WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.319 Welcome to the Deep Dive, the only show designed 00:00:02.319 --> 00:00:04.440 to take that stack of reading material you've 00:00:04.440 --> 00:00:06.679 been meaning to get to and turn it into pure, 00:00:06.839 --> 00:00:09.720 synthesized knowledge. And our target today is 00:00:09.720 --> 00:00:12.179 a big one. Maybe the biggest. We're talking about 00:00:12.179 --> 00:00:14.900 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It's a huge undertaking, 00:00:15.099 --> 00:00:17.300 really, because the man's biography is just as 00:00:17.300 --> 00:00:20.000 loaded with mythology as his compositional output. 00:00:20.359 --> 00:00:22.719 Absolutely. I mean, we are talking about a composer 00:00:22.719 --> 00:00:26.460 who, in a tragically short life of just 35 years, 00:00:26.679 --> 00:00:29.699 produced over 800 cataloged works. And these 00:00:29.699 --> 00:00:31.719 aren't just minor pieces. They span virtually 00:00:31.719 --> 00:00:35.500 every classical genre of his era. Symphonic, 00:00:35.520 --> 00:00:38.700 concerto, chamber music, opera, choral, you name 00:00:38.700 --> 00:00:40.560 it. And so many of them are still considered 00:00:40.560 --> 00:00:43.009 the absolute... you know, untouchable pinnacles 00:00:43.009 --> 00:00:45.909 of the repertoire. The pace alone is just staggering. 00:00:46.189 --> 00:00:48.409 It really is. But if your knowledge of Mozart 00:00:48.409 --> 00:00:51.149 stops at that image of the powdered wig child 00:00:51.149 --> 00:00:53.909 prodigy playing for queens, you are missing the 00:00:53.909 --> 00:00:56.390 much more dramatic, fascinating and frankly, 00:00:56.450 --> 00:00:59.350 much messier story. The story of the pioneering 00:00:59.350 --> 00:01:02.490 independent artist he became. Exactly. So our 00:01:02.490 --> 00:01:04.849 deep dive today is designed specifically to give 00:01:04.849 --> 00:01:07.510 you that fast, thorough and structured understanding. 00:01:08.120 --> 00:01:11.700 We want to lift the veil of mythology and explore 00:01:11.700 --> 00:01:14.819 the surprising details, the crucial political 00:01:14.819 --> 00:01:17.480 failures, and the personal contradictions that 00:01:17.480 --> 00:01:19.879 really shaped him. We're going to focus intensely 00:01:19.879 --> 00:01:22.819 on that period where he transitioned from a protected, 00:01:22.900 --> 00:01:26.840 controlled child star into a revolutionary, debt 00:01:26.840 --> 00:01:30.500 -ridden, and ultimately Free genius. We've drawn 00:01:30.500 --> 00:01:33.700 on deep biographical and scholarly sources to 00:01:33.700 --> 00:01:36.260 connect those dots, focusing on how he developed 00:01:36.260 --> 00:01:40.299 that enduring style. The one noted for its melodic 00:01:40.299 --> 00:01:42.420 beauty, its formal elegance, and its richness 00:01:42.420 --> 00:01:44.620 of harmony and texture. We are going to figure 00:01:44.620 --> 00:01:46.920 out how those grueling childhood tours paid off, 00:01:47.060 --> 00:01:49.439 why his professional resignation involved literally 00:01:49.439 --> 00:01:51.299 being physically kicked out of a building. An 00:01:51.299 --> 00:01:53.420 amazing story. And how he managed to write the 00:01:53.420 --> 00:01:56.060 towering Jupiter Symphony while at the same time 00:01:56.060 --> 00:01:58.780 writing these pitiful letters. Begging his friends 00:01:58.780 --> 00:02:01.280 for loans. Okay, let's unpack this genius. Where 00:02:01.280 --> 00:02:03.239 do we begin? We have to start at the genesis, 00:02:03.420 --> 00:02:06.819 Salzburg, 1756. The story begins with his birth 00:02:06.819 --> 00:02:12.060 on January 27th, 1756 in Salzburg. And we really 00:02:12.060 --> 00:02:14.240 need to contextualize this location right away. 00:02:14.669 --> 00:02:16.789 Yeah, this wasn't the Austria we think of today. 00:02:16.930 --> 00:02:19.370 Not at all. It was the Prince Archbishopric of 00:02:19.370 --> 00:02:22.710 Salzburg. So a small ecclesiastical principality 00:02:22.710 --> 00:02:25.129 governed by the church sitting firmly within 00:02:25.129 --> 00:02:27.969 the vast structure of the Holy Roman Empire. 00:02:28.150 --> 00:02:30.430 And that political structure is the first key 00:02:30.430 --> 00:02:34.280 insight. His entire early life. All his career 00:02:34.280 --> 00:02:37.199 prospects, they were dictated by the church hierarchy 00:02:37.199 --> 00:02:40.340 and aristocratic patronage. A world of patrons, 00:02:40.419 --> 00:02:43.560 not customers. Exactly. It demanded subservience. 00:02:43.719 --> 00:02:45.599 And before we move on, we have to acknowledge 00:02:45.599 --> 00:02:48.120 his full baptismal name. It tells you so much 00:02:48.120 --> 00:02:50.139 about the culture he was born into. Let's hear 00:02:50.139 --> 00:02:53.419 it. Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus 00:02:53.419 --> 00:02:56.740 Mozart. Wow. that is truly a mouthful it is and 00:02:56.740 --> 00:02:58.840 it's a reflection of the intense religious and 00:02:58.840 --> 00:03:01.000 naming customs of the time while he had a few 00:03:01.000 --> 00:03:03.520 variations as an adult he most commonly went 00:03:03.520 --> 00:03:06.139 by wolfgang amadei mozart what's absolutely vital 00:03:06.139 --> 00:03:08.199 here though is the role of his father leopold 00:03:08.199 --> 00:03:10.500 mozart He's a central character in this whole 00:03:10.500 --> 00:03:13.939 story. Leopold was not some minor figure. He 00:03:13.939 --> 00:03:17.639 was an experienced teacher, a composer. By 1763, 00:03:17.840 --> 00:03:20.439 he was the orchestra's deputy kapellmeister in 00:03:20.439 --> 00:03:23.180 Salzburg. But more importantly for us, Leopold 00:03:23.180 --> 00:03:25.800 had established his pedagogical credibility the 00:03:25.800 --> 00:03:29.439 very year Wolfgang was born, 1756. That's right. 00:03:29.979 --> 00:03:32.240 That was the year Leopold published his hugely 00:03:32.240 --> 00:03:36.180 successful and influential violin textbook, Versuf 00:03:36.180 --> 00:03:39.520 einer gründlichen Violenschule. So the man who 00:03:39.520 --> 00:03:42.139 shaped the world's greatest musical mind was 00:03:42.139 --> 00:03:44.879 already a published, respected, and expert teacher. 00:03:45.060 --> 00:03:47.319 This wasn't just random luck. It was focused 00:03:47.319 --> 00:03:50.060 preparation. And this preparation met an astonishing 00:03:50.060 --> 00:03:53.219 level of innate genius. In the accounts of Wolfgang's 00:03:53.219 --> 00:03:55.319 precocious ability, they aren't romanticized 00:03:55.319 --> 00:03:57.699 fluff. They are well documented, primarily by 00:03:57.699 --> 00:03:59.979 his elder sister, Maria. Anna. Whom everyone 00:03:59.979 --> 00:04:02.759 called Nannerl. Nannerl. She recalled that when 00:04:02.759 --> 00:04:04.979 she began her keyboard lessons around age seven, 00:04:05.120 --> 00:04:07.400 her little brother Wolfgang, who was only three. 00:04:07.560 --> 00:04:09.439 Three years old. Was already watching, absorbing 00:04:09.439 --> 00:04:11.400 everything, and picking out musical intervals 00:04:11.400 --> 00:04:14.340 at the Clavier all on his own. By age five, he 00:04:14.340 --> 00:04:16.800 wasn't just imitating. He was competent on both 00:04:16.800 --> 00:04:19.319 keyboard and violin and had started composing 00:04:19.319 --> 00:04:21.720 little pieces. And Leopold, being the meticulous 00:04:21.720 --> 00:04:25.399 teacher he was, wrote these down. They now form 00:04:25.399 --> 00:04:27.519 the very beginning of the catalog, K1 through 00:04:27.519 --> 00:04:30.379 K5, recorded in the Natural Notenbook. And the 00:04:30.379 --> 00:04:32.639 sources emphasize that these initial compositions, 00:04:32.980 --> 00:04:35.160 his earliest violin efforts, they were often 00:04:35.160 --> 00:04:37.500 entirely of his own initiative. It surprised 00:04:37.500 --> 00:04:40.420 even his father. And this is the pivotal moment 00:04:40.420 --> 00:04:43.959 for the family. Leopold, who was a decent but, 00:04:44.019 --> 00:04:46.060 you know, a minor composer in his own right, 00:04:46.199 --> 00:04:49.139 recognized immediately the magnitude of his son's 00:04:49.139 --> 00:04:51.120 talent. And he makes a choice. A huge choice. 