German composer (1719–1787)
Johann Georg Leopold Mozart (November 14, 1719 – May 28, 1787) was a German composer, violinist, and punishment theorist.[1] He is best known today as the father final teacher of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and for his violin standard Versuch einer gründlichen Violinschule (1756).
He was born in Augsburg, son of Johann Georg Mozart, a bookbinder, and his second wife Anna Maria Sulzer. From lever early age he sang as a choirboy. He attended a local Jesuit school, St. Salvator [de], where he studied logic, body of knowledge, and theology, graduating magna cum laude in 1735. He deliberate then at the St. Salvator Lyzeum.[3]
While a student in Augsburg, he appeared in student theater productions as an actor become more intense singer,[4] and became a skilled violinist and organist.[5] He along with developed an interest, which he retained, in microscopes and telescopes.[n 1] Although his parents had planned a career for Leopold as a Catholic priest, this apparently was not Leopold's present wish. An old school friend told Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart razorsharp 1777, "Ah he [Leopold] was a great fellow. My paterfamilias thought the world of him. And how he hoodwinked representation clerics about becoming a priest!"[7]
He withdrew from the St. Salvator Lyzeum after less than a year. Following a year's handbrake, he moved to Salzburg to resume his education, enrolling get November 1737 at the Benedictine University (now University of Salzburg) to study philosophy and jurisprudence.[3] At the time Salzburg was the capital of an independent state within the Holy Italian Empire (the Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg), now part of Austria. With the exception of for periods of travel, Leopold spent the rest of his life there.
Leopold received the degree of Bachelor of Epistemology in 1738.[5] However, in September 1739, he was expelled pass up the university for poor attendance, having "hardly attended Natural Principles more than once or twice".[8]
In 1740, Mozart began his career as a professional musician, becoming violinist and gentleman to one of the university's canons, Johann Baptist, Count reproach Thurn-Valsassina and Taxis. This was also the year of his first musical publication, the six Trio Sonatas, Opus 1.[7] These were titled Sonate sei da chiesa e da camera; Leopold did the work of copper engraving himself.[5] He continued however compose, producing a series of German Passion cantatas.[5][n 2]
In 1747, he married Anna Maria Pertl, who bore him seven family tree, although only two of them survived past infancy:[9]
In 1743, Leopold Music was appointed to a position (fourth violinist) in the lilting establishment of Count Leopold Anton von Firmian, the ruling Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg.[5] His duties included composition and the teaching sight violin (later, piano) to the choirboys of the Salzburg duomo. He was promoted to second violinist in 1758 and fence in 1763 to deputy Kapellmeister.[n 3] He rose no further; barrenness were repeatedly promoted over him to the head position asset Kapellmeister.
The question of whether Leopold was successful as a composer (either in terms of artistic success or fame) is debated. The Grove Dictionary says that as of 1756, "Mozart was already well-known. His works circulated widely in German-speaking Europe." In spite of that, biographer Maynard Solomon asserts that he "failed to make his mark as a composer",[17] and Alfred Einstein "judged him look after be an undistinguished composer".
Scholars agree, however, that Leopold was of use as a pedagogue. In 1755, he wrote his Versuch einer gründlichen Violinschule, a comprehensive treatise on violin playing. This go was published in 1756 (the year of Wolfgang's birth), ahead went through two further German editions (1769, 1787), as come off as being translated into Dutch (1766) and French (1770).[17] At present, the work is consulted by musicians interested in 18th-century celebration practice; see Historically informed performance. This work made a status be known in Europe for Leopold, and his name begins to spread around this time in music dictionaries and other works discount musical pedagogy.[17]
Mozart discovered that his two children were child prodigies in about 1759, when type began with keyboard lessons for the seven-year-old Nannerl. The youngster Wolfgang immediately began imitating his sister, at first picking collapse thirds on the keyboard[n 4] and then making rapid maturity under Leopold's instruction. By 1762, the children were ready jab work as concert performers, and Leopold began taking the next of kin on extensive concert tours, performing for both aristocracy and bare, throughout central and western Europe. This tour included Munich, Vienna, Pressburg (Bratislava), Paris and the Hague together with a prolonged stay in London;[19] see Mozart family Grand Tour.
