Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...
(1756–1791) had a powerful influence on the works of
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...
(1770–1827). Beethoven held Mozart in high regard; some of his music recalls Mozart's, he composed several
variations
Variation or Variations may refer to:
Science and mathematics
* Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon
* Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individuals ...
on Mozart's themes and he modeled a number of his compositions on those of the older composer.
Beethoven's years in Bonn
![Beethoven Riedel 1801](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Beethoven_Riedel_1801.jpg)
Beethoven was born in
Bonn
The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...
in 1770, about 14 years after Mozart (born
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the ...
, 1756). In 1781, during Beethoven's childhood, Mozart had moved from Salzburg to
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
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, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
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, timezone_DST ...
, the Austrian imperial capital, to pursue his career. While Bonn was politically and culturally affiliated to Vienna, it was geographically even more remote than Salzburg, lying around 900 km distant on the opposite side of German-speaking Europe.
During his youth and musical training in Bonn, Beethoven had extensive, intimate exposure to Mozart's music. He played Mozart piano concertos with the Bonn court orchestra and performed (playing viola) in Mozart's operas. Indeed,
Lewis Lockwood writes, "Just as Mozart had once told his father that he was 'soaked in music', so Beethoven was soaked in Mozart." In Beethoven's early efforts to compose, he was so strongly inspired by Mozart that once he worried that he had plagiarized him by mistake. Lockwood writes:
On a sketch leaf from about October 1790 Beethoven wrote down a brief C-minor passage in 6/8 meter, in two-staff piano score, and then wrote down these words, between the staves, about the little phrase: 'This entire passage has been stolen from the Mozart Symphony in C, where the Andante in six-eight from the ...' (he breaks off here). Then Beethoven writes the passage again just below and a little differently, on the same sketch page, and signs it 'Beethoven himself'. The passage he thought he was quoting cannot be traced to any Mozart symphony that we know.
Beethoven's Vienna visit
![Mozart drawing Doris Stock 1789](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Mozart_drawing_Doris_Stock_1789.jpg)
Beethoven visited Vienna early in 1787, but accounts differ as to the exact dates. Cooper states that he arrived in early April and left about three weeks later. Haberl says that he arrived in January 1787 and departed in March or April, remaining in the city for up to weeks.
[Haberl (2006), pp. 215–55] There is evidence for this in the ''Regensburgische Diarium''. Beethoven's return to Bonn was prompted at least in part by his mother's medical condition (she died of
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...
in July of that year). Beethoven's father was nearly incapacitated by alcoholism, and Beethoven had two younger brothers, so it was believed the composer may have been needed at home to support his family.
Written documentation of Beethoven's initial visit to Vienna is sparse; the two composers could conceivably have met. Haberl's dates imply a period of about six weeks when this could have occurred
[ (Mozart was in Prague for part of early 1787).
The 19th-century biographer Otto Jahn gave an anecdote claiming that Beethoven had improvised before Mozart, and that the latter had been impressed. Jahn gives no evidence of this, mentioning only that "it was communicated to me in Vienna on good authority". A contemporary of Beethoven's, ]Ignaz von Seyfried
Ignaz Xaver, Ritter von Seyfried (15 August 1776 – 27 August 1841) was an Austrian musician, conductor and composer. He was born and died in Vienna. According to a statement in his handwritten memoirs he was a pupil of both Wolfgang Amadeus Mo ...
, describes his encounter with Mozart as follows (although Seyfried places the visit in 1790):
Beethoven made a short stay at Vienna, in the year 1790, whither he had gone for the sake of hearing Mozart, to whom he had letters of introduction. Beethoven improvised before Mozart, who listened with some indifference, believing it to be a piece learned by heart. Beethoven then demanded, with his characteristic ambition, a given theme to work out; Mozart, with a sceptical smile, gave him at once a chromatic motivo for a fugue, in which, ''al rovescio'', the countersubject for a double fugue lay concealed. Beethoven was not intimidated, and worked out the subject, the secret intention of which he immediately perceived, at great length and with such remarkable originality and power that Mozart's attention was rivetted, and his wonder so excited that he stepped softly into the adjoining room where some friends were assembled, and whispered to them with sparkling eyes: "Don't lose sight of this young man, he will one day tell you some things that will surprise you!"
Contemporary scholarship is, however, somewhat skeptical of this story. ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians
''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...