00:04:51.220 --> 00:04:53.819 He chose to essentially abandon his own creative 00:04:53.819 --> 00:04:57.120 career to focus entirely on managing, teaching, 00:04:57.240 --> 00:05:00.610 and, well, exhibiting Wolfgang. He traded his 00:05:00.610 --> 00:05:02.569 identity as a composer for the role of the ultimate 00:05:02.569 --> 00:05:04.910 stage father. And the exhibition began almost 00:05:04.910 --> 00:05:07.589 immediately. So once the talent was clear, Leopold's 00:05:07.589 --> 00:05:10.110 strategy was pretty simple. Show the world. Exactly. 00:05:10.509 --> 00:05:13.990 The initial tours, starting in 1762 to the courts 00:05:13.990 --> 00:05:16.990 in Munich, Vienna, and Prague, were literally 00:05:16.990 --> 00:05:19.329 exhibitions. They were designed to showcase these 00:05:19.329 --> 00:05:22.529 two child prodigies, Wolfgang and Nannerl. And 00:05:22.529 --> 00:05:24.769 while Manor was also highly accomplished, let's 00:05:24.769 --> 00:05:28.149 be clear, Wolfgang was undeniably the star attraction. 00:05:28.370 --> 00:05:31.310 What follows is just an unprecedented childhood 00:05:31.310 --> 00:05:33.810 education. What the sources call the three and 00:05:33.810 --> 00:05:36.569 a half year grand tour was anything but grand 00:05:36.569 --> 00:05:39.160 in terms of comfort. Oh, it was a brutal cross 00:05:39.160 --> 00:05:42.019 -continental trek, spanning Munich, Mannheim, 00:05:42.100 --> 00:05:45.540 Paris, London, The Hague, Amsterdam, just everywhere. 00:05:45.819 --> 00:05:47.620 We really should pause to consider the enormous 00:05:47.620 --> 00:05:49.740 human cost of this. Absolutely. Travel in the 00:05:49.740 --> 00:05:52.500 1760s was primitive. It was dangerous. It was 00:05:52.500 --> 00:05:55.180 slow. The family relied entirely on the hospitality 00:05:55.180 --> 00:05:57.519 and, frankly, the financial whims of the nobility. 00:05:57.740 --> 00:05:59.500 So they were constantly stressed, constantly 00:05:59.500 --> 00:06:02.100 moving, constantly exposed to disease. And the 00:06:02.100 --> 00:06:05.379 cost was nearly fatal. Multiple times, Leopold 00:06:05.379 --> 00:06:08.779 fell gravely ill in London. in 1764, and then 00:06:08.779 --> 00:06:11.180 both Wolfgang and Annerle were struck down by 00:06:11.180 --> 00:06:13.439 severe near -fatal illnesses in The Hague in 00:06:13.439 --> 00:06:16.939 1765. So the image of the cheerful, composing 00:06:16.939 --> 00:06:20.860 prodigy really glosses over the reality of this 00:06:20.860 --> 00:06:23.660 intense physical and emotional gauntlet. It does. 00:06:23.839 --> 00:06:26.920 But musically. Musically, it was the greatest 00:06:26.920 --> 00:06:29.660 education money couldn't buy. Right. Mozart wasn't 00:06:29.660 --> 00:06:31.860 just performing. He was absorbing the entire 00:06:31.860 --> 00:06:35.199 European musical landscape. The exposure to these 00:06:35.199 --> 00:06:37.899 cosmopolitan centers allowed him to internalize 00:06:37.899 --> 00:06:40.379 all the different national styles. And the most 00:06:40.379 --> 00:06:42.899 crucial influence during this period was Johann 00:06:42.899 --> 00:06:45.379 Christian Bach. J .S. Bach's youngest son. The 00:06:45.379 --> 00:06:47.420 youngest son whom Wolfgang visited in London 00:06:47.420 --> 00:06:51.079 between 1764 and 1765. Okay, let's unpack that 00:06:51.079 --> 00:06:53.660 influence. What was J .C. Bach doing that was 00:06:53.660 --> 00:06:56.029 so different? Well, J .C. Bach, often called 00:06:56.029 --> 00:06:57.949 the London Bach, was instrumental in developing 00:06:57.949 --> 00:07:00.430 what they called the style gallant. So think 00:07:00.430 --> 00:07:03.589 of the Baroque style as, you know, dense, complex, 00:07:03.689 --> 00:07:06.430 full of heavy counterpoint, like a heavily embroidered 00:07:06.430 --> 00:07:09.089 tapestry. The style gallant was a reaction against 00:07:09.089 --> 00:07:12.529 that. It emphasized grace, clarity, and simple, 00:07:12.649 --> 00:07:15.529 beautiful melody. It was light. easy on the ear, 00:07:15.649 --> 00:07:19.029 and very, very fashionable. So meeting Mach helped 00:07:19.029 --> 00:07:22.069 Mozart internalize that elegance, which later 00:07:22.069 --> 00:07:24.430 became the foundation of the classical style. 00:07:24.649 --> 00:07:27.430 It was a perfect synthesis. And speaking of forging, 00:07:27.529 --> 00:07:30.470 during this London trip at the age of eight, 00:07:30.589 --> 00:07:33.350 Mozart wrote his first symphony. Eight years 00:07:33.350 --> 00:07:36.050 old. It's often debated how much of the transcription 00:07:36.050 --> 00:07:38.790 was his father's hand, but the creative input 00:07:38.790 --> 00:07:41.329 was certainly Wolfgang's. And following the Grand 00:07:41.329 --> 00:07:43.870 Tour came these three crucial trips to Italy 00:07:43.870 --> 00:07:47.910 between 1769 and 1773. And these were different. 00:07:48.089 --> 00:07:50.649 These were specific missions led by Leopold. 00:07:50.750 --> 00:07:53.110 Yes, aimed purely at securing a prestigious, 00:07:53.370 --> 00:07:55.370 permanent professional appointment in a major 00:07:55.370 --> 00:07:58.050 city. While the main goal failed, these journeys 00:07:58.050 --> 00:08:00.670 confirmed his genius to the musical elite. In 00:08:00.670 --> 00:08:03.649 Bologna, he studied with the famed theorist Giovanni 00:08:03.649 --> 00:08:06.029 Battista Martini. And met the popular composer 00:08:06.029 --> 00:08:09.800 Joseph Mislivczyk. And crucially, Mozart was 00:08:09.800 --> 00:08:12.779 accepted into the prestigious Academia Philharmonica. 00:08:12.860 --> 00:08:14.579 Which was a huge validation, right? You had to 00:08:14.579 --> 00:08:16.620 pass a strict test based on counterpoint mastery 00:08:16.620 --> 00:08:19.160 to get in. A very strict test. And this is where 00:08:19.160 --> 00:08:21.980 we get to the legendary Miserere myth. Ah, yeah. 00:08:22.180 --> 00:08:25.019 It perfectly captures the mixture of his staggering 00:08:25.019 --> 00:08:28.399 auditory memory and his youthful audacity. Tell 00:08:28.399 --> 00:08:30.439 us the story again, because even if some parts 00:08:30.439 --> 00:08:32.899 are disputed, it speaks volumes about his reputation. 00:08:33.340 --> 00:08:35.980 Okay, so the piece was Gregorio Allegri's Miserere. 00:08:36.360 --> 00:08:38.500 It was performed exclusively in the Sistine Chapel 00:08:38.500 --> 00:08:41.100 during Holy Week and was regarded as closely 00:08:41.100 --> 00:08:44.639 guarded Vatican property. So copying it or disseminating 00:08:44.639 --> 00:08:47.639 it was strictly forbidden. Under penalty of excommunication. 00:08:47.840 --> 00:08:51.440 Wow. The story claims that in 1770, 14 -year 00:08:51.440 --> 00:08:54.039 -old Mozart heard the piece once, went back to 00:08:54.039 --> 00:08:56.799 his lodgings, and wrote out the entire complex 00:08:56.799 --> 00:09:00.100 score from memory. Just from memory. After one 00:09:00.100 --> 00:09:02.200 listen. Then he returned to hear it a second 00:09:02.200 --> 00:09:05.279 time and corrected a few minor details. An unauthorized 00:09:05.279 --> 00:09:08.000 copy of a highly secretive piece transcribed 00:09:08.000 --> 00:09:10.940 after two hearings. And his artistic successes 00:09:10.940 --> 00:09:13.840 led directly to opera commissions in Milan. Yes. 00:09:14.440 --> 00:09:18.299 Mitrodate, Redi Ponto in 1770, Ascanio in Alba 00:09:18.299 --> 00:09:23.059 in 1771, and Licio Silla in 1772. These were 00:09:23.059 --> 00:09:25.159 successful premieres that should have sealed 00:09:25.159 --> 00:09:27.659 his fate as a sought -after composer. But it 00:09:27.659 --> 00:09:29.919 didn't work out that way. No. The political system 00:09:29.919 --> 00:09:33.379 defeated Leopold's grand plan. His central goal, 00:09:33.559 --> 00:09:36.659 a secure high -status court appointment, was 00:09:36.659 --> 00:09:39.019 repeatedly blocked. And the ultimate obstruction 00:09:39.019 --> 00:09:42.740 came from Empress Maria Theresa. Yes, who, despite 00:09:42.740 --> 00:09:44.799 recognizing his immense talent, was reluctant 00:09:44.799 --> 00:09:47.639 to employ, and this is her quote, useless people. 