Famous composers and their works, Vol. 2

by Unknown

THE MOZART FAMILY.

C. de Carmontelle del. Delafosse, Sculp. 1764.

Discouraged by the parsimony of the Emperor, failing in his endeavor to become the teacher of the Princess Elizabeth, and believing himself to be unappreciated, Mozart determined to leave Vienna and turned towards France and England. At this time he was chiefly known in Vienna as a pianoforte player. It was not until the appearance of the "Magic Flute" that he was recognized there as a great operatic composer, and then it was too late. The father, however, opposed the plans of his son, and he even wrote to the Baroness von Waldstädten urging her to reason with Wolfgang, and adding, "What is there to prevent his having a prosperous career in Vienna, if only he has a little patience?" And so Mozart stayed in Vienna. He gave lessons, which were apt to be of a desultory nature. He gave concerts in the Augarten which was frequented by the fashionable people. He gave concerts in the theatre and in different halls, and his own music was performed with great success. His concertos and his playing were cheered to the echo by the Emperor and the nobility. His old love Aloysia sang at one of these concerts, and Gluck sat in a box and applauded. It is not true that at this time Mozart was unappreciated by the public or that the public was not willing to pay money for the pleasure of hearing him. As a pianoforte player he was surfeited with applause. His subscription concerts were crowded. At one he received four hundred and fifty ducats; at two concerts in Prague in 1786 he received one thousand florins. He played regularly in private concerts given by members of the nobility, and it was the custom of the Viennese aristocracy to reward distinguished artists liberally. On the other hand he made but little by the publication of his compositions. Nor did he fare better in his dealings with theatrical managers. The usual payment in Vienna for an opera was one hundred ducats. Upon the whole, Mozart was probably as well treated from a pecuniary point of view as the majority of the musicians of his time. He had no head for business, and he was constantly in want of money. A few months after his marriage he was threatened with an action for non-payment of a bill. He was constantly borrowing small sums from Peter to pay Paul. His letters abound in proofs of his embarrassments. At different times he tried plans of reform; from March, 1784, until February, 1785, he kept an account book, and the entries were neatly written. But Constanze was not the housewife praised by King Lemuel.

A son was born in 1783, who died in the same year, and in the summer a visit was paid to Salzburg. A mass, which Mozart had vowed in his heart before his marriage if he succeeded in taking Constanze there as his wife, was performed; he wrote duets for violin and viola to help Michael Haydn, who was prevented by sickness from satisfying the Archbishop's command; he sketched a part of an opera, "L'Oca del Cairo." In one way the visit was a disappointment. Neither Leopold nor Marianna was really fond of Constanze, and Mozart was displeased because none of the trinkets that had been given him in his youth were offered to his wife. He returned to Vienna in October. In 1785 the father returned the visit. He wept for joy at hearing Wolfgang play the pianoforte concerto composed for the blind pianist, Marie Paradies; he heard string quartets of his son played by Haydn, Dittersdorf, Wolfgang and Vanhall; and Haydn said to him, "I assure you solemnly and as an honest man, that I consider your son to be the greatest composer of whom I have ever heard." Influenced by his son he became a Freemason. There were secret associations, brotherhoods of all descriptions, more or less closely allied to Freemasonry, throughout Germany during the latter half of the eighteenth century. Many wished to join together in fighting for liberty of conscience and independence of thought; and, as Herder, Wieland, Goethe, they saw in Freemasonry "a means of attaining their highest endeavors after universal good." In Vienna nearly all the distinguished leaders of thought were Freemasons; the lodges were fashionable, and in 1785 the Emperor Joseph placed them under the protection of the state, although he first reduced the number. It is not surprising that Mozart, with his love for humanity, his warm sympathies for all that is good and noble, should enter eagerly into masonic ties and duties. He contemplated the founding of a secret society of his own. His lodge was the oldest in Vienna, "Zur gekrönten Hoffnung," and for this lodge he wrote vocal and instrumental works, one of which, the "Trauermusik" is of great beauty and originality.