'' does not mention it; its account of the visit is as follows:
In the spring of 1787 Beethoven visited Vienna. In the absence of documents, much remains uncertain about the precise aims of the journey and the extent to which they were realized; but there seems little doubt that he met Mozart and perhaps had a few lessons from him.[Kerman et al., section 2]
Some historians, however, are skeptical that Mozart and Beethoven met at all.
Maynard Solomon
Maynard Elliott Solomon (January 5, 1930 – September 28, 2020) was an American music executive and musicologist, a co-founder of Vanguard Records as well as a music producer."Maynard Solomon" in ''Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians'', v ...
, who has written biographies of both Mozart and Beethoven, does not mention Jahn's tale, and even puts forward the possibility that Mozart might have given Beethoven an audition and then rejected him:
In Bonn Beethoven was being groomed to be Mozart's successor by group of influential nobles who sent him to Vienna ... to advance that purpose. The sixteen-year-old Beethoven, however, was not yet ready to be on his own. At his father's urging, the young virtuoso left Vienna ... and returned home in a state of despondency over his mother's consumptive condition – and perhaps over a rejection by Mozart, who was preoccupied with his own affairs, including his worrisome financial condition, and may not have been able seriously to consider taking on another pupil, even one of great talent and backed by eminent patrons.
Solomon goes on to enumerate other matters that kept Mozart preoccupied at the time: his father
His or HIS may refer to:
Computing
* Hightech Information System, a Hong Kong graphics card company
* Honeywell Information Systems
* Hybrid intelligent system
* Microsoft Host Integration Server
Education
* Hangzhou International School, in ...
's declining health, a visit to Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
, the beginnings of work on ''Don Giovanni
''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanis ...
'', and the writing of "a vast amount of other music". Moreover, Mozart already had a pupil living in his home, the nine-year-old Johann Nepomuk Hummel
Johann Nepomuk Hummel (14 November 177817 October 1837) was an Austrian composer and virtuoso pianist. His music reflects the Transition from Classical to Romantic music, transition from the Classical period (music), Classical to the Romantic ...
.
While it cannot be determined whether Beethoven actually met Mozart, it is more probable that he heard Mozart play. Beethoven's student Carl Czerny told Otto Jahn that Beethoven had told him that Mozart (whom Beethoven could only have heard in 1787) "had a fine but choppy erman ''zerhacktes''way of playing, no ''ligato''."
Regardless of whether Beethoven met Mozart in Vienna, his 1787 visit there seems to have been the start of an unhappy time for him. ''The Grove Dictionary'' notes that his "first surviving letter, to a member of a family in Augsburg
Augsburg (; bar , Augschburg , links=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian_German , label=Swabian German, , ) is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, around west of Bavarian capital Munich. It is a university town and regional seat of the ' ...
that had befriended him on his way o Vienna describes the melancholy events of that summer and hints at ... ill-health nddepression.''
Shared experiences
Beethoven eventually returned to Vienna permanently in 1792, the year after Mozart's death. His early years in Vienna include many experiences similar to Mozart's own in the preceding years, and he became closely acquainted with some of Mozart's associates. In particular, like Mozart, Beethoven early established a strong reputation as a keyboard performer, was mentored by Joseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...
, and was given patronage by Countess Maria Wilhelmine Thun Maria Wilhelmine von Thun und Hohenstein, born Uhlfeldt (Vienna 13 June 1744 – Vienna 18 May 1800) was a Viennese countess. She is remembered as the sponsor of a musically and intellectually outstanding salon and for her patronage of music, nota ...
. Beethoven was also given patronage by Baron van Swieten
Gottfried Freiherr van Swieten (29 October 1733 – 29 March 1803) was a Dutch-born Austrian diplomat, librarian, and government official who served the Holy Roman Empire during the 18th century. He was an enthusiastic amateur musician and is bes ...
, in whose home he played the works of Baroque masters, just as Mozart had done. Like Mozart, Beethoven traveled (in 1796) to Prague, Dresden, Leipzig, and Berlin in the company of Prince Lichnowsky
The House of Lichnowsky or House of Lichnovský is the name of an influential Czech aristocratic family of Silesian and Moravian origin, documented since the 14th century.
History
The noble family first appeared in the Duchy of Pless (Pszczyna) ...
