The new baby’s father, Leopold Mozart, a German from Swabia originally, was a violinist at the prince-archbishop’s court. Salzburg was not part of Austria at this time, but was ruled by its own prince-archbishop. Sigismundus, which he thought equally comic, was added at his confirmation. Gottlieb, his godfather’s surname, was later translated into Theophilus or Amadeus, which the grown Wolfgang would use only in jest. The baby was born on the feast day of St John Chrysostom and Wolfgang was his maternal grandfather’s name. They had had six children before and only one of them had survived. He was christened in Salzburg Cathedral at ten the next morning, so perhaps his parents were anxious about him. Written with a gifted historian’s flair for narrative and unencumbered by specialized analyses of Mozart’s music, Melograni’s is the most vivid and enjoyable biography available.Īt a time when music lovers around the world are paying honor to Mozart and his legacy, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart will be welcomed by his enthusiasts-or anyone wishing to peer into the mind of one of the greatest composers ever known.Starting life with an ample supply of both genius and Christian names, Joannes Chrisostomus Wolfgang Gottlieb Mozart was born at eight in the evening in his family’s third-floor apartment at 9 Getreidegasse in Salzburg. Melograni’s deft use of Mozart’s letters throughout confers authority and vitality to his recounting, and his expertise brings Mozart’s eighteenth-century milieu evocatively to life. This masterful biography proceeds from the young Mozart’s earliest years as a Wunderkind -the child prodigy who traveled with his family to perform concerts throughout Europe-to his formative years in Vienna, where he fully absorbed the artistic and intellectual spirit of the Enlightenment, to his deathbed, his unfinished Requiem, and the mystery that still surrounds his burial.

Piero Melograni here offers a wholly readable account of Mozart’s remarkable life and times. And since his untimely death in 1791, he remains an enigmatic figure-the subject of fascination for aficionados and novices alike.

His operas too cast a long shadow over those staged in their wake. His substantial oeuvre contains works that are considered to be among the most exquisite pieces of symphonic, chamber, and choral music ever written. This year marks the 250th anniversary of the birth of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, one of the most enduringly popular and celebrated composers to have ever lived.

Mozart date of birth