00:09:47.840 --> 00:09:50.419 Useless people. So the young composer was essentially 00:09:50.419 --> 00:09:53.139 dismissed by the crown as a high -class novelty 00:09:53.139 --> 00:09:55.559 act. Someone who didn't fit the knees of a stable, 00:09:55.659 --> 00:09:58.409 functional court. That failure. The ultimate 00:09:58.409 --> 00:10:00.950 disappointment of his father's decade -long investment 00:10:00.950 --> 00:10:04.009 forced Mozart to return to his provincial hometown 00:10:04.009 --> 00:10:06.370 of Salzburg. But the trip wasn't a total loss 00:10:06.370 --> 00:10:08.889 artistically. The solo motet exultat jubilate 00:10:08.889 --> 00:10:12.429 K -165 emerged during this period. And it perfectly 00:10:12.429 --> 00:10:15.730 showcases that dazzling, light, Italianate mastery 00:10:15.730 --> 00:10:17.850 he had absorbed. It's the ultimate contradiction, 00:10:18.070 --> 00:10:21.009 isn't it? By age 17, he was perhaps the most 00:10:21.009 --> 00:10:23.509 accomplished musician in Europe, yet he had failed 00:10:23.509 --> 00:10:25.309 to secure the one thing his father demanded, 00:10:25.690 --> 00:10:29.190 stability. He was back in Salzburg, poised for 00:10:29.190 --> 00:10:31.970 dramatic confrontation with authority. So Mozart 00:10:31.970 --> 00:10:35.730 is back in Salzburg in 1773, forced to take a 00:10:35.730 --> 00:10:38.350 job as a court musician for Prince Archbishop 00:10:38.350 --> 00:10:40.809 Hieronymus Colorado. And this is where the genius 00:10:40.809 --> 00:10:43.529 starts to collide violently with bureaucracy. 00:10:43.730 --> 00:10:46.399 Right. He was a recognized genius stuck working 00:10:46.399 --> 00:10:48.759 for a man who primarily viewed him as a slightly 00:10:48.759 --> 00:10:51.080 superior household servant. And the work schedule 00:10:51.080 --> 00:10:53.559 was relentless. It resulted in this prodigious 00:10:53.559 --> 00:10:57.340 output of symphonies, sonatas, quartets. I mean, 00:10:57.360 --> 00:10:59.639 demonstrating his versatility across every genre. 00:10:59.779 --> 00:11:02.940 But the internal cost was immense. Let's talk 00:11:02.940 --> 00:11:04.639 about the finances for a second, because this 00:11:04.639 --> 00:11:06.860 is crucial to understanding his resentment. OK. 00:11:06.960 --> 00:11:10.539 His salary was 150 florins a year. That just 00:11:10.539 --> 00:11:12.419 sounds like a historical number floating in the 00:11:12.419 --> 00:11:14.600 air. So let's try to contextualize it. Well, 00:11:14.639 --> 00:11:16.799 to give you perspective, a comfortable middle 00:11:16.799 --> 00:11:19.139 class life in Salzburg at the time required several 00:11:19.139 --> 00:11:22.279 hundred florins a year. A skilled teacher or 00:11:22.279 --> 00:11:25.360 a mid -level civil servant might earn 300 to 00:11:25.360 --> 00:11:28.279 400 florins. So 150 florins was basically pocket 00:11:28.279 --> 00:11:31.690 money. Barely. Especially for a celebrated composer 00:11:31.690 --> 00:11:34.730 who had just performed across Europe, it fueled 00:11:34.730 --> 00:11:36.870 his increasing desire for a life of professional 00:11:36.870 --> 00:11:40.110 respect, not servitude. And despite the low pay, 00:11:40.269 --> 00:11:43.450 the creativity just soared. It did. Between April 00:11:43.450 --> 00:11:47.409 and December 1775, he composed five violin concertos, 00:11:47.429 --> 00:11:49.250 the only ones he ever wrote. And the last three 00:11:49.250 --> 00:11:50.870 of those are staples in the modern repertoire. 00:11:51.110 --> 00:11:54.679 Absolutely. And then, early in 1777, came the 00:11:54.679 --> 00:11:57.620 breakthrough E -flat piano concerto, K -271, 00:11:57.700 --> 00:12:00.179 known as the Genome Concerto. Why is that one 00:12:00.179 --> 00:12:02.960 considered a landmark? Because K -271 is critically 00:12:02.960 --> 00:12:05.320 recognized as a work that breaks free from the 00:12:05.320 --> 00:12:08.000 polite conventions of the style gallant. It begins 00:12:08.000 --> 00:12:10.539 to integrate real drama and symphonic complexity 00:12:10.539 --> 00:12:12.740 into the concerto form. So he was pushing the 00:12:12.740 --> 00:12:14.700 boundaries, even while he was trapped in Salzburg. 00:12:14.879 --> 00:12:18.470 Exactly. But his discontent just grew and grew. 00:12:18.730 --> 00:12:21.149 Beyond the low salary, he desperately longed 00:12:21.149 --> 00:12:24.110 to compose operas. Which he viewed as the highest 00:12:24.110 --> 00:12:26.850 form of musical expression. Yes. And Salzburg 00:12:26.850 --> 00:12:30.009 rarely afforded him this opportunity. The closure 00:12:30.009 --> 00:12:33.110 of the court theater in 1775 essentially capped 00:12:33.110 --> 00:12:35.850 his artistic possibilities in that provincial 00:12:35.850 --> 00:12:38.549 city. He felt suffocated. Completely. He was 00:12:38.549 --> 00:12:40.629 writing background music for the archbishop's 00:12:40.629 --> 00:12:43.269 services or dinners. He knew his destiny was 00:12:43.269 --> 00:12:45.830 in the great European capitals, writing for the 00:12:45.830 --> 00:12:48.909 grand stage. That growing frustration boiled 00:12:48.909 --> 00:12:52.149 over, leading him to resign his post in August 00:12:52.149 --> 00:12:55.789 1777. And he ventures out again, actively searching 00:12:55.789 --> 00:12:58.610 for a replacement job. He took his mother, Anna 00:12:58.610 --> 00:13:00.830 Maria. with him this time, visiting Augsburg, 00:13:01.070 --> 00:13:03.990 Mannheim, Munich, and Paris. The Mannheim stop 00:13:03.990 --> 00:13:06.250 was important for his continued musical synthesis, 00:13:06.450 --> 00:13:08.750 wasn't it? It was. He encountered the Mannheim 00:13:08.750 --> 00:13:10.929 Orchestra, which was renowned across Europe for 00:13:10.929 --> 00:13:13.769 its discipline, its dynamic range, its technical 00:13:13.769 --> 00:13:16.629 virtuosity. So he absorbed these advanced instrumental 00:13:16.629 --> 00:13:19.730 techniques and integrated them into his orchestration. 00:13:19.929 --> 00:13:23.029 But Mannheim also provided a major personal distraction. 00:13:23.409 --> 00:13:26.559 A failure of the heart. Yes, he fell deeply in 00:13:26.559 --> 00:13:29.279 love with Aloysia Weber, the second of four talented 00:13:29.279 --> 00:13:32.279 musical sisters. But, like the employment prospects 00:13:32.279 --> 00:13:35.039 he was looking for, the romantic prospects failed 00:13:35.039 --> 00:13:37.980 to materialize. And he had to continue his fruitless 00:13:37.980 --> 00:13:42.000 search in Paris in March 1778. Paris proved to 00:13:42.000 --> 00:13:44.279 be a disaster, both personally and financially. 00:13:44.620 --> 00:13:47.220 The search for a prestigious, well -paying job 00:13:47.220 --> 00:13:50.240 was fruitless. He was hinting, almost desperately, 00:13:50.539 --> 00:13:55.169 at a... possible but unwanted organist post at 00:13:55.169 --> 00:13:57.610 Versailles. He quickly fell into debt, relying 00:13:57.610 --> 00:14:00.669 on loans and pawning valuables just to survive. 00:14:00.970 --> 00:14:02.629 And this is where the deep dive turns really 00:14:02.629 --> 00:14:06.049 tragic. Yes. The summer of 1778 became the nadir, 00:14:06.110 --> 00:14:09.169 the absolute lowest point of his life. His mother, 00:14:09.330 --> 00:14:11.250 Anna Maria, who was traveling with him, died 00:14:11.250 --> 00:14:15.009 in Paris on July 3rd, 1778. And the tragedy was 00:14:15.009 --> 00:14:16.970 likely compounded by their financial situation. 