. On the Prague phase of his journey, Beethoven composed an extended concert aria for the noted soprano Josepha Duschek, as Mozart had done on his visit in 1789. By the early 19th century Beethoven was a focus of Emanuel Schikaneder
Emanuel Schikaneder (born Johann Joseph Schickeneder; 1 September 1751 – 21 September 1812) was a German impresario, dramatist, actor, singer, and composer. He wrote the libretto of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera ''The Magic Flute'' and was t ...
's attention; the impresario sponsored the sketch phases of Beethoven's intended opera ''Vestas Feuer
Vestas Wind Systems A/S is a Danish manufacturer, seller, installer, and servicer of wind turbines that was founded in 1945. The company operates manufacturing plants in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Taiwan, India, Italy, Romania, the Un ...
'', just as he had been the impetus for Mozart's ''The Magic Flute
''The Magic Flute'' (German: , ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a ''Singspiel'', a popular form during the time it was written that inclu ...
''. (Beethoven eventually abandoned ''Vestas Feuer'' in favor of ''Fidelio
''Fidelio'' (; ), originally titled ' (''Leonore, or The Triumph of Marital Love''), Op. 72, is Ludwig van Beethoven's only opera. The German libretto was originally prepared by Joseph Sonnleithner from the French of Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, with ...
''.)
Influence of Mozart on Beethoven
Even after his death, Mozart's influence was apparent in the works of Beethoven. For example, Beethoven copied a passage from Mozart's 40th Symphony into the sketchbook he was using when he composed his Fifth Symphony, the third movement of which opens with a theme similar to one from the Mozart. Charles Rosen sees Mozart's C minor Piano Concerto, K. 491, as a model for Beethoven's 3rd Piano Concerto in the same key, the Quintet for Piano and Winds, K. 452, for Beethoven's quintet for the same instruments, Op. 16,[Rosen (1997), p. 381] and the A major String Quartet, K. 464, for Beethoven's A major String Quartet Op. 18 No. 5. Robert Marshall sees Mozart's Piano Sonata No. 14 in C minor, K. 457, as the model for Beethoven's " Pathétique" Sonata, Op. 13, in the same key.[Marshall (2003), pp. 300–301]
Beethoven wrote cadenza
In music, a cadenza (from it, cadenza, link=no , meaning cadence; plural, ''cadenze'' ) is, generically, an improvisation, improvised or written-out ornament (music), ornamental passage (music), passage played or sung by a solo (music), sol ...
s (WoO
Woo, WoO, WOO, W.O.O. and variants may refer to:
People
Woo or Wu, romanization of several East Asian names:
* Hu (surname): 胡, 瓠, 護, 戶, 扈, 虎, 呼, 忽, 斛
* Wu (surname): 吳, 伍, 武, 仵, 烏, 鄔, 巫
* Ng (name): 吳, 伍
* Woo ...
58) to the first and third movements of Mozart's D minor piano concerto, K. 466, and four sets of variations
Variation or Variations may refer to:
Science and mathematics
* Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon
* Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individuals ...
on themes by Mozart:
*on "Se vuol ballare" from ''The Marriage of Figaro
''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...
'', for piano and violin, WoO 40
*on "Là ci darem la mano" from ''Don Giovanni
''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanis ...
'', for two oboes and cor anglais
The cor anglais (, or original ; plural: ''cors anglais''), or English horn in North America, is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family. It is approximately one and a half times the length of an oboe, making it essentially an alto ...
, WoO 28
*on "Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen" from ''The Magic Flute
''The Magic Flute'' (German: , ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a ''Singspiel'', a popular form during the time it was written that inclu ...
'', for piano and cello, Op. 66
*on "Bei Männern welche Liebe fühlen" from the same opera, for piano and cello, WoO 46
Quite late in his career Beethoven paid homage to Mozart by making a quotation from ''Don Giovanni'' (the opening notes of Leporello's aria 'Notte e giorno faticar') the basis of the 22nd of the Diabelli Variations
The ''33 Variations on a waltz by Anton Diabelli'', Op. 120, commonly known as the ''Diabelli Variations'', is a set of variations for the piano written between 1819 and 1823 by Ludwig van Beethoven on a waltz composed by Anton Diabelli. It for ...
.
Notes
References
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* Viewable online at Google books
Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...
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{{Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...