APPENDIX III. PORTRAITS OF MOZART.
HE earliest portrait of Mozart, a half-length in oils, now in the
Mozarteum, lithographed in Nissen, represents him as a boy of seven years old, standing near the clavier, clad in the violet gold-laced court dress of the Archduke Maximilian, which had been presented to him in 1762 (Vol. I., p. 28). His hair is frizzed and powdered, his hat under his arm, his sword by his side; his left hand is thrust into his vest; his right on his side. The round good-humoured boyish face, with its candid eyes, looks out as if from a disguise. During the stay of the Mozart family in Paris in 1763, an accomplished admirer, L. C. de Carmontelle, painted them in a group; the picture was engraved by Delafosse in small folio, with the title under:—
"LEOPOLD MOZART, Père de MARIANNE MOZART, Virtuose ägée de onze ans, et de J. G. WOLFGANG, Compositeur et Maître de Musique ägé de sept ans."
Wolfgang, finely dressed and frizzed, is sitting at the harpsichord in a pillared hall, apparently open to the air, and playing from some open music. The little head is evidently a good likeness, and there is a charming expression of earnest attention. His father stands close behind him, and accompanies on the violin; the sister is standing on the other side of the harpsichord, turning towards her brother and singing from some music. In the same year a small oil picture, containing many figures, was painted; it was formerly in the gallery of the Duke of Rohan-Chabot at Schloss-Rurik, and is now in the Museum at Versailles. Mozart is seated at the clavier, on which a "basse de viole" is lying, and playing or singing; he is accompanied on the guitar by the opera-singer Veliotte. The Prince de Beauveau, in a cherry-coloured coat decorated with the blue Grand Cross, is seated behind the young musician, glancing absently at a paper which he holds in his left hand. The Chevalier de la Laurency, gentilhomme to the Prince de Conti, is standing in a black velvet coat behind Mozart's chair; the Prince de Conti is talking to M. de Trudaine; Mdlle. Bagaroty is standing before a group of ladies, viz.: Madame la Maréchale de Mirepoix, Madame de Viervelle, Madame la Maréchale de Luxembourg, and Mdlle. de Boufflers, afterwards Duchesse de Lauzun. The Prince d'Henin is preparing tea, while listening attentively to Mozart's music. In another group are Dupont de Velse, brother to M. d'Argentai; the Countesses Egmont, mother and daughter, and President Henaut at the fireplace.
The last group shows us the Comtesse de Boufflers standing before a well-spread table; by her side is the Comte de Chabot (Duc de Rohan) in conversation with the Comte de Jarnac. The Maréchal de Beauveau is pouring out a glass of wine for Bailli de Chabrillant; Meyrand, the famous geometrician, stands sidewards. The picture is full of life and expression. All the company are listening in amazement and delight to Mozart's bewitching tones. He is in an apple-green silk coat with knee breeches, and his feet do not touch the floor. His countenance is fresh, his look full of expression, and the little powdered perruque gives him a somewhat pedantic look, at which the spectators are evidently amused.
Wolfgang was painted several times during his Italian tour. At Verona Lugiati made a life-size portrait of him in oils, in two sittings, as his father writes home. "La dolce sua effigie mi è di conforto ed altresi di eccitamento a riprendere qualche fiata la musica," he writes to the mother (April 22, 1770). Sonnleithner, who discovered the picture by the aid of the Imperial Sectionsrath W. Booking, gives a detailed account of it. Mozart is seated playing the clavier, somewhat to the left of the spectator, in a carved arm-chair; his youthful and intellectual countenance is turned towards the spectator. He wears a red court dress embroidered in gold, and has a diamond ring on the little finger of his left hand. Upon the clavier, above the keyboard, is written: "Joanni Celestini Veneti, MDLXXXIII." Upon the open music-book can be distinctly read:—[See Page Image]
This piece, therefore, must have possessed some peculiar interest for the Veronese. Below, in the centre of the narrow, beautifully carved gold frame, there is a white plate with the following inscription:—
Amadeo Wolfgango Mozarto Salisburgensi puero duodenni
In arte musica laudem omnem fidemque prætergresso eoque nomine Gallorum Anglorumque regi caro Petrus Lujatus hospiti suavissimo effigiem in domestico odeo pingi curavit anno MDCCLXX.
In the same year the celebrated artist Pompeo Battoni of Rome painted a life-size head of Mozart, which came into the possession of Mr. Haydon of London; it is now the property of J. Ella, who has placed it in the South Kensington Museum, and rendered it familiar in an engraving by H. Adlard. The head is turned almost full-face towards the spectator, the right-hand holding a roll of music-paper. The animated countenance has an évident resemblance to the Verona portrait, but with more of a view to PORTRAITS OF MOZART. effect, being in fact what is called idealised. After his return from Italy in 1772, a portrait of Wolfgang was painted which his sister possessed; it is the one of which she wrote to Sonnleithner (July 2, 1819) that he looked yellow and sickly in it, having only lately recovered from a severe illness. Before Mozart left Salzburg in 1777, a portrait was painted which, according to his father (November 27, 1777), was highly successful. Padre Martini, having begged for a likeness of Wolfgang for his collection, the father had a copy of this one made and sent it to him in the beginning of December, 1777, "in a black frame, with a handsomely gilt edge." "I delayed complying with your request until now," he writes to the Padre (December 22,1777), "for want of a skilful artist. There is, in fact, none such residing in our town; and I have always been in hopes that, as does sometimes happen, a clever artist might visit Salzburg—I therefore postponed it from time to time. At last, however, I was forced to commission a local artist to undertake the portrait. As a painting it is of little worth, but, as regards the likeness,
I assure you that it resembles him exactly. I have written his name and age behind the picture." In the library of the Liceo Filarmonico at Bologna there is an oil picture from Padre Martini's collection, of which Dr. Zangemeister sent me a photograph and a minute description. At the top of the frame, in white letters, stands:—
CAV. AMADEO WOLFGANGO MOZART ACCAD.