00:14:17.399 --> 00:14:19.019 Biographers suggest there may have been delays 00:14:19.019 --> 00:14:21.080 in calling a proper physician because they just 00:14:21.080 --> 00:14:23.519 didn't have the funds. To lose his mother, far 00:14:23.519 --> 00:14:26.340 from home, broke. And having failed in his mission, 00:14:26.480 --> 00:14:29.320 it must have been utterly crushing. This experience 00:14:29.320 --> 00:14:32.200 of grief and failure, far removed from the protective 00:14:32.200 --> 00:14:35.000 bubble of his childhood, it certainly hardened 00:14:35.000 --> 00:14:38.379 the 22 -year -old Mozart. Leopold, still back 00:14:38.379 --> 00:14:41.080 in Salzburg, used his connections and secured 00:14:41.080 --> 00:14:44.769 Wolfgang a post back home. court organist and 00:14:44.769 --> 00:14:47.149 concertmaster, with a slightly improved salary 00:14:47.149 --> 00:14:50.610 of 450 florins a year. Reluctantly, Wolfgang 00:14:50.610 --> 00:14:54.389 returned in January 1779. And while the salary 00:14:54.389 --> 00:14:56.549 was better, the environment and the discontent 00:14:56.549 --> 00:14:59.230 were exactly the same. However, the Paris journey 00:14:59.230 --> 00:15:01.590 did produce works that showed a new emotional 00:15:01.590 --> 00:15:05.090 maturity. a new darkness yes notably the deeply 00:15:05.090 --> 00:15:08.409 personal and sorrowful a minor piano sonata k 00:15:08.409 --> 00:15:10.990 -310 and the confident paris symphony number 00:15:10.990 --> 00:15:14.649 31 he was maturing into a master but still bound 00:15:14.649 --> 00:15:16.720 by the chains of the provincial court The stage 00:15:16.720 --> 00:15:19.639 was set for the final violent break, and it began 00:15:19.639 --> 00:15:22.539 with success. His opera Idomeneo premiered triumphantly 00:15:22.539 --> 00:15:25.639 in Munich in January 1781. So Mozart, riding 00:15:25.639 --> 00:15:27.940 this wave of operatic triumph, was summoned to 00:15:27.940 --> 00:15:30.919 Vienna by Archbishop Colorado in March. But Colorado 00:15:30.919 --> 00:15:33.259 brought him to Vienna for the celebrations marking 00:15:33.259 --> 00:15:36.419 Emperor Joseph II's accession, and he immediately 00:15:36.419 --> 00:15:39.299 reasserted his dominance. Mozart, a successful 00:15:39.299 --> 00:15:42.580 opera composer, was forced to dine with the valets 00:15:42.580 --> 00:15:44.299 and the cooks in the archbishop's establishment. 00:15:44.679 --> 00:15:46.539 That wasn't just a minor. or inconvenience. That 00:15:46.539 --> 00:15:49.879 was a deliberate, intense humiliation designed 00:15:49.879 --> 00:15:53.039 to remind Mozart exactly where he stood in this 00:15:53.039 --> 00:15:55.980 social hierarchy as a servant. Mozart, however, 00:15:56.139 --> 00:16:00.000 saw Vienna as pure opportunity. He was determined 00:16:00.000 --> 00:16:02.679 to shed that role of servant and establish himself 00:16:02.679 --> 00:16:05.940 as a serious public figure. He aimed to meet 00:16:05.940 --> 00:16:09.360 Emperor Joseph II and, crucially, participate 00:16:09.360 --> 00:16:12.600 in public concerts like the prestigious Tuncunzler 00:16:12.600 --> 00:16:15.240 Society series. So he wanted to perform his own 00:16:15.240 --> 00:16:18.860 music for his own profit. Exactly. And Colorado 00:16:18.860 --> 00:16:21.740 absolutely opposed this pursuit of independent 00:16:21.740 --> 00:16:24.399 income and status. He viewed any outside performance 00:16:24.399 --> 00:16:27.440 as a defiance of his authority. The tension escalated 00:16:27.440 --> 00:16:29.679 when Colorado blocked Mozart from playing before 00:16:29.679 --> 00:16:31.740 the emperor at Countess Thun's residence. And 00:16:31.740 --> 00:16:34.539 that one gig would have paid him a massive $20 00:16:34.539 --> 00:16:37.169 million. Which was equivalent to half of his 00:16:37.169 --> 00:16:39.490 new yearly Salzburg salary. Financial stakes 00:16:39.490 --> 00:16:42.009 were immense. So when Mozart realized he could 00:16:42.009 --> 00:16:45.129 earn a year's wages in two hours outside of Colorado's 00:16:45.129 --> 00:16:48.059 control. The dynamic became unsustainable. The 00:16:48.059 --> 00:16:50.980 quarrel reached a climax in May when Mozart attempted 00:16:50.980 --> 00:16:54.559 to resign and Colorado refused. A classic 18th 00:16:54.559 --> 00:16:57.179 century power struggle. Colorado wanted total 00:16:57.179 --> 00:16:59.639 control over his property, which is Mozart. But 00:16:59.639 --> 00:17:02.320 Mozart, emboldened by his success and his presence 00:17:02.320 --> 00:17:05.440 in the capital, demanded autonomy. And the final 00:17:05.440 --> 00:17:09.220 dismissal came in June 1781. The archbishop finally 00:17:09.220 --> 00:17:11.450 granted permission for Mozart to leave. But he 00:17:11.450 --> 00:17:14.109 did so in the most grossly insulting way possible. 00:17:14.390 --> 00:17:17.089 His steward, Count Arco, literally administered 00:17:17.089 --> 00:17:19.589 the dismissal with a kick in the arse. A physical 00:17:19.589 --> 00:17:23.329 kick. Yes. That physical assault is the critical, 00:17:23.490 --> 00:17:26.210 visceral moment that symbolizes the end of the 00:17:26.210 --> 00:17:28.990 Baroque system for Mozart. It wasn't just a professional 00:17:28.990 --> 00:17:32.049 separation. It was a physical humiliation that 00:17:32.049 --> 00:17:35.390 catalyzed a revolutionary life choice. The biographer 00:17:35.390 --> 00:17:38.029 Maynard Solomon called Mozart's decision to settle 00:17:38.029 --> 00:17:40.289 in Vienna as a freelance performer and composer 00:17:40.289 --> 00:17:43.750 a revolutionary step. And he was right. But wasn't 00:17:43.750 --> 00:17:46.519 it also deeply reckless? Oh, incredibly. His 00:17:46.519 --> 00:17:49.000 father, Leopold, sided entirely against him, 00:17:49.059 --> 00:17:51.579 urging him to reconcile and return obediently. 00:17:51.619 --> 00:17:54.200 So he'd lost his job, his primary relationship 00:17:54.200 --> 00:17:56.819 with his father was severed, and he had no guaranteed 00:17:56.819 --> 00:17:59.039 income in the most expensive city in Europe. 00:17:59.160 --> 00:18:01.680 It was absolutely reckless, fueled by a mixture 00:18:01.680 --> 00:18:04.960 of artistic necessity and I think a deep psychological 00:18:04.960 --> 00:18:08.940 need for freedom after decades of control. But 00:18:08.940 --> 00:18:11.539 it was also necessary. He realized that the ceiling 00:18:11.539 --> 00:18:13.960 in Salzburg was just too low for his genius. 00:18:14.240 --> 00:18:17.480 He chose independence over security. The safety 00:18:17.480 --> 00:18:20.019 net was gone, and that instability would define 00:18:20.019 --> 00:18:22.279 the rest of his life. With the shackles off, 00:18:22.480 --> 00:18:25.220 Mozart's career in Vienna just exploded. Immediately. 00:18:25.259 --> 00:18:27.299 He established himself not just as a competent 00:18:27.299 --> 00:18:30.279 musician, but as the finest keyboard player in 00:18:30.279 --> 00:18:32.619 Vienna. And his supremacy was cemented almost 00:18:32.619 --> 00:18:34.869 right away. We have that famous account of his 00:18:34.869 --> 00:18:38.049 competition before Emperor Joseph II in December 00:18:38.049 --> 00:18:41.109 1781. Against the renowned Italian composer and 00:18:41.109 --> 00:18:44.230 keyboardist Muzio Clementi. And Mozart decisively 00:18:44.230 --> 00:18:46.410 won the emperor's favor, establishing himself 00:18:46.410 --> 00:18:49.410 as the city's new musical superstar. His success 00:18:49.410 --> 00:18:52.349 as a composer was equally swift. His opera, the 00:18:52.349 --> 00:18:54.910 Infugnus dem Serele Abduction from the Seralio, 00:18:55.069 --> 00:18:58.390 premiered on July 16, 1782. It was a massive 00:18:58.390 --> 00:19:00.920 hit. A huge success throughout German -speaking 00:19:00.920 --> 00:19:04.480 Europe. It was a major artistic victory, solidifying 00:19:04.480 --> 00:19:06.859 his reputation as a major composer, completely 00:19:06.859 --> 00:19:10.000 independent of court sponsorship. This was proof 00:19:10.000 --> 00:19:13.119 that his revolutionary move had paid off. Artistically, 00:19:13.259 --> 00:19:16.119 at least. And personally, his life was moving 00:19:16.119 --> 00:19:18.700 just as fast. After the romantic failure with 00:19:18.700 --> 00:19:21.319 a Louisa Weber in Mannheim, he quickly turned 00:19:21.319 --> 00:19:24.059 his attention to her sister, Constance. The third 00:19:24.059 --> 00:19:25.819 daughter of the family who had moved to Vienna. 00:19:26.170 --> 00:19:28.730 The courtship, however, was, well, it was fraught. 00:19:28.730 --> 00:19:31.250 This wasn't the romantic, soaring melodies of 00:19:31.250 --> 00:19:35.509 Enfroom. This was messy, real -life drama. Biographers 00:19:35.509 --> 00:19:38.089 point to his volatile jealousy, highlighted by 00:19:38.089 --> 00:19:40.710 a major crisis when Constance permitted a young 00:19:40.710 --> 00:19:43.630 man in the spirit of a parlor game to measure 00:19:43.630 --> 00:19:46.430 her calves. It's amazing, isn't it? A man capable 00:19:46.430 --> 00:19:48.549 of writing Don Giovanni nearly broke off his 00:19:48.549 --> 00:19:50.690 engagement over a calf measurement. What does 00:19:50.690 --> 00:19:52.769 that tell us about his intense emotional life? 00:19:53.160 --> 00:19:55.660 I think it shows his immense insecurity, which 00:19:55.660 --> 00:19:58.259 contrasted so sharply with his professional confidence. 