12 - Mozart- The Man and the Artist as Revealed in His Own Words by Friedrich Kerst, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is a name that resonates through the ages, a towering figure in the world of music whose genius continues to captivate audiences. From a tender age of 5, this child prodigy dazzled the world with his extraordinary talents, crafting masterpieces that remain unmatched. This collection of excerpts from his personal letters offers a fascinating glimpse into the mind of a musical legend. Was he simply mad, or was he a miraculous creator? Join us on a journey of discovery as we explore the thoughts and feelings of the boy wonder. (Summary by Aaron Elliott)

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter twelve of Mozart The Man and the Artist, as
revealed in his own words. This is a LibriVox recording.
All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more
information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Recorded
by Laurie Ann Walden. Mozart The Man and the Artist,
as revealed in his own words by Friedrich Kerst, translated

(00:22):
by Henry Krebiel, Chapter twelve, Strivings and Labors one fifty
We live in this world only that we may go
onward without ceasing. A peculiar help in this direction being
that one enlightens the other by communicating his ideas in
the sciences and fine arts, there is always more to learn. Salzburg,

(00:45):
September seventh, seventeen seventy six, to Padre Martini of Bologna,
whose opinion he asks concerning a motet which the Archbishop
of Salzburg had faulted. One fifty one. I am just
now reading, Telemachus. I am in the second part. Bologna,
September eighth, seventeen seventy to his mother and sister one

(01:09):
fifty two, because you said yesterday that you could understand anything,
and that I might write what I please in Latin.
Curiosity has led me to try you with some Latin lines.
Have the kindness, when you have solved the problem to
send the result to me by the Hagenauer servant maid
cuperum skiree des quacouza ac quamplurinus adelescuintibus ottium usque adio

(01:32):
istematur ut ipse sey necuerbis neckwareberaboos ab hoc sennate Abduki,
the archepiscopal concert master, aged thirteen, writes thus to a
girl friend one fifty three. Since then, I have exercised
myself daily in the French language, and already taken three

(01:52):
lessons in English in three months. I hope to be
able to read and understand the English books fairly well. Vienna,
August seventeenth, seventeen eighty two. To his father, Mozart had
given it out that he intended to go to Paris
or London. Prince Counits had said to Archduke Maximilian that
men like Mozart lived but once in a hundred years

(02:14):
and should not be driven out of Germany. Mozart, however,
writes to his father, but I do not want to
wait on charity. I find that, even if it were
the Emperor, I am not dependent on his bounty one
fifty four. I place my confidence in three friends, and
they are strong and invincible friends. That is God, your

(02:37):
head and my head. True, our heads differ, but each
is very good, serviceable, and useful in its genre. And
in time I hope that my head will be as
good as yours, in the field in which now yours
is superior. Mannheim February twenty eighth, seventeen seventy eight to
his father one fifty five. Believe me, I do not

(03:01):
love idleness, but work. True. It was difficult in Salzburg
and cost me an effort, and I could scarcely persuade myself.
Why because I was not happy there. You must admit
that for me, at least, there was not a pennyworth
of entertainment in Salzburg. I do not want to associate
with many, and of the majority of the rest I

(03:22):
am not fond. There is no encouragement for my talent.
If I play or one of my compositions is performed,
the audience might as well consist of tables and chairs.
In Salzburg, I sigh for a hundred amusements, and here
for not one to live in Vienna is amusement enough. Vienna,

(03:43):
May twenty six, seventeen eighty one, to his father, who
was concerned as to the progress making in Vienna. One
fifty six. I beg of you, best and dearest of fathers,
do not write me any more letters of this kind.
I conjure you, for they serve no other purpose than
to heat my head and disturb my heart and mood.

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And I, who must compose continually, need a clear head
and quiet mood. Vienna, June ninth, seventeen eighty one, to
his father, who had reproached him because of his rupture
with the archbishop. One fifty seven. If there ever was
a time when I was not thinking about marriage, it

(04:25):
is now. I wish for nothing less than a rich wife.
And if I could make my fortune by marriage, now
I should perforce have to wait, because I have very
different things in my head. God did not give me
my talent to put it a dangle on a wife
and spend my young life in inactivity. I am just
beginning life, and shall I embitter it myself. I have

(04:47):
nothing against matrimony, but for me it would be an
evil just now Vienna, July twenty five, seventeen eighty one,
to his father, who was solicitous lest he fall in
love with one of the daughters in the Weber family,
with whom he was living, All manner of rumors had
been carried to him. The father persuaded his son to

(05:07):
seek other lodgings, but Constanza Weber eventually became Mozart's wife. Nevertheless,
one fifty eight. This sort of composer can do nothing
in this genre. He has no conception of what is wanted. Lord.
If God had only given me such a place in
the church and before such an orchestra. A remark made

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in Leipzig in seventeen eighty nine in reference to a
composer who was suited to comic opera work but had
received an appointment as church composer. Mozart examined a mass
of his and said, it sounds all very well, but
not in church. He then played it through with new
words improvised by himself, such as in the comb sancto

(05:51):
spiritu stolen property, gentlemen, but no offense one fifty nine.
You see my intentions are good, but if you can't,
you can't. I do not want to scribble, and therefore
cannot send you the whole symphony before next post day. Vienna,
July thirty one, seventeen eighty two, to his father, who

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had asked for symphony for the Hoffner family in Salzburg,
one sixty I do not beg pardon no, but I
beg of Herr Bullinger that he himself apply to himself
for pardon in my behalf, with the assurance that as
soon as I can do so in quiet, I shall
write to him. Until now no such occasion has offered itself,

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For as soon as I know that in all likelihood
I must leave a place, I have no RESTful hour.
And although I still have a modicum of hope, I
am not at ease, and shall not be until I
know my status. Manheim, November twenty two, seventeen seventy seven,
to his father. Abbe Bullinger was the most intimate friend

(06:59):
that the Mozart family had in Salzburg. Mozart had been
negligent in his correspondence one sixty one. To live well
and to live happily are different things, and the latter
would be impossible for me without witchcraft. It would have
to be supernatural, and that is impossible, for there are
no witches nowadays. Paris, August seventh, seventeen seventy eight, to

(07:25):
his friend Bullinger, who had sought to persuade him to
return to Salzburg. One sixty two. The Duc de Chebeau
sat himself down beside me and listened attentively, and I
I forgot the cold and the headache, and played, regardless
of the wretched clavier, as I play when I am
in the mood. Give me the best clavier in Europe.

(07:47):
And at the same time, hearers who understand nothing or
want to understand nothing, and who do not feel what
I play with me, and all my joy is gone. Paris,
May one, seventeen seventy eight, to his father. The Duchess
had behaved very haughtily and kept Mozart sitting in a
cold room for a long time before the Duke came.

(08:10):
End of chapter twelve.