Mozart:

The most gifted musical prodigy

by Gwen Herat

There has never been a child prodigy in music history within a striking distance to rival Mozart though Mendlessohn wrote better music when he was 16 and another prodigy who at four was on keyboard playing Beethoven's Violin Sonatas, and he is the lesser known Saint-Saens. Put together they nor others could even match up to Mozart who could do everything, just everything.

By the time he was six, he played the piano, violin and also composed. Father Leopold was a composer and a violinist in the services of the Prince Archbishop of Salzburg. Wolfgang and his sister Anna Maria were the only two of Leopold's children to survive infancy.

His inspiration often was described as ‘divine’ but he had to work assiduously to become the greatest composer of his day. He was arguably the most naturally gifted musician in history. But he was not blessed with good looks. His head was too big for his body, he had protruding eyes with a face pitted with smallpox scars upon a yellow skin.

What he missed in personality, he made up in music but often tactless, arrogant and impulsive that made him unpopular as a man.

Mozart Snr. realised that he had a prodigy on his hand because he knew that Wolfgang at four could not only memorise a score in an hour and a minute but also play it faultlessly. He was to make the best out of his talented son right from the start. He decided to take both his talented children on a tour and set off to Vienna where they played in the presence of Empress Maria Theressa.

Two years later the Mozarts arrived in Salzburg to be followed by another visit to Vienna. Wolfgang had the opportunity to compose his first important works as well as Violin Converos and ‘Haffner’ serenade. His rise was at lightning speed. His mother's death in Paris threw him off the rails for some time. Later he rallied around to compose one of his early brilliant scores, Idomeneo in 1780.

Golden years

Mozart decided to make Vienna his home and remained there for the rest of his life. This move marked the beginning of his golden years as a mature composer.

By this time he had fallen in love with Constanze, the flighty younger sister of his old love who had married another.

It is true that of all great composers none are revered and loved as much as Mozart. Critics and reviewers in the last two centuries did not come up with words worthy enough to describe his music nor him.

There was no feeling; cosmic or human, new depth, no heights the human spirit can reach that is not contained in his music. It was said when angels sing for God, they sing Bach but when they sing for each other, they sing Mozart.

Mozart had the great ability to cope with music so much so in a way that is given to a few. He could hear lengthy works and write them down note for note afterwards and score complicated pieces while planning another in hand. Gifts that are beyond the comprehension of ordinary mortals, though not a great innovator and like Bach put together musical pieces and raised them to great scores.

His melodies sing, harmonies are full of emotion and personal expressions. Mozart handles the technical aspects such as counterpoint and orchestration effortlessly. He is laden with rich colour and imagination.

He lets the clarinet and horn to flower their own right and derive a magnitude of pleasure as they roar into his heart. Such was Mozart that made no one dare come near his music.

Mozart stood tall and enigmatic in the world of classical music.

Masterpiece

His four operatic masterpieces have held the stage much longer and frequently performed to date than any other composer's. No orchestra whether modern or ancient have overlooked these classics. His essential works include among others orchestral, concertos, chamber, instrumental, operas and religious scores. He did not let go dance and wrote an enormous number as background of composition to accompany dances or merely as background music. He dipped into the piles of Divertisments, Minutes and contredances. Like Tchaikovsky, he never wrote for full length ballets but you will come across him as the hack.

Occasionally he went deeper and produced a masterpiece of the genre such as the Serenede for 13 wind instruments with no strings at all. Among his essential works, I have always been fascinated by two masterpieces. The two operas namely, The Marriage of Figaro and The Magic Flute.

Le Nozze Di Figaro (The marriage of Figaro) K492 was written in 1786, it was the first of Mozart's three collaborations with the librettist Lorenzo Ponte and written in Italian rather than in German to meet the taste of Vienese music lovers.

Figaro is still preferred over many an opera which is ostensibly superficial as a plot where the characters are given depth and subtlety with the genius Mozart hands. Apart from this sparkling overture, the many highlights include the arias, non so piu (Figaro) and Act. 3, Che Soave Zefiretto.

Die Zuberfiote (The Magic Flute) K620 was composed in 1791. This was Beethoven's best score written by Mozart.

Even if seen as a fairy tale, an allegorical pantomime or an evening celebrating Freemasonary, it is a work of universal appeal.

Among the many celebrated works are Dies Bildnis Ist Bezaubernd (O'loveliness beyond compare) sung by Tamino.

The world meets real people with recognisable emotions in his opera with music that evokes pathos and joy set upon drama and perhaps this is the reason that his four operatic masterpieces have held the stage for longer and performed more frequently than those of others.

Last year I heard two of these masterpieces being played by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Southbank and I did enjoy them but found them rather uneasy on the length of time on a balmy evening. Sorry for that, Mozart.