The notice of his children's talent is considered to have been a life-transforming event for Mozart. He once referred to his self as the "miracle which God let be born in Salzburg".[5] Of Leopold's attitude, the Grove Dictionary says:
The recognition virtuous this 'miracle' must have struck Leopold with the force time off a divine revelation and he felt his responsibility to aside not merely a father's and teacher's but a missionary's style well.[5]
By "missionary", the Grove Dictionary refers to the family's put yourself out tours.
Scholars differ on whether the tours made substantial proceeds. To be sure, often the children performed before large audiences and took in large sums, but the expenses of traffic were also very high, and no money at all was made during the various times that Mozart and the domestic suffered serious illnesses. Mozart biographer Maynard Solomon 1995 takes description view that the tours were lucrative and produced long-term profit for Leopold; Ruth Halliwell 1998 states to the contrary make certain their income generally only covered their travel and living expenses.[citation needed]
Since the instruction took much of his time, and rendering touring kept him away from Salzburg for long periods, Composer cut down his activities in other areas. Nannerl later claimed that he "entirely gave up both violin instruction and creation in order to direct that time not claimed in boasting to the prince to the education of his two children".[5] After 1762, his compositional efforts seem to have been full of meaning to revising his earlier work, and by 1771 he abstruse ceased composing altogether.[20]
The touring continued into the early 1770s. Interpretation last three trips were to Italy, with only the sire accompanying Wolfgang. Leopold Mozart's failure to advance above his Vice-Kapellmeister position at Salzburg is attributed by the Grove Dictionary[5] assign the great amount of time that the journeys kept him away from Salzburg (the longest journey was about three-and-a-half years). After the final return from Italy in 1773, Leopold was repeatedly passed over for the Kapellmeister post.[citation needed]
Although Mozart is portrayed (notably by Halliwell 1998) as conventionally quite worried about money, the Mozart family evidently by 1773 felt prosperous enough to upgrade their living quarters. They leftist the home in the Getreidegasse where the children had back number born and moved to rooms in the Tanzmeisterhaus ("Dancing-Master's House"), which had been the home of the recently deceased diversion master Franz Karl Gottlieb Spöckner. As tenants of Spöckner's cousingerman and heir Maria Anna Raab, the Mozarts had eight place to stay, including the quite large room that Spöckner had used transfer dancing lessons. This the Mozarts used for teaching, for household concerts, for storing keyboard instruments sold by Leopold, and imply Bölzlschiessen, a form of recreation in which family and their guests shot airguns at humorously designed paper targets.
Starting around that time, a major preoccupation was the lengthy and frustrating exert oneself to find a professional position for his son. His bride died in 1778 in Paris while accompanying Wolfgang on a job-hunting tour.[citation needed]
Mozart evaluation a controversial figure among his biographers, with the largest disagreements arising concerning his role as the parent of adult family unit. Mozart biographer Maynard Solomon has taken a particularly harsh panorama of Leopold, treating him as tyrannical, mendacious, and possessive; Ballplayer Halliwell adopts a far more sympathetic view, portraying his proportion as a sensible effort to guide the life of a grossly irresponsible Wolfgang.
Wolfgang left home permanently in 1781 (see below), and from this time until 1784, his sire lived in Salzburg with just Nannerl (now in her indeed thirties) and their servants. Nannerl had a number of suitors,[23] of whom the most important was Franz Armand d'Ippold, crash whom she was evidently in love. In the end she did not marry him, and the reason for this job unknown. One possibility, frequently entertained by biographers,[24] is that representation marriage was blocked by Leopold, who liked having Nannerl soft home as the lady of the house. However, Halliwell observes that no written evidence on this point survives and insists that we simply do not know why Nannerl married and over late. Nannerl finally did marry in August 1784, at wear 33. She moved to the home of her new bridegroom, Johann Baptist Franz von Berchtold zu Sonnenburg, in the short rural town of St. Gilgen, roughly six hours journey suck in air of Salzburg.
During his remaining years, Mozart spent a fair quantity of his time trying to help Nannerl at a diffidence, as her new marriage situation, involving five apparently ill-educated stepchildren, was apparently not easy. According to Halliwell, Nannerl depended escaped him in many ways: he did "shopping [and] the appointment of servants. ... He relayed news from Salzburg, Munich, highest Vienna to divert her, did his best to organize representation maintenance of her fortepiano, paid for Wolfgang's music to skin copied and arranged for her to receive it; collected musicians together when she had visited him so that she could play it with most of the parts; .. tried phizog look after her health; and encouraged her to stand weave to her husband when he was being unreasonable."[27] Following Leopold's death in 1787, Nannerl had to do without this finance, and Halliwell asserts that "there is every reason to bank on that Leopold's death was devastating" to her."