In 1784 the German opera in Vienna was almost extinct. Aloysia Lange chose Mozart's "Escape from the Seraglio" for her benefit, and the composer directed it; Gluck's "Pilgrimme von Mekka" was given, as well as Benda's melodramas. The next year it was proposed to reinstate German opera in competition with the Italian, and the scheme was carried out, but the performances were not equal to those of the Italian opera, and Mozart was not pitted by the Emperor as a native composer against the foreigner Salieri. For a festival in 1786 dramatic performances were ordered in Italian and German, and Mozart wrote the music for "Der Schauspieldirector" (The Theatre Director), while Salieri was more fortunate in his text. The Italian operas were popular with the court and the people, and the better singers went over to the Italian side. Paesiello and Sarti were welcomed heartily in Vienna, and their operas received the patronage of the Emperor. Mozart's prospects as an operatic composer were gloomy, until in 1785 he was seriously benefited by his acquaintance with Lorenzo da Ponte, abbé, poet, and rake. This singular man was appointed theatrical poet by Joseph II. through the influence of Salieri. He quarreled with his benefactor, who engaged a rival as his librettist. Da Ponte looked about for a composer with whom he could join against his enemies, and he entered into negotiations with Mozart. Beaumarchais' comedy, "Le Mariage de Figaro," had finally been put on the stage of the Théâtre-Français in April, 1784; it was exciting popular attention; and Mozart wished an adaptation for his music. The adaptation would be an easy task, but the comedy itself was not allowed in the Vienna Theatre. The poet was in the good graces of the Emperor and he confided the plan to him. Joseph admitted that Mozart was a good instrumental composer, said that his opera did not amount to much, called Mozart to him, heard portions of the work, and ordered that it should be put into rehearsal immediately. If we believe the account given by Da Ponte, the whole opera was finished in six weeks. There was a strong cabal, with Salieri at the head, against the production, but it was brought out May 1st and with overwhelming success. Michael Kelly, who sang the parts of Basilio and Don Curzio, gives interesting accounts of the rehearsals and the performance in his "Reminiscences." "Never was anything more complete than the triumph of Mozart." At the second performance five pieces were repeated: at the third, seven; "one little duet had to be sung three times," we learn from a letter of Leopold Mozart. In November Martin's "Cosa Rara" pleased "the fickle public" mightily, and during 1787 and 1788 "Figaro" was not given. It was first performed in Berlin, Sept. 14, 1790: the critics praised it: the people preferred Martin and Dittersdorf. It was heard later in all the great towns of Europe (Paris, 1793; London, 1812, with Catalani as Susanna); in Prague it was heard at once and with the greatest success, and this led to "Don Giovanni."

THE MOZART FAMILY.

Large oil painting by de la Croce (born 1736, a pupil of Lorenzoni), painted in 1780. The original is in the Salzburg Mozarteum and seems to have been repeatedly and unskilfully retouched.

The success of "Figaro" was not of material benefit to Mozart in Vienna. He fretted at the necessity of teaching; he envied Gyrowetz, who went to Italy. In 1786, a third child was born to him, Leopold, who died in the spring of the next year. His English friends urged him to go to England. He thought seriously of doing this, when he received one day a letter from the orchestra of Prague, to which the leading connoisseurs and amateurs had added their names, begging him to visit the town and see for himself the enormous success of "Figaro." Bohemia was a musical country, and at the capital music was cultivated passionately. There was an excellent school where pupils of talent were educated by the support of patrons. The members of the nobility had their orchestras, and some demanded that their servants should be musicians. "Figaro" was played by the Bondini Italian company throughout the winter of 1786-7, and the public enthusiasm was unbounded. The opera was turned into chamber music. It was arranged for all combinations of instruments. It was sung in the streets; it was whistled at street corners. Mozart with his wife arrived in Prague in January, 1787, and they were entertained by Count Thun. His visit was one of unalloyed happiness. He saw the beauties of Prague "hopping about to the music of 'Figaro' turned into waltzes and country dances. The people talked of nothing but 'Figaro.'" In the theatre he was welcomed with uproarious applause. His two concerts were in every way successful. And here he amused himself, doing little work, until Bondini made a contract with him by which Mozart agreed to give him an opera for the next season for one hundred ducats.