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WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART
THE FINAL YEARS
scene from the opera "Don Giovanni"
DON GIOVANNI
The opera "The Marriage of Figaro" had a completely opposite reception from the Vienna premiere when it was performed in Prague. It led to another commission by the Prague Opera House. The result was "Don Giovanni", which was premiered at the Prague Opera House on October 29th, 1787. It was a joyful collaboration between Mozart and his librettist, Lorenzo da Ponte.
The idea of using the classic story of Don Juan as the subject for the opera was suggested by da Ponte.
However, after an enthusiastic success in Prague, "Don Giovanni" received a more doleful response in Vienna, where it had 15 performances, and then simply appeared to be forgotten thereafter.
Leopold Mozart Lorenzo da Ponte
Just at the time when "Don Giovanni" was composed, Mozart's father Leopold, died. It affected Wolfgang very profoundly. It is said that the tragedy influenced him to write his first opera based on a tragic subject, since most of his operas were based on tales of comedy. Guilt accompanied his sense of loss, as he father was not only his parent, but was also his teacher from childhood. He felt that he had betrayed his father . The estrangement caused by Leopold's disapproval of his son's choice of lifestyle began to haunt him.
The Vienna that had once fascinated Mozart began to wear thin. The social strata of Viennese royal society was very fickle and resulted in a lessened profile in his popularity. There were fewer commissions. Many will say that Mozart died as a pauper. But the real truth is that he was not poor, except when it came to money matters. He and Constanza were big spenders, spending more money than was earned.
THE MAGIC FLUTE
THE "WIZARD OF OZ" MOZART STYLE
In 1791, a strange occurrence took place. Mozart's final opera took a radical change from the previous output of his earlier operas. This opera was so different from his earlier works, as if a magic spell had transformed him into a different kind of composer genius.
The commission to compose this opera did not come from a member of a royal court. Emanuel Schikanaeder could certainly not have typified the above. He was a writer, librettist and performer who came from the Theatre Am Der Wien, which was a theatre whose repertory was designed to entertain the masses. Thus all musical productions were delivered in German, rather than Italian. Most of Mozart's works had their librettos in Italian to please the sophisticated members of the royal court. Thus "The Magic Flute" is one of Mozart's few operas that comprised a libretto in German, so that the every day people of German speaking Vienna could understand the singers.
"The Magic Flute" is a fairy tale, based on certain ideals of the Masonic Order. Mozart was a freemason. A little more than 100 years later, the "Wizard of Oz" was created by L. Frank Baum, which was also a fairy tale.
THE WIZARD OF OZ THE MAGIC FLUTE
Tin Man, Lion, Dorothy
and Scarecrow
Prince Tamino, Princess Pamina and Papageno
seek their needs as their journey
takes experiencing
the trials and tests of their bravery
them to the Emerald
City.
take place at the Temple of Isis.
(Courtesy of Warner Brothers) (Courtesy of the Dallas Opera Company)
What do both tales have in common?
For one thing in their broadest sense, they were both musicals (as per the 1939 MGM movie), both designed to entertain the masses. Both tales had their heroes and heroines make journeys to reach certain ideals. The storied characters in either tale had to experience trials and tribulations to achieve their goals. Dorothy wanted to go home, the Scarecrow wanted a brain, the Tin Man wanted a heart, and the Cowardly Lion wanted courage. Prince Tamino and Papageno also had to go through their trials to achieve their objectives. The Wicked Witch of The West had to be challenged, just as the Queen of the Night had to be reckoned with. In the end, Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man and Lion fulfilled their hopes at the Emerald City. Tamino won the hand of Princess Pamina, and Papageno won his Papagena in the Temple of Isis.
If Bert Lahr played the role of the Cowardly Lion, Emanuel Schikanaeder got his sought after role as Papageno. He obviously wrote the libretto and eagerly commissioned Mozart to compose the opera. The "Magic Flute" was premiered at the Theatre Am der Wien in September, 1791.
After the 1789 French Revolution, things began to change regarding music appreciation. Music did not exclusively belong to members of the royal court, which was the objective of most composers and performers. A new kind of audience composed of ordinary people. .businessmen .."burgers"...and all others whose "blood was red instead of blue" appeared in society. This was the audience that attended the premiere of the "Magic Flute".
THE REQUIEM
The final enigma - 1791
Tom Hulce as Mozart
in the film "Amadeus"
For those who saw the film "Amadeus", a scene remembered is when a stranger knocked on the door of Mozart's apartment to offer him a commission to compose a requiem. The stranger remained anonymous and to this very day, no historian or musicologist can swear to who the stranger was.
At the time, Mozart was occupied in composing the "Magic Flute". His health was beginning to fail. Not long after the opera had been completed, Mozart passed away. He never completed his requiem.
In the film's powerful scene in which Antonio Salieri (played by F. Murray Abraham) is sitting at the bedside of the dying Mozart, we see Salieri writing down the notes hummed by Mozart. Was it true that Salieri had poisoned Mozart so that he could take the credit for composing the requiem?
The plot of "Amadeus" is not intended to be factual. Although rumor had it that Salieri was jealous of Mozart's talent, there is no proof to support the fact. There is no fact to prove that Mozart was even poisoned. More than likely, his death was caused by illness, such as pneumonia.
Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart died on December 5th, 1791, seemingly unknown and
forgotten. He was buried in an unmarked grave in the pauper's section of
St. Mark's Cemetery in Vienna. In later times, attempts were made to
locate this grave so that he could be given a deservedly more conspicuous
grave. However, his true grave was never discovered and a pseudo-memorial
gravesite was erected to celebrate his former existence.
Mozart's "Grave" Memorial
When listening to his music performed in the Berkshires, or any other part of the world, one must think in awe at a genius who composed 41 symphonies, 27 piano concertos, 7 violin concertos, and other forms of music that totaled to 600 in all within a lifespan of 35 years. I am very happy to have spent time with him, giving him a life behind his music.
notes by Richard Erlanger
A new century follows, the story of the life and times of Tchaikovsky and the 1800's follows.
Or to review, go back to
Mozart's life journeys from Salzburg