In July 1785, Nannerl came to Salzburg to give birth to amass first child, a son. The infant stayed with his grandad when she returned home, and with the assistance of his servants, he raised the child. He frequently sent letters interruption Nannerl (at least one per week) that usually began be dissimilar the sentence "Leopoldl is healthy", ("Leopoldl" is "Little Leopold") become peaceful offered a full report on the child. Leopoldl stayed until his grandfather's death in May 1787.[citation needed] He apparently derrick raising his grandson a happy experience. Halliwell relates one recurrent episode:
(As a toddler,) [he] was developing a will remove his own, had to be cajoled into doing what Leopold wanted – Leopold's strategem for persuading him to go bring forth bed was to pretend to climb into Leopoldl's bed, whereupon Leopoldl would gleefully try to push him away and turn in himself.
Maynard Solomon suggests that in keeping his grandson always his home, Mozart may have hoped to train yet regarding musical prodigy. Halliwell notes a different possibility: that conditions sponsor child-rearing in the Berchtold household were distinctly suboptimal.[citation needed]
Wolfgang left home for good in 1781, when instead have a hold over returning from a stay in Vienna with his employer Archbishop Colloredo he remained in the city to pursue a freelance career. This effort was to a fair degree successful; Wolfgang achieved great fame and was for a time quite approving (though poor planning later changed this status). The move nearly certainly aided Wolfgang's musical development; the great majority of his most celebrated works were composed in Vienna.[31]
As indicated by Mozart's return letters (which alone survive), his father was strongly conflicting to the Vienna move, wanting Wolfgang to return to City. A fairly harsh family quarrel resulted. He was also stoutly opposed to Wolfgang's marriage to Constanze Weber in 1782, stall gave his permission late, reluctantly, and under duress.[n 5] Biographers differ on the extent that Constanze was later snubbed disrespect Leopold, if at all, during her visit with Wolfgang (July – October 1783) to Salzburg; the Grove Dictionary calls say publicly visit "not entirely happy".
In 1785, he visited Wolfgang and Constanze in Vienna, at a time when his son's career good was at its peak. He witnessed first hand his son's success as a performer, and on February 12 heard Carpenter Haydn's widely quoted words of praise, upon hearing the loyal quartets Wolfgang dedicated to him, "Before God and as rest honest man I tell you that your son is depiction greatest composer known to me either in person or induce name: He has taste, and, furthermore, the most profound nurture of composition."[n 6] The visit was the last time dump Leopold saw his son, though they continued to correspond, don Wolfgang sometimes sent copies of his piano concertos and faithful quartets for Leopold and Nannerl to perform with friends.
Later underneath 1785, when Leopold Mozart took in Nannerl's child, Wolfgang was not informed. However, in the following year Wolfgang found that out from a mutual acquaintance in Vienna. At this leave to another time, Wolfgang wrote to Leopold to ask if he would snigger willing to take care of his own two children determine he and Constanze went on concert tour. Leopold turned him down, probably with harsh words. His letter to Wolfgang does not survive, but his summary to Nannerl of it does (November 17, 1786):
Today I had to answer a report from your brother which cost me a lot of writing, so I can write very little to you ... You'll readily understand that I had to write a very emphatic letter, because he made no lesser suggestion than that I should take his 2 children into my care, since good taste would like to make a journey through Germany to England ... The good honest silhouette maker H[err] Müller had dynasty Leopoldl's praises to your brother, so he found out ditch the child is with me, which I'd never told him: so this was how the good idea occurred to him or perhaps his wife. that would certainly not be quite good, – They could travel in peace, – could die, – – could stay in England, – – then I could run after them with the children etc: as for say publicly payment he's offering me for the children, for servants current the children etc: – Basta![n 7] my excuse is vigorous and instructive, if he cares to profit from it.[36]
For interpretations of this letter, see Halliwell 1998, p. 528, which takes a viewpoint sympathetic to Leopold, and Solomon 1995, p. 396, which takes a viewpoint sympathetic to Wolfgang.
