More than a composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a miracle who composed astonishing works in just about all genres . . .  symphonies, concertos, oratorios, keyboard works, chamber music, as well as enduring masterpieces for the opera stage. All this he did in a short life that lasted only from 1756 until 1971. Let’s meet Mozart and hear what he has to say about being more than a composer, but a phenomenon.

 

Ladies and gentlemen,

I am Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and I am pleased, through Classical Archives, to share a little of my life with you.

I was born in Salzburg in 1756. From the time I was a child, music was not merely something I studied — it was the very air I breathed. My father, Leopold, was my first teacher, and as a boy I traveled with him across Europe. My sister Nannerl and I performed before emperors, kings, and queens. Those journeys opened my ears to the world: the elegance of the French court, the grace of Italian opera, the intricate counterpoint of Germany. I listened, absorbed, and soon was composing music of my own.

By the time I was a young man, I had written symphonies, concertos, and chamber works, yet I longed most to test my voice in opera. Idomeneo in Munich was my first great triumph, and when I made Vienna my home, I felt I had at last found a stage worthy of my ambitions. There I created The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni, and later The Magic Flute. In those works, I sought to capture life itself: the laughter of servants, the passions of lovers, the grandeur and weakness of rulers, the mystery of the human soul.

My life was not always easy. I was no stranger to financial hardship; the rewards of music did not always cover the cost of living. Yet I was never discouraged for long, for I felt compelled to write. Ideas would seize me — symphonies, concertos, sonatas — and until they were set on paper, I could not rest.

I was fortunate, too, in love. My Constanze, my wife, was my partner in joy and in struggle. She endured the long hours, the disappointments, and the endless composing, and she gave me both a family and a home. My friends and fellow musicians, through music-making late into the night, were another source of strength and inspiration.

And then, too soon, came illness. In 1791, as I was completing my Requiem, my body failed me. I was only 35 years old. I knew I was slipping away, yet even as I lay in bed I thought of music. I dictated the Requiem to my student Süssmayr, bar by bar, until I could dictate no more. I left this world with that work unfinished — but perhaps that is fitting, for life itself is always unfinished.

Through my music, I hope you may always find joy, solace, and the spirit of freedom — for as long as it is heard, I remain with you.

A Selection of Works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Available for Listening on Classical Archives

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Major Symphonies

Symphony No.31 in D, K.297 (‘Paris’)

Symphony No.35 in D, K.385 (‘Haffner’)

Symphony No.36 in C, K.425 (‘Linz’)

Symphony No.37 in G, K.444

Symphony No.38 in D, K.504 (‘Prague’)

Symphony No.39 in Eb, K.543

Symphony No.40 in G-, K.550

Symphony No.41 in C, K.551 (‘Jupiter’)

Selected Piano Concertos

Piano Concerto No.9 in Eb, K.271 (‘Jeunhomme’)

Piano Concerto No.10 in Eb, for 2 pianos, K.365

Piano Concerto No.11 in F, K.413

Piano Concerto No.12 in A, K.414

Piano Concerto No.13 in C, K.415

Piano Concerto No.14 in Eb, K.449

Piano Concerto No.15 in Bb, K.450

Piano Concerto No.16 in D, K.451

Piano Concerto No.17 in G, K.453

Piano Concerto No.18 in Bb, K.456 (‘Paradis’)

Piano Concerto No.19 in F, K.459

Piano Concerto No.20 in D-, K.466

Piano Concerto No.21 in C, K.467 (‘Elvira Madigan’)

Piano Concerto No.22 in Eb, K.482

Piano Concerto No.23 in A, K.488

Piano Concerto No.24 in C-, K.491

Piano Concerto No.25 in C, K.503

Piano Concerto No.26 in D, K.537 (‘Coronation’)

Piano Concerto No.27 in Bb, K.595

Other Concertos

Violin Concerto No.5 in A, K.219 (‘Turkish’)

Clarinet Concerto in A, K.622

Bassoon Concerto in Bb, K.191

Concerto in C for Flute and Harp, K.299

Sinfonia concertante in Eb for Violin and Viola, K.364

Selected Piano Sonatas

Piano Sonata No.16 in C, K.545 (‘Sonata semplice’)

Piano Sonata No.18 in D, K.576 (‘Hunt’)

Piano Sonata No.13 in Bb, K. 333 (‘Linz’)

Piano Sonata No.14 in C-, K.457

Selected Chamber Works

String Quartet No.14 in G, K.387 (‘Spring’)

String Quartet No.15 in D-, K.421

String Quartet No.16 in Eb, K.428

String Quartet No.17 in Bb, K.458 (‘The Hunt’)

String Quartet No.18 in A, K.464

String Quartet No.19 in C, K.465 (‘Dissonant’)

Piano Trio No.4 in E, K. 542

Piano Trio No.5 in C, K. 548

Piano Trio No.6 in G, K.564

Clarinet Quintet in A (‘Stadler’), K.581

Serenade D, K.320 (‘Posthorn’)

Serenade for Winds in Bb, K.361 (‘Gran Partita’)

Serenade in G, K.525 (‘Eine Kleine Nachtmusik’; ‘A Little Night Music’)

Operas

Così fan tutte, K.588 (opera buffa)

Die Entführung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Seraglio), K.384 (Singspiel)

Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), K.620 (Singspiel)

Don Giovanni, K.527 (opera buffa)

Idomeneo, rè di Creta, K.366 (opera seria)

Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), K.492 (opera buffa)

Oratorios

Requiem Mass in D-, K.626

Mass in C, K.317 (‘Coronation’)