00:19:58.640 --> 00:20:01.500 The break with Colorado had created this huge 00:20:01.500 --> 00:20:04.619 rift with his father, Leopold, who was still 00:20:04.619 --> 00:20:07.779 furious and fiercely opposed the marriage. Securing 00:20:07.779 --> 00:20:10.019 his father's permission was a major difficulty. 00:20:10.380 --> 00:20:12.319 And the marriage took place in an atmosphere 00:20:12.319 --> 00:20:16.140 of intense crisis. Constanze had possibly moved 00:20:16.140 --> 00:20:19.259 in with Mozart, which placed her in severe disgrace 00:20:19.259 --> 00:20:21.779 by the standards of Viennese society. He was 00:20:21.779 --> 00:20:24.490 genuinely worried. about Constance's mother potentially 00:20:24.490 --> 00:20:26.529 calling the police to break them up. So they 00:20:26.529 --> 00:20:29.829 rushed the ceremony. They married on August 4th, 00:20:29.829 --> 00:20:33.650 1782 in St. Stephen's Cathedral. And Leopold's 00:20:33.650 --> 00:20:36.609 reluctant, late consent arrived the very next 00:20:36.609 --> 00:20:39.150 day. This was a marriage forged under duress, 00:20:39.150 --> 00:20:42.250 driven by necessity and passion, not calm planning. 00:20:42.529 --> 00:20:44.470 And tragically, the couple had six children, 00:20:44.569 --> 00:20:46.799 but... infant mortality being what it was in 00:20:46.799 --> 00:20:49.420 the 18th century, only two survived infancy. 00:20:49.579 --> 00:20:52.019 Carl Thomas Mozart and Franz Xaver the Völfgang 00:20:52.019 --> 00:20:55.079 Mozart. This constant presence of loss must have 00:20:55.079 --> 00:20:57.140 just shadowed all their triumphs. These next 00:20:57.140 --> 00:21:00.359 five years, though, they represent Mozart's undisputed 00:21:00.359 --> 00:21:03.079 artistic zenith. And the highest point of his 00:21:03.079 --> 00:21:05.920 financial prosperity. He was fully integrated 00:21:05.920 --> 00:21:08.319 into the intellectual and cultural life of Vienna. 00:21:08.579 --> 00:21:11.400 A key development was his deep study of the music 00:21:11.400 --> 00:21:14.450 of J .S. Bach and Handel. And this was largely 00:21:14.450 --> 00:21:16.829 made possible by Baron Gottfried van Swieten. 00:21:17.009 --> 00:21:20.230 Van Swieten was a pivotal figure. He had a valuable 00:21:20.230 --> 00:21:22.630 private collection of late Baroque manuscripts, 00:21:22.910 --> 00:21:25.609 and he held these Sunday musical gatherings where 00:21:25.609 --> 00:21:28.990 Mozart was exposed to and began profoundly studying 00:21:28.990 --> 00:21:31.829 these works. How did that study transform his 00:21:31.829 --> 00:21:34.910 music? It led to the integration of complex counterpoint, 00:21:35.049 --> 00:21:37.730 the intricate interwoven melodies of the Baroque 00:21:37.730 --> 00:21:40.009 into the elegant clarity of the classical style. 00:21:40.309 --> 00:21:43.029 So we see this synthesis in works like the fugal 00:21:43.029 --> 00:21:45.309 passages in the finale of his Jupiter Symphony. 00:21:45.569 --> 00:21:47.829 And within the dense textures of Dysabre Flute, 00:21:47.890 --> 00:21:49.910 he wasn't just performing the style gallon anymore. 00:21:50.029 --> 00:21:51.990 He was giving it intellectual weight. He was 00:21:51.990 --> 00:21:53.809 building a bridge between the previous century 00:21:53.809 --> 00:21:56.109 and the new one. And equally important was his 00:21:56.109 --> 00:21:58.329 professional friendship with Joseph Hayden, whom 00:21:58.329 --> 00:22:01.410 he met around 1784. They would often play together 00:22:01.410 --> 00:22:04.369 in impromptu string quartets, cementing this 00:22:04.369 --> 00:22:07.430 deep, mutual professional respect. And Hayden, 00:22:07.549 --> 00:22:10.289 who is the established giant of the era, recognized 00:22:10.289 --> 00:22:13.720 Mozart's unique genius. The famous quote he gave 00:22:13.720 --> 00:22:17.200 to Leopold in 1785 is legendary. What does he 00:22:17.200 --> 00:22:19.720 say? I tell you before God, and as an honest 00:22:19.720 --> 00:22:21.960 man, your son is the greatest composer known 00:22:21.960 --> 00:22:25.299 to me by person and repute. He has taste and 00:22:25.299 --> 00:22:27.059 what is more, the greatest still in composition. 00:22:27.460 --> 00:22:30.680 That's historic validation from the man who basically 00:22:30.680 --> 00:22:33.480 defined the symphony. And Mozart responded by 00:22:33.480 --> 00:22:36.579 dedicating six of his own masterly string quartets 00:22:36.579 --> 00:22:39.079 to Haydn, directly acknowledging the influence 00:22:39.079 --> 00:22:42.509 of Haydn's Opus 33 set. This was an exchange 00:22:42.509 --> 00:22:45.369 between equals. Professionally Mozart was thriving 00:22:45.369 --> 00:22:48.089 as the ultimate freelance musician. From 1782 00:22:48.089 --> 00:22:51.029 to 1785, he essentially created his own market 00:22:51.029 --> 00:22:53.589 as a performer composer. He would premiere three 00:22:53.589 --> 00:22:56.490 or four new piano concertos each season, performing 00:22:56.490 --> 00:22:59.329 as the soloist in highly popular public concerts. 00:22:59.589 --> 00:23:02.089 And he showed entrepreneurial creativity in booking 00:23:02.089 --> 00:23:04.349 venues. Oh, yeah. Since theater space was limited, 00:23:04.470 --> 00:23:06.890 he rented large, non -traditional venues like 00:23:06.890 --> 00:23:08.730 a hall in the Trattnerhof apartment building 00:23:08.730 --> 00:23:10.990 or the ballroom of the Melgrub restaurant. And 00:23:10.990 --> 00:23:13.430 these concerts were hugely popular and lucrative. 00:23:13.650 --> 00:23:15.829 Which brings us to the great financial paradox. 00:23:16.539 --> 00:23:18.759 The substantial returns from these successful 00:23:18.759 --> 00:23:21.599 concerts enabled a lifestyle of luxury that was 00:23:21.599 --> 00:23:24.420 completely unsustainable for a freelancer. He 00:23:24.420 --> 00:23:26.539 adopted the spending habits of the aristocracy 00:23:26.539 --> 00:23:28.740 he served, rather than the saving habits of the 00:23:28.740 --> 00:23:30.869 bourgeoisie. Let's break down those expenses 00:23:30.869 --> 00:23:33.390 to really understand the recklessness. He moved 00:23:33.390 --> 00:23:36.289 into a lavish apartment with a yearly rent of 00:23:36.289 --> 00:23:40.670 460 florins. An immense sum. He bought a fine 00:23:40.670 --> 00:23:43.670 Fort Tapiano from Anton Walter for about 900 00:23:43.670 --> 00:23:46.630 florins. And perhaps most famously, a billiard 00:23:46.630 --> 00:23:49.069 table for 300 florins. And he was sending his 00:23:49.069 --> 00:23:51.750 son to expensive schools, keeping servants. I 00:23:51.750 --> 00:23:53.470 mean, this reflects a total lack of financial 00:23:53.470 --> 00:23:55.700 discipline. He treated his income. which could 00:23:55.700 --> 00:23:57.839 fluctuate wildly depending on the concert season, 00:23:58.039 --> 00:24:00.900 as if it were a guaranteed annuity from an aristocratic 00:24:00.900 --> 00:24:03.839 post. Biographers note he saved virtually nothing. 00:24:04.079 --> 00:24:06.500 This inability to transition from the mindset 00:24:06.500 --> 00:24:09.099 of a court musician to a self -employed businessman 00:24:09.099 --> 00:24:11.700 would eventually destroy him. In the midst of 00:24:11.700 --> 00:24:13.880 this whirlwind, he found structure and intellectual 00:24:13.880 --> 00:24:17.240 focus in Freemasonry. Yes, he joined the Lodge 00:24:17.240 --> 00:24:20.240 zur Voltetigkeit, or Beneficence, on December 00:24:20.240 --> 00:24:25.109 14, 1784. And Freemasonry became a crucial social 00:24:25.109 --> 00:24:27.490 and spiritual network for him. It reinforced 00:24:27.490 --> 00:24:29.710 the Enlightenment ideals of reason, morality, 00:24:30.029 --> 00:24:32.509 and brotherhood that you can see permeating works 00:24:32.509 --> 00:24:35.450 like The Magic Flute. This affiliation provided 00:24:35.450 --> 00:24:38.269 a stable intellectual framework that his personal 00:24:38.269 --> 00:24:41.250 life otherwise lacked. And then came the collaborations 00:24:41.250 --> 00:24:45.089 that cemented his legacy for all time. the operas 00:24:45.089 --> 00:24:48.109 written with librettist Lorenzo da Ponte. Shifting 00:24:48.109 --> 00:24:50.690 his focus away from the keyboard in late 1785, 00:24:51.109 --> 00:24:54.190 this partnership led to three masterpieces, Le 00:24:54.190 --> 00:24:57.410 Nozze di Figaro, The Marriage of Figaro in 1786. 