10 things you never knew about Mozart…

Our production of Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro opens in Glasgow next week. Want to know more about the composer? Here's 10 facts you may not know about the great Mozart!

ScottishOpera
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On Mar 29, 2017
1

Music was in his genes

Mozart’s father Leopold was a violinist, and he soon recognised and encouraged his son’s incredible musical talent. His sister, Maria Anna was also a talented musician, playing the piano and the harpsichord.

2

He was a child prodigy…

Mozart could play the piano from the age of three, and by four he could play the violin. He began composing at the age of five, and by the time he died he had written more than 600 works. Within those 600 works were 22 operas, how many can you name? Let us know in the comments.

3

…and an expert in procrastination

Mozart composed the overture to his masterpiece Don Giovanni on the morning of the premiere. Talk about leaving it to the last minute!

4

He had lots of admirers

Famous fans included fellow composers, Beethoven and Haydn. It is said that Mozart and Beethoven never actually met, but Beethoven was incredibly inspired by Mozart’s work.

5

His name is a bit of a mouth full!

Mozart was actually baptised ‘Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart’, although he was, and still is, regularly referred to as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Mozart preferred 'Amadeus' which is the Greek for Theophilus.

6

The best things come in small packages

A 150 year old statue of Mozart can be found in the town of Salzburg, Austria. It is 3 metres in height, which is a lot taller than the real Mozart, who was only 5’4”.

7

Word on the street is that he was a total diva

All that praise and attention can go to one’s head, and apparently Mozart didn’t waste too much time on pleasantries. Some might say he was an 18th century Mariah!

8

He married against his father’s wishes

Mozart married Constanze Weber at the age of 26, although he first fancied her sister. His father was not impressed – he didn’t approve of the Weber family one bit!

9

A face fit for a Euro

Mozart is depicted on the Austrian one Euro coin. The coin also shows the composer’s signature and is designed to suggest that Austria is ‘the land of music’.

10

Mozart is SO popular, that since 1 January 2016 there have been over 1450 performances of more than 300 productions of his operas in over 200 cities! WOW!

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