Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Resume

Austrian, born in Salzburg (died in Vienna)

Best known for his operas.

Only one other child survived infancy- his older sister Maria Anna (Nannerl was her nickname).

The brother and sister played for royalty and nobility, admired by all; Mozart was perhaps the most gifted child in the history of music.

Mozart chafed against being treated like a servant after the admiration he received as a child, By age 26, he was married to Constanze Weber and lived in Vienna.

Together they had six children and loved each other during their years together. Constanze brought no dowry to the marriage and Mozart struggled to provide for his family. Though his income as a musician was average, Mozart was a spender and suffered financial difficulties.

the peak of his career came with the opera The Marriage of figaro when he was 30.

His opera The Clemency of Titus failed to impress in Prague.

Mozart still managed wo magnificent works in his final year: The Magic Flute and the unfinished Requiem.

The Order of Freemasons originated from the medieval guilds of the stonemasons. Its present organizational form began in London in 1717. Today, it is the largest worldwide society. It is religious in that a belief in God is the prime requirement for membership, but it is non-sectarian as no religious text is used. The purpose of freemasonry is to enable men to meet in harmony, to promote friendship, and to be charitable. Famous members have included Valtaire, Mozart and Sir John A. Macdonald. Mozart intended there to be representation of Freemasonry in his final opera, The Magic Flute.

Mozart travelled all over Eutope as a child.

Mozart also met Haydn- Mozart's six string quartets are dedicated to Haydn and are a testimony of his influence in Mozart's life. It is not known for certain if Mozart and Beethoven met.

Mozart died from a feverish illness, he was not poisoned, as has been speculated, and was bujried in a mass grave outside Vienna.

There is no folk element in his music, like Haydn, but rather a refined sense to all of his music.

Mozart wrote his music with virtually no corrections.

Mozart's instrumental music includes 41 cymphonies, including the Haffner, the Linz and the Jupiter.

Mozart's operas span three different genres; opera seria; opera buffa; and singspiel.

Opera buffa is the Italian version of comic opera.

The Requiem was commissioned by a music-loving count who though himself a composer- he intended to call the Requiem his own.

Mozart became obsessed that this Mass for the Dead was intended for himself and that he would not live to finish it. His premonition came true, and his student, Sussmayr, completed the work.

Unlike Hydn, Mozart struggled with the constraints of the patronage system throughout his career.

born in Salzburg, Austria

he often performed with his older sister Maria Anna (Nannerl), who was also a gifted musician.

Mozart was a first violonist at 13, and later on, his wife was a court singer.

mother died while on tour with him in Paris.

dissatisfied in Salzburg, requested dismissal from the Archbiship

he tended to live beyound his means.

despite successes, financial wores persisted throughout his career.

became good friends with haydn to whom he dedicated several string quartets

married Constanze Weber, an opera singer, against his father's wishes; only two of their six children survived.

he married the youngest sister, Constanze.

as both were flirtatious and careless with money. After Mozart's death, Constanze lived a long and comfortable life, re-marrying and benefiting from his growing fame. In fact, her second husband, Georg Nikolaus von Nissen, became Mozart's first biographer.

Opera was central to his career.

there's opera seria, opera buffa and singspiel

Don giovanni was an opera buffa

Eine kleine Nachtmusik, k 525 was a serenade for strings, intended to serve as light entertainment for an aristocratic audience.