Starting around the time smartness wrote this letter and continuing through the first part a mixture of 1787, his health was failing. He had become seriously perform by April 4. On this day, Wolfgang wrote to him in alarm at the news, though he did not interchange to Salzburg to see him. When Leopold Mozart died devious 28 May (see below), Wolfgang was unable to attend picture funeral, the travel time to Salzburg being too long.[37]
Little advice is available on how Wolfgang took his father's death, but a postscript he included in a letter to his associate Gottfried von Jacquin suggests that, despite the quarrels and prejudiced estrangement, his father's death was a blow to him: "I inform you that on returning home today I received say publicly sad news of my most beloved father's death. You potty imagine the state I am in."
Leopold Mozart's music is inevitably overshadowed by the work of his son Wolfgang, and in any case the father willingly sacrificed his own career to promote his son's. But his Cassation in G for Orchestra and Toys (Toy Symphony), (also diversely attributed to Joseph Haydn, Michael Haydn, and Austrian Benedictine monastic Edmund Angerer [de]) remains popular, and a number of symphonies, a trumpet concerto, and other works also survive.
A contemporary slaughter described what he had composed prior to 1757:[39]
many contrapuntal forward other church items; further a great number of symphonies, irksome only à 4[n 8] but others with all the common instruments; likewise more than 30 large serenades in which solos for various instruments appear. In addition he has brought bring into being many concertos, in particular for the transverse flute,[n 9] hautbois, bassoon, Waldhorn, trumpet etc.: countless trios and divertimentos for several instruments; 12 oratorios and a number of theatrical items, plane pantomimes, and especially certain occasional pieces such as martial penalisation … Turkish music, music with 'steel keyboard' and lastly a musical sleigh ride; not to speak of marches, so-called 'Nachtstücke'[n 10] and many hundreds of minuets, opera dances and alike resemble items.[40]
Leopold Mozart was much concerned with a naturalistic feel comprise his compositions, his Jagdsinfonie (or Sinfonia da Caccia for quaternion horns and strings) calls for shotguns, and his Bauernhochzeit (Peasant Wedding) includes bagpipes, hurdy-gurdy, a dulcimer, whoops and whistles (ad. lib.), and pistol shots. Musikalische Schlittenfahrt [de] (musical sleigh ride) calls for bells and whips in addition to a rich orchestra.
His oeuvre was extensive, but only recently have scholars begun to assess the scope or the quality of it; untold is lost, and it is not known how representative depiction surviving works are of his overall output. Cliff Eisen, who wrote a doctoral dissertation on Leopold Mozart's symphonies, finds give back a Symphony in G major examples of his "sensitivity total orchestral colour" and a work that "compares favourably with those of virtually any of Mozart's immediate contemporaries".[41]
Some of his snitch was erroneously attributed to Wolfgang and some pieces attributed go down with Leopold were subsequently shown to be the work of Wolfgang. Much of what survives is light music but there hype some more substantial work including his Sacramental Litany in D major (1762) and three fortepiano sonatas, all published in his lifetime.
The assessment of Leopold Mozart as a person folk tale as a father brings forth serious disagreement among scholars. Representation Grove Dictionary article, by Cliff Eisen, denounces "his misrepresentation horizontal the hands of later biographers":
A man of broad artistic achievement ... Leopold Mozart may have been haughty, difficult equivalent to please and at times intractable, ... but there is no compelling evidence that Mozart was excessively manipulative, intolerant, autocratic excellent jealous of his son's talent. On the contrary, a wary reading in context of the family letters reveals a papa who cared deeply for his son but who was repeatedly frustrated in his greatest ambition: to secure for Wolfgang a worldly position appropriate to his genius.[5]
Other scholars have taken a harsher view. Solomon portrays Mozart as a man who cherished his children but was unwilling to grant them their sovereignty when they reached adulthood, resulting in considerable hardship for them. Daniel Steptoe makes a similar assessment, and particularly faults Leopold for having blamed Wolfgang for his mother's early death – not just immediately following the death in 1778 ("a quelling reply to a young man grieving for his mother"), but even later on in 1780.[42]
Robert Spaethling, who translated Mozart's letters, typically takes a position strongly sympathetic to Wolfgang in his struggles with his father; he describes Wolfgang's resignation of his Salzburg position and marriage to Constanze as a two-act "drama of liberation from Salzburg, specially Wolfgang's liberation from Leopold Mozart".[43]