Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: A Biography

Piero Melograni

University of Chicago Press, 2007 - Biography & Autobiography - 300 pages

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. His substantial oeuvre contains works that are considered to be among the most exquisite pieces of symphonic, chamber, and choral music ever written. His operas too cast a long shadow over those staged in their wake. And since his untimely death in 1791, he remains an enigmatic figure—the subject of fascination for aficionados and novices alike.

Piero Melograni here offers a wholly readable account of Mozart’s remarkable life and times. 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. 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. 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.

At 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.

Contents

• 17561767 The Rise and Decline of the Child Prodigy: 1
• 17671777 Searching for a Post with His Father: 26
• 17771778 In Search of a Permanent Post with His Mother: 69
• 17781780 A Dicult Homecoming: 102
• 17801782 Winning Freedom: 118
• 17821786 Vienna Diculties and Successes: 160
• 17861790 The Great Italian Operas: 192
• 1791 Mozarts Last Year: 228
• Mozart Lives On: 249
• Cited works of Mozart by Köchel Number: 253
• Note on the English translation: 261
• Notes: 263
• Bibliographical Notes: 283
• Index: 289

About the author

Lydia G. Cochrane has translated numerous books for the University of Chicago Press.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: A Biography
• Author: Piero Melograni
• Translated by: Lydia G. Cochrane
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 2007
• ISBN: 0226519562, 9780226519562
• Length: 300 pages
• Subjects: Biography & Autobiography / Music; History / Europe / Western; Music / General; Music / Genres & Styles / Classical