly recognized in today’s modern world.
His works helped influence composers such as
Ludwig Van Beethoven and still influence artists
today.
His legacy as the greatest classical composer will
live on forever.
Mozart’s Requiem
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Mozart’s Requiem in D Minor (K. 626) was
composed in Vienna in 1791.
It is believed that the major influence of the
Requiem came from Mozart trying to rearrange
Handel’s work Messiah.
The Requiem was left unfinished at Mozart’s
death and there are multiple theories on how it
was completed.
Requiem Continued
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Mozart agreed to write the Requiem but during
this time was very ill. He only received half of
the payment up front for composing it and this
is why the rumors began that his wife Constanze
had someone else finish it to receive the full
payment.
It is believed that the requiem was worked on by
Freystädtler , Joseph von Eybler and Franz
Xavier Sussmayr.
Requiem Conclusion
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Once completed, the work was submitted to
Count Walsegg. There was a counterfeit
signature of Mozart that was dated 1792 on the
piece.
All of the intrigue of how the Requiem was
actually finished just adds to its story, but never
the less it remains one of the most famous
pieces of music ever composed.
Requiem Listening Guide
Introitus: aeternam Requiem
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It is believed that Mozart completed this portion of the
requiem.
This section of the requiem has parts that are in the
major and minor key.
The background music features mainly strings and
oboes.
He alternates the voices of the bases, altos, sopranos and
tenors throughout and eventually has them all sing at the
same time as well.
Kyrie Listening Guide
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This movement starts with bases singing “Kyrie”
The movement begins in a Minor Key.
The movement of Kyrie features violins accompanied
by other string instruments.
It ends with all the voices coming together singing
“Kyrie Eleison” also adding percussion to add effect.
Domine Jesu Listening Guide
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This song begins with all voices and is in the
Major Key. Before going to just women
singing. Giving a calming feeling.
As the men re-enter the song in the middle it
begins to add a dramatic and mysterious feel.
The song ends with all voices becoming
unified and slowing and quieting. The
movement ends in the Major tone.
Bibliography
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http://www.classicalnotes.net/classics/mozartrequie
m.html
http://www.its.caltech.edu/~tan/Mozartreq/main.ht
ml
http://www.8notes.com/biographies/mozart.asp
http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/1-29-200564987.asp
http://www.rhapsody.com/album/mozart-requiemin-d-minor-k626--2009