00:24:57.670 --> 00:25:00.450 And Don Giovanni in 1787. These were revolutionary 00:25:00.450 --> 00:25:03.089 in their depiction of class and psychology. Figaro 00:25:03.089 --> 00:25:05.269 was based on a politically volatile play that 00:25:05.269 --> 00:25:07.130 depicted servants outsmarting their masters. 00:25:07.369 --> 00:25:09.809 A daring subject in aristocratic Vienna. And 00:25:09.809 --> 00:25:12.349 Don Giovanni was even darker. Mixing comedy, 00:25:12.569 --> 00:25:15.450 opera buffa, with serious moral themes and tragedy, 00:25:15.710 --> 00:25:18.569 opera Syria, creating this hybrid that challenged 00:25:18.569 --> 00:25:21.150 the expectations of the time. The genius in this 00:25:21.150 --> 00:25:23.769 partnership wasn't just the music, but the depth 00:25:23.769 --> 00:25:26.650 of the characterization. De Ponti provided the 00:25:26.650 --> 00:25:29.150 psychological complexity. And Mozart gave that 00:25:29.150 --> 00:25:31.890 complexity a voice through intricate orchestral 00:25:31.890 --> 00:25:34.529 color and dramatic setting. Tragically, though, 00:25:34.650 --> 00:25:37.480 the golden years were short -lived. Very. By 00:25:37.480 --> 00:25:40.579 late 1787, his professional fortunes began to 00:25:40.579 --> 00:25:44.140 decline rapidly. He did secure a steady aristocratic 00:25:44.140 --> 00:25:47.759 post in December 1787 when Emperor Joseph II 00:25:47.759 --> 00:25:50.220 appointed him chamber composer. Which sounds 00:25:50.220 --> 00:25:52.339 like a step up, but it wasn't a lucrative position. 00:25:52.680 --> 00:25:55.140 Not at all. It was part -time, paying a modest 00:25:55.140 --> 00:25:58.019 800 florins a year. The emperor's intent was 00:25:58.019 --> 00:26:01.490 clear. This was a retainer fee designed specifically 00:26:01.490 --> 00:26:04.390 to keep Mozart from leaving Vienna. To stop him 00:26:04.390 --> 00:26:06.630 from taking his genius to London or Berlin? Yeah. 00:26:06.809 --> 00:26:08.529 But it was not enough to cover his lifestyle. 00:26:08.750 --> 00:26:11.130 And the underlying problem was the macroeconomy. 00:26:11.150 --> 00:26:14.630 Around 1786, Mozart stopped performing as frequently, 00:26:14.769 --> 00:26:16.990 which was his main source of large, unpredictable 00:26:16.990 --> 00:26:20.130 income. Compounding this, the Austro -Turkish 00:26:20.130 --> 00:26:23.130 War severely decreased general prosperity. Exactly. 00:26:23.250 --> 00:26:25.470 The aristocracy couldn't afford their lavish 00:26:25.470 --> 00:26:27.549 concerts and commissions anymore, and the freelance 00:26:27.549 --> 00:26:30.569 market just evaporated. That economic reality 00:26:30.569 --> 00:26:33.660 hit hard. Scholars estimate that Mozart saw a 00:26:33.660 --> 00:26:37.180 66 % decline in his income compared to his peak 00:26:37.180 --> 00:26:39.740 years just five years earlier. So the man who 00:26:39.740 --> 00:26:43.079 was used to spending 460 florins a year on rent 00:26:43.079 --> 00:26:46.519 now had almost no discretionary income. And this 00:26:46.519 --> 00:26:48.460 is where the historical record becomes really 00:26:48.460 --> 00:26:51.140 painful to read. Mozart's financial desperation 00:26:51.140 --> 00:26:54.349 is preserved in a... pitiful sequence of letters 00:26:54.349 --> 00:26:57.569 pleading for loans, primarily sent to his fellow 00:26:57.569 --> 00:26:59.869 Freemason, Michael von Puckberg. These aren't 00:26:59.869 --> 00:27:02.150 just casual requests. They were often heart wrenching 00:27:02.150 --> 00:27:04.369 appeals for immediate relief. And the contrast 00:27:04.369 --> 00:27:06.589 between the sheer quality of his art and the 00:27:06.589 --> 00:27:09.390 misery of his personal life is just devastating. 00:27:09.829 --> 00:27:11.990 Scholars suggest that the intense stress of the 00:27:11.990 --> 00:27:15.049 financial chaos led to severe depression. his 00:27:15.049 --> 00:27:17.549 musical output slowed dramatically and his professional 00:27:17.549 --> 00:27:20.130 letters were dominated by logistics and money 00:27:20.130 --> 00:27:22.849 worries rather than artistic inspiration yet 00:27:22.849 --> 00:27:26.289 even from this nadir masterpieces emerged yes 00:27:26.289 --> 00:27:30.109 in 1788 he composed his last three symphonies 00:27:30.109 --> 00:27:34.390 number 39 number 40 the great g minor and the 00:27:34.390 --> 00:27:37.309 magnificent jupiter number 41 all within a matter 00:27:37.309 --> 00:27:40.470 of weeks the g minor is a work of intense tragic 00:27:40.470 --> 00:27:43.430 despair written during a time when he was simultaneously 00:27:43.430 --> 00:27:47.509 begging Putschberg for 100 florins. He also completed 00:27:47.509 --> 00:27:50.930 the third De Ponte opera, Cosi Fantute, in 1790. 00:27:51.109 --> 00:27:53.529 But his desperation for cash led him to undertake 00:27:53.529 --> 00:27:56.990 these long, unsuccessful journeys. Leipzig, Tresden, 00:27:57.150 --> 00:28:00.890 Berlin, Frankfurt, and Mannheim in 1789 and 1790. 00:28:01.089 --> 00:28:03.630 And these travels failed to secure the permanent 00:28:03.630 --> 00:28:05.529 high -paying position that could have saved his 00:28:05.529 --> 00:28:08.009 solvency. He was a superstar begging for money 00:28:08.009 --> 00:28:10.009 in an economy that simply couldn't support him. 00:28:10.109 --> 00:28:12.099 The tragedy. is that the freedom he fought for 00:28:12.099 --> 00:28:14.819 in 1781 was now the very cause of his misery 00:28:14.819 --> 00:28:16.859 before we discuss his innovations let's just 00:28:16.859 --> 00:28:19.019 paint a picture of the man himself the image 00:28:19.019 --> 00:28:21.880 we have of the powdered wig genius often obscures 00:28:21.880 --> 00:28:24.539 the person what was wolfgang amadeus mozart actually 00:28:24.539 --> 00:28:27.839 like Well, physically, he was noted as a remarkably 00:28:27.839 --> 00:28:30.700 small man, very thin and pale, and his face was 00:28:30.700 --> 00:28:33.099 pitted from a childhood case of smallpox. But 00:28:33.099 --> 00:28:35.559 biographers note he was highly conscious of his 00:28:35.559 --> 00:28:39.140 appearance. Oh, yes. Possessing fine, fair hair, 00:28:39.259 --> 00:28:42.259 of which he was rather vain, and he loved elegant 00:28:42.259 --> 00:28:44.859 clothing. He didn't dress like a struggling artist. 00:28:45.549 --> 00:28:47.670 The tenor Michael Kelly recalled seeing him at 00:28:47.670 --> 00:28:51.109 rehearsals in a crimson police and gold -laced 00:28:51.109 --> 00:28:54.309 cocked hat. Looking every inch the aristocrat 00:28:54.309 --> 00:28:57.410 he wanted to be. He also indulged in aristocratic 00:28:57.410 --> 00:29:00.549 leisure billiards, dancing, keeping pets, including 00:29:00.549 --> 00:29:03.630 a starling and a horse for riding. And what about 00:29:03.630 --> 00:29:06.390 his work habits? The image of effortless perfection. 00:29:07.279 --> 00:29:10.200 Is that accurate? It's somewhat misleading. He 00:29:10.200 --> 00:29:11.940 certainly worked at a tremendous pace to meet 00:29:11.940 --> 00:29:14.180 deadlines. Composing the last three symphonies 00:29:14.180 --> 00:29:16.259 in two months is proof of that. Right. But the 00:29:16.259 --> 00:29:18.700 sources clarify that he did, in fact, make sketches 00:29:18.700 --> 00:29:21.359 and drafts. Unlike Beethoven, who kept these 00:29:21.359 --> 00:29:24.200 meticulous, struggling notebooks, most of Mozart's 00:29:24.200 --> 00:29:26.759 preparatory work is not preserved. Why not? His 00:29:26.759 --> 00:29:29.480 wife, Constance, sought to destroy many of the 00:29:29.480 --> 00:29:31.460 sketches after his death, viewing them perhaps 00:29:31.460 --> 00:29:33.980 as evidence of imperfection. It's a major loss 00:29:33.980 --> 00:29:37.019 for musicology. He maintained a wide social circle. 00:29:37.460 --> 00:29:39.660 But beyond the famous friendship with Hayden, 00:29:39.779 --> 00:29:42.500 there's a truly fascinating figure in his circle. 