FILARMON. DI BOLOG. E DI VERONA.
On the back is written (probably by an Italian, not by L. Mozart):—Joannes Crisostomus Wolfgangus Amadeus Mozart Salisburgensis Teuto, auratæ Militiæ Eques
Bonnoniensis Veronensisque Accademicus Natus 27 Ianuarü 1756: Ætatis suæ 21.
The portrait represents a man in a brown coat, with the gold cross on a red ribbon round his neck; to the right is a stool, to the left a clavier with black under notes and white over notes; on the desk is a piece of music. But it is impossible to recognise Wolfgang in the portrait; it is that of a man of middle age, stiff in demeanour, and with no resemblance to Mozart. It might be meant for his father, who had promised (August 21, 1778) to send Padre Mardini his own portrait; but this is contradicted by the cross of the order. Probably some confusion has taken place in the arrangement of the collection. Wolfgang took with him on his journey a little medallion as a present to his cousin, among whose remains it was pointed out to me. He is in a red coat, his hair simply arranged, and the very youthful face with its APPENDIX III. intelligent eyes has an open light-hearted expression. Before Mozart went to Munich in 1780 the painter Della Croce at Salzburg began a large family group, and Wolfgang's portrait was fortunately finished before his departure. This large oil-painting, now in the Mozarteum at Salzburg, represents the brother and sister seated at the harpsichord playing a duet. Wolfgang is in a red coat with a white vest and neckcloth, Marianne in a dark rose-coloured dress trimmed with lace, and a red ribbon in her high coiffure; the father, in black, with a white vest and neckcloth, is seated behind the harpsichord, his left hand holding a violin, his right with the bow resting on the harpsichord. On the wall hangs an oval portrait of the mother, with a blue neckhandkerchief, and a blue ribbon in her hair. Wolfgang's sister considered this portrait very like him; and it does in fact give one an impression of individuality. The face is young for his age, but not so gay and animated as in earlier pictures; it has rather a depressed expression, corresponding very well to his mood at the time. After his marriage he had himself painted with Constanze, and sent the two miniatures to Salzburg. "I only hope," he writes (April 3, 1783), "that you may be pleased with them; they seem to me to be both good, and all who have seen them are of the same opinion." Mozart's brother-in-law, the actor Lange, who was an enthusiastic artist, began a portrait of him, seated at the piano, in a light brown coat and white neckcloth, and strove to render the expression of the artist absorbed in his reveries. The picture was only finished as far as the bust, and is now in the Mozarteum at Salzburg; Carl Mozart considered it very like. Mozart's short stay in Dresden in April, 1789, was utilised by Dora Stock, Korner's talented sister-in-law, in taking his portrait in crayons with much delicacy and animation; it was engraved in Berlin by E. H. Schroder, and published by Ed. Mandel. The conception of Mozart's appearance, which afterwards became typical, was formed from a small medallion carved in boxwood in relief by Posch, and now preserved in the Salzburg Mozarteum. This was engraved in octavo by J. G. Mans-feld, 1789 (Viennæ apud Art aria Societ.) with the inscription: "Dignum laude virum Musa vetat mori." On the lower edge of the medallion, among instruments and laurel branches, is a sheet of music with "An Chloe" written on it. This engraving is the foundation of most of the later ones; it was engraved afresh from the medallion by Thäter (Leipzig: Breitkopf und Hartel).
The last portrait of Mozart is a bust, life size, painted by Tischbein during his stay in Mayence in October, 1790. C. A. André discovered and obtained possession of it at Mayence in 1849; it was among the remains of the Electoral court violinist Stutzl. Two men who had themselves seen Mozart—Professor Arentz, of Mayence, and the former court organist, Schulz, of Mannheim, on being shown the picture, and asked whom it represented, recognised their beloved Mozart without a moment's hesitation. At the same time this likeness differs PORTRAITS OF MOZART. considerably from the others current, and it can scarcely be doubted that Tischbein has idealised the features, especially the nose; but the expression of the eyes and mouth has a mixture of sensuousness, roguery, and gentle melancholy, which testify to the artist's intellectual apprehension; while Posch is probably more accurate in outline, but more Philistine in conception. It has been engraved by Sichling in the "Bildnissen berühmter Deutschen" (Leipzig: Breitkopf und Hàrtel), and afterwards diminished for this book.
I consider as apocryphal a small medallion in the possession of Karajan, representing a slender well-dressed youth, inscribed as "Mozart's Portrait;" also a round miniature, belonging to Frz. Henser, of Cologne, of a full-grown man in a grey coat, his hand in his vest, which seems to me to have no resemblance to Mozart. It is signed "Jac. Dorn, pinx., 1780."