00:29:42.740 --> 00:29:46.539 The horn player, Joseph Leutgeb. Ah, yes. Mozart 00:29:46.539 --> 00:29:48.920 delighted in playing elaborate, often cruel, 00:29:49.140 --> 00:29:52.039 practical jokes on Leutgeb. He was clearly a 00:29:52.039 --> 00:29:54.880 man who needed an outlet for his playful, sometimes 00:29:54.880 --> 00:29:57.720 aggressive humor. And speaking of humor, we have 00:29:57.720 --> 00:29:59.680 to address the scholarship that highlights his 00:29:59.680 --> 00:30:02.900 startling fondness for scatological humor. It's 00:30:02.900 --> 00:30:05.519 such a jarring contrast with the formal elegance 00:30:05.519 --> 00:30:07.799 of his music. It is intensely human and jarring. 00:30:08.299 --> 00:30:11.660 This love for crude, vulgar, often fecal humor 00:30:11.660 --> 00:30:14.099 is preserved not only in anecdotal accounts, 00:30:14.279 --> 00:30:16.559 but also in his surviving letters. Notably, those 00:30:16.559 --> 00:30:19.000 exchanged with his cousin Maria Anna Thekla Mozart, 00:30:19.359 --> 00:30:21.779 his Bess. Furthermore, he actually composed a 00:30:21.779 --> 00:30:24.119 series of scatological canons that he sang with 00:30:24.119 --> 00:30:27.140 friends. Why do scholars emphasize this so much? 00:30:27.420 --> 00:30:29.740 Because it adds an essential, earthier, and almost 00:30:29.740 --> 00:30:32.019 juvenile layer to the genius, the man who wrote 00:30:32.019 --> 00:30:34.940 the purity of Ave Verum Corpus also enjoyed composing 00:30:34.940 --> 00:30:37.839 musical jokes about passing gas. This profound 00:30:37.839 --> 00:30:40.420 contradiction helps us understand the dual nature 00:30:40.420 --> 00:30:42.890 of his creative personality. And finally, we 00:30:42.890 --> 00:30:45.569 should note his affiliations. He was raised and 00:30:45.569 --> 00:30:48.069 remained a devout Catholic, but his intellectual 00:30:48.069 --> 00:30:50.289 and social life centered increasingly on the 00:30:50.289 --> 00:30:52.710 teachings and fellowship of Freemasonry after 00:30:52.710 --> 00:30:55.670 he joined the lodge in 1784. Which provided the 00:30:55.670 --> 00:30:58.390 philosophical basis for the themes of virtue 00:30:58.390 --> 00:31:00.890 and wisdom we see in his final works. When we 00:31:00.890 --> 00:31:03.069 talk about musical style, we have to begin by 00:31:03.069 --> 00:31:06.079 stating the obvious. Mozart, along with Haydn, 00:31:06.180 --> 00:31:09.259 defines the classical era. His music is characterized 00:31:09.259 --> 00:31:12.039 by clarity, balance, and transparency in structure. 00:31:12.359 --> 00:31:14.670 He took the established forms. the symphony, 00:31:14.750 --> 00:31:17.329 the string quartet, the piano concerto, and advance 00:31:17.329 --> 00:31:19.730 their technical sophistication and emotional 00:31:19.730 --> 00:31:22.690 depth to a point that subsequent composers really 00:31:22.690 --> 00:31:25.069 struggled to match. But focusing only on the 00:31:25.069 --> 00:31:28.690 elegance misses the dark undercurrent. The sources 00:31:28.690 --> 00:31:31.069 remind us that to understand Mozart, we have 00:31:31.069 --> 00:31:33.549 to recognize the exceptional power of his finest 00:31:33.549 --> 00:31:36.650 masterpieces, which often conceal profound emotional 00:31:36.650 --> 00:31:39.049 turmoil. This is where we bring in the analysis 00:31:39.049 --> 00:31:41.559 of the critic Charles Rosen. Who argued that, 00:31:41.720 --> 00:31:44.019 and I'm quoting, it is only through recognizing 00:31:44.019 --> 00:31:46.420 the violence and sensuality at the center of 00:31:46.420 --> 00:31:48.819 Mozart's work that we can make a start towards 00:31:48.819 --> 00:31:50.880 a comprehension of his structures. And you can 00:31:50.880 --> 00:31:52.900 hear this in the turbulence of the Piano Concerto 00:31:52.900 --> 00:31:57.339 No. 24 in C minor, K491. Or the agonizing intensity 00:31:57.339 --> 00:32:01.319 of Symphony No. 40 in G minor, K550, and the 00:32:01.319 --> 00:32:04.019 psychological terror inherent in Don Giovanni. 00:32:04.319 --> 00:32:07.420 Rosen's phrase, shockingly voluptuous terror, 00:32:07.700 --> 00:32:10.960 is key. How did he balance that deep emotional 00:32:10.960 --> 00:32:13.940 capacity with the structural clarity of the classical 00:32:13.940 --> 00:32:16.390 style? Through that synthesis we discussed earlier, 00:32:16.589 --> 00:32:19.289 his youthful travels exposed him to the light, 00:32:19.329 --> 00:32:22.150 simple, highly melodic style gallant of Italy 00:32:22.150 --> 00:32:24.730 and London. But his maturity, fueled by the study 00:32:24.730 --> 00:32:27.329 of Bach and Handel, allowed him to progressively 00:32:27.329 --> 00:32:30.750 reintroduce the complex counterpoint of the late 00:32:30.750 --> 00:32:33.069 Baroque. He used the classical structure, like 00:32:33.069 --> 00:32:35.369 sonata form, as a container, but he filled it 00:32:35.369 --> 00:32:38.109 with Baroque sophistication and proto -romantic 00:32:38.109 --> 00:32:40.890 emotion. His versatility in opera is equally 00:32:40.890 --> 00:32:43.549 impressive. He successfully composed in every 00:32:43.549 --> 00:32:46.170 prevailing style of the time, often mixing and 00:32:46.170 --> 00:32:48.390 elevating them. Let's quickly define those types 00:32:48.390 --> 00:32:50.369 for the listener. Sure. First, you have opera 00:32:50.369 --> 00:32:52.910 seria, the serious opera, usually dealing with 00:32:52.910 --> 00:32:55.410 mythological or historical figures featuring 00:32:55.410 --> 00:32:58.430 high drama and noble characterization. That's 00:32:58.430 --> 00:33:01.190 Idomenio. Right. Then there's opera buffa, the 00:33:01.190 --> 00:33:04.069 comic opera, which used contemporary subjects 00:33:04.069 --> 00:33:06.990 and featured rapid -fire ensembles and farcical 00:33:06.990 --> 00:33:10.210 plots. That's Figaro. And finally, the German 00:33:10.210 --> 00:33:13.559 style. singspiel which literally means sing play 00:33:13.559 --> 00:33:16.279 characterized by spoken dialogue interspersed 00:33:16.279 --> 00:33:18.859 with songs and arias and that's the magic flute 00:33:18.859 --> 00:33:21.809 mozart mastered all three To give the listener 00:33:21.809 --> 00:33:24.089 a practical tool for identification, we need 00:33:24.089 --> 00:33:26.509 to quickly discuss the Kochel catalog. Ah, yes. 00:33:26.549 --> 00:33:28.869 The Kochel catalog is essential for any discussion 00:33:28.869 --> 00:33:31.670 of Mozart. Because of the vast output and the 00:33:31.670 --> 00:33:33.809 sheer number of works, every known composition 00:33:33.809 --> 00:33:36.269 is assigned a unique number, chronologically 00:33:36.269 --> 00:33:39.769 ordered, followed by the abbreviation K or KV. 00:33:39.970 --> 00:33:42.869 KV for Kochel for tightness. Exactly. Ludwig 00:33:42.869 --> 00:33:45.529 von Kochel first completed this in 1862. It allows 00:33:45.529 --> 00:33:48.069 us to distinguish between, say, K1a, an early 00:33:48.069 --> 00:33:51.240 minuet, and K626, the un - finished Requiem. 00:33:51.359 --> 00:33:53.720 And finally, regarding his instrumentation, what 00:33:53.720 --> 00:33:55.700 was the preferred vehicle for this keyboard master? 00:33:56.039 --> 00:33:58.440 He rapidly abandoned the harpsichord for the 00:33:58.440 --> 00:34:00.700 fortepiano, the ancestor of the modern piano, 00:34:00.940 --> 00:34:03.799 which was capable of greater dynamics and subtle 00:34:03.799 --> 00:34:06.759 expression. He was highly discerning, admiring 00:34:06.759 --> 00:34:09.280 the instruments of Johann Andreas Stein. But 00:34:09.280 --> 00:34:12.000 in Vienna, he purchased and consistently relied 00:34:12.000 --> 00:34:14.659 on an instrument made by Anton Walter, which 00:34:14.659 --> 00:34:17.059 is now exhibited in Salzburg. And his father 00:34:17.059 --> 00:34:20.139 confirmed just how central that specific instrument 00:34:20.139 --> 00:34:23.019 was to his career. He wrote that your brother's 00:34:23.019 --> 00:34:25.860 pianoforte has been moved at least 12 times from 00:34:25.860 --> 00:34:27.920 his house to the theater or to someone else's 00:34:27.920 --> 00:34:30.639 house for his constant public performances. He 00:34:30.639 --> 00:34:32.539 was literally dragging his means of production 00:34:32.539 --> 00:34:36.110 all over the capital. Mozart's last year, 1791, 00:34:36.429 --> 00:34:39.869 presents the final massive contradiction. Despite 00:34:39.869 --> 00:34:42.809 the previous years dominated by financial desperation 00:34:42.809 --> 00:34:45.670 and depression, it was a time of high productivity 00:34:45.670 --> 00:34:48.469 and, crucially, one of financial stabilization. 00:34:49.130 --> 00:34:51.570 That is a critical detail that often gets overlooked 00:34:51.570 --> 00:34:54.230 in the death narrative. His finances were finally 00:34:54.230 --> 00:34:56.610 beginning to improve. He was paying off debts, 00:34:56.750 --> 00:34:59.690 and it's believed he secured annuities from wealthy 00:34:59.690 --> 00:35:02.750 patrons in Amsterdam and Hungary, along with 00:35:02.750 --> 00:35:05.050 lucrative income from the sale of dance music. 00:35:05.309 --> 00:35:07.610 And this stabilization coincided with the surge 00:35:07.610 --> 00:35:11.070 of late masterpieces. This is the year he produced 00:35:11.070 --> 00:35:14.050 The Magic Flute, which was a tremendous public 00:35:14.050 --> 00:35:17.550 success and earned him much -needed funds. He 00:35:17.550 --> 00:35:19.780 also wrote the... Sublime Clarinet Concerto, 00:35:19.880 --> 00:35:24.340 K622, the Final Piano Concerto, K595, his last 00:35:24.340 --> 00:35:26.519 string quintet. And of course, the unfinished 00:35:26.519 --> 00:35:30.199 Requiem, K626. The productivity was astonishing, 00:35:30.460 --> 00:35:33.659 but tragically, it came to an abrupt halt. He 00:35:33.659 --> 00:35:37.119 fell ill in Prague in September 1791. This was 00:35:37.119 --> 00:35:39.659 during the premiere of his opera, La Clemenza 00:35:39.659 --> 00:35:42.980 di Tito. His health deteriorated sharply, and 00:35:42.980 --> 00:35:45.139 by November 20th, he was completely bedridden, 00:35:45.300 --> 00:35:47.400 suffering from swelling, pain, and vomiting. 00:35:47.579 --> 00:35:49.480 And he was deeply preoccupied with finishing 00:35:49.480 --> 00:35:51.679 the Requiem right up until his death. The romantic 00:35:51.679 --> 00:35:54.400 image persists that he dictated complex passages 00:35:54.400 --> 00:35:57.000 to his student, Franz Xaver Susmer, from his 00:35:57.000 --> 00:35:59.619 deathbed, but the consensus among scholars is 00:35:59.619 --> 00:36:02.019 that evidence for extensive dictation is minimal. 00:36:02.239 --> 00:36:04.079 He was just trying desperately to finish it, 00:36:04.119 --> 00:36:06.219 knowing it would be his final testament. Pitzer 00:36:06.219 --> 00:36:09.500 died on December 5th, 1791 at the age of 35, 00:36:09.619 --> 00:36:12.440 and the circumstances of his burial have become 00:36:12.440 --> 00:36:15.619 heavily mythologized. Often depicting a neglected 00:36:15.619 --> 00:36:18.679 pauper's funeral. Which is a crucial clarification 00:36:18.679 --> 00:36:22.039 of the facts. His funeral was modest, yes, but 00:36:22.039 --> 00:36:24.360 entirely consistent with contemporary Viennese 00:36:24.360 --> 00:36:27.260 customs for a man of his standing. He was interred 00:36:27.260 --> 00:36:29.820 in a common grave at St. Mark's Cemetery, but 00:36:29.820 --> 00:36:32.340 this did not mean a communal pit. Right. It meant 00:36:32.340 --> 00:36:35.400 an individual grave for a non -aristocratic person, 00:36:35.679 --> 00:36:38.500 which, unlike the perpetual graves of the nobility, 00:36:38.699 --> 00:36:41.719 was subject to excavation after 10 years. And 00:36:41.719 --> 00:36:44.179 the dramatic accounts of a storm and snow during 00:36:44.179 --> 00:36:46.860 the burial. Are definitively false. Records show 00:36:46.860 --> 00:36:49.320 the day was calm and mild. And then there is 00:36:49.320 --> 00:36:51.800 the enduring mystery of his death. The official 00:36:51.800 --> 00:36:54.760 record listed the cause vaguely as Hitzig's Friesel 00:36:54.760 --> 00:36:58.219 fever. Or severe miliary fever, which simply 00:36:58.219 --> 00:37:00.639 described a ration fever, not a modern diagnosis. 00:37:01.099 --> 00:37:03.239 Because of that vagueness, researchers have suggested 00:37:03.239 --> 00:37:05.860 over a hundred possible causes. Everything from 00:37:05.860 --> 00:37:07.880 acute rheumatic fever, streptococcal infection, 00:37:08.219 --> 00:37:11.039 trachynosis, to various kidney ailments or even 00:37:11.039 --> 00:37:13.360 mercury poisoning. The truth remains uncertain. 00:37:13.760 --> 00:37:16.139 But what is absolutely certain is the immediate 00:37:16.139 --> 00:37:18.500 reaction to his death. Immediately following 00:37:18.500 --> 00:37:21.579 his passing, his reputation just exploded in 00:37:21.579 --> 00:37:25.059 an unprecedented wave of enthusiasm. Biographies 00:37:25.059 --> 00:37:27.559 were rushed into production, and publishers scrambled 00:37:27.559 --> 00:37:30.139 to create complete authoritative editions of 00:37:30.139 --> 00:37:33.000 his works. His influence became tectonic, shaping 00:37:33.000 --> 00:37:35.440 the entire generation of composers who followed. 00:37:35.679 --> 00:37:38.159 Perhaps his most famous student was Ludwig von 00:37:38.159 --> 00:37:40.940 Beethoven. Fifteen years his junior. Beethoven 00:37:40.940 --> 00:37:43.949 deeply internalized Mozart's work. He traveled 00:37:43.949 --> 00:37:47.210 to Vienna in 1787 hoping to study with him, performed 00:37:47.210 --> 00:37:50.590 his operas, and even wrote cadenzas for his concertos, 00:37:50.590 --> 00:37:54.050 specifically the D minor piano concerto K466. 00:37:54.489 --> 00:37:56.849 Beethoven knew that Mozart had paved the way 00:37:56.849 --> 00:37:59.289 for musical independence. What we have seen in 00:37:59.289 --> 00:38:01.969 this deep dive is the defining tension of Mozart's 00:38:01.969 --> 00:38:04.400 life. the struggle between the suffocating structure 00:38:04.400 --> 00:38:06.920 of institutional service, exemplified by his 00:38:06.920 --> 00:38:08.980 humiliating treatment in Salzburg by Colorado, 00:38:09.260 --> 00:38:12.579 and his necessary revolutionary artistic independence, 00:38:12.980 --> 00:38:15.619 which he fought for in Vienna. And woven through 00:38:15.619 --> 00:38:18.860 that political struggle is the profound contradiction 00:38:18.860 --> 00:38:22.980 between financial chaos the man buying expensive 00:38:22.980 --> 00:38:25.659 40 pianos and billiards tables one year. While 00:38:25.659 --> 00:38:28.320 writing works of transcendent beauty and begging 00:38:28.320 --> 00:38:31.059 for loans the next, and a soaring prodigious 00:38:31.059 --> 00:38:33.760 creative output that seemingly never wavered 00:38:33.760 --> 00:38:36.340 in quality, even under duress. Ultimately, the 00:38:36.340 --> 00:38:39.380 enduring miracle of Mozart is the purity of his 00:38:39.380 --> 00:38:41.900 sound combined with that profound emotional capacity 00:38:41.900 --> 00:38:44.539 for violence and sensuality we discussed. It 00:38:44.539 --> 00:38:46.840 brings to mind Albert Einstein's famous beautiful 00:38:46.840 --> 00:38:50.090 quote. Mozart's music is so pure, it seems to 00:38:50.090 --> 00:38:52.289 have been ever present in the universe. It's 00:38:52.289 --> 00:38:54.309 an image of divine channeling. But that leads 00:38:54.309 --> 00:38:57.090 us to a final provocative thought for you, the 00:38:57.090 --> 00:38:59.530 learner, to consider. Given the extraordinary 00:38:59.530 --> 00:39:02.989 blend of Mozart's meticulous structure, his capacity 00:39:02.989 --> 00:39:06.130 for that shockingly voluptuous terror, and his 00:39:06.130 --> 00:39:08.429 profound use of complex Baroque counterpoint, 00:39:08.610 --> 00:39:11.489 how much of Mozart's music was truly that divine 00:39:11.489 --> 00:39:13.989 inspiration, the pure channel that Einstein speaks 00:39:13.989 --> 00:39:16.389 of? And how much was the sheer result of the 00:39:16.389 --> 00:39:19.429 intense disciplined, synthesizing musical practice 00:39:19.429 --> 00:39:22.389 imposed upon him during the grueling, formative 00:39:22.389 --> 00:39:24.989 grand tours of his childhood. Was the chaotic, 00:39:25.070 --> 00:39:28.250 independent life he led in Vienna the very freedom 00:39:28.250 --> 00:39:30.650 that nearly bankrupted him and perhaps shortened 00:39:30.650 --> 00:39:33.650 his life? Merely the inevitable price paid by 00:39:33.650 --> 00:39:36.329 an artistic genius finally freed from the suffocating 00:39:36.329 --> 00:39:39.210 structure that had, in fact, forged his brilliance. 00:39:39.329 --> 00:39:41.090 That is the ultimate tension we leave you with.