15 interesting facts about the great composer Mozart will make you understand and love the famous musical genius in the world of classical music even more. We invite you to learn about the world of musical instruments!

Here are facts about the great composer – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 – 1791)

1. Was Mozart left-handed or right-handed?

Left-handed people are thought to be more creative than right-handed people, and Mozart, like many other artists, was left-handed. The list also includes Sergei Rachmaninoff, Carl Philippe Emmanuel Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Niccolo Paganini, and modern artists such as Daniel Barenboim and Nicola Benedetti.

2. Mozart’s Last Music

Requiem (requiem music) is one of Mozart’s most famous compositions. Many people believe that Mozart himself wrote this work for himself. However, there are also rumors: a mysterious Count Franz von Walseg said that he wrote it himself for his wife’s funeral. This is one of many stories surrounding the Requiem, each of which needs to be considered.

Because it is not known who wrote the Requiem, many people believe that Mozart was paid to write the Requiem for his own funeral. However, he had been ill for some time and his state of mind was clearly not clear. There is much evidence that Mozart passed away before completing this work.

The complete version of the Requiem (finished by Franz Xaver Sussmayr) was played at Mozart’s funeral. In addition, the work was also performed at the funeral of Napoleon I in 1840 and at the funeral of Frederick Chopin in 1848.

Mozart’s final piece “Requiem”

3. Another name for Mozart

Although in the movie “Amadeus” and stage programs depict Mozart as being called ‘Wolfie’ by Constanze (his wife), however there is no evidence in any contemporary documents to corroborate this.

4. Mozart’s real name

Although we know his name as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, he was previously named Joannes Chrysostonus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart. Theophilus in Greek means “loved by God”. But it seems that perhaps Mozart preferred the Latin translation- Amadeus.

A polyglot, Mozart often translated his name into other languages ​​and from 1770 onwards he often used Amadeo or Amade as his middle name. Mozart also had another name: At a concert in Prague in 1791 to raise money for his family after his death, his name was announced in tribute as Wolfgang Gottlieb Mozart – Gott (God). lieb (love).

5. Mozart’s resting place

Mozart was buried in an ordinary grave, not a pauper’s grave as we often hear. He was poor, but not a beggar, which is a far cry from the stories surrounding Mozart’s death.

Unlike noble graves, ordinary graves can be dug up after ten years. This is why the whereabouts of his remains are still unknown.

In the midst of a fierce snowstorm, Mozart’s body was transported to holy ground outside the city gate

6. Jupiter Symphony

Mozart’s last symphony (no. 41, K.551) is called the Jupiter Symphony. This name was coined by German violinist, composer and actor – Johann Peter Salomon after the death of Mozart. No one really knows why he called it that, but the name stuck and became popular in the early 1800s.

7. Mozart’s special sense of humor

Mozart, like other members of his family, had a strange sense of humor, which was often mentioned in their letters. When British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher first saw the play Amadeus in London in 1979, she reprimanded the play’s director for using four-letter words.

Researchers say that Mozart’s letters often show a “especially childish” your. These letters were especially directed to her cousin Maria Anna Thekla. When examining his letters and music, there are some theories that Mozart suffered from Tourette’s syndrome.

8. Mozart and Mathematics: Golden Section (Golden Section)

It is often said that Mozart loved mathematics. Many researchers have discovered mathematical equations written in the margins of some works. This raises the question of whether Mozart may have used mathematics in his composition.

No one satisfactorily answered how often the “golden ratio” in his music but there is much solid evidence to prove this. Examining piano sonatas, or even entire movements of his operas (Act II of “Cosi fan Tutti” is an excellent example), one can see that the “golden ratio” applied in the music correctly.

In sonata form, the movement is usually divided into a description, followed by a development and a summary turn it off again. For example, the work The first movement: Sonata No.1 in C major contains 100 bars divided perfectly into two parts – 38 bars in the first movement and 62 bars in the second; ratio 0.618; like the “golden section.

It does not appear in every work, but it has a significant frequency that surprises many researchers. 

Mozart loved mathematics and liked to apply the “golden ratio” into musical works

9. Mozart and Van Halen

Legendary Dutch-American rocker Eddie van Halen named his musician son Wolfgang van Halen after Mozart.

10. Second Piano Concerto

Mozart, like many other great composers, excelled at improvising on the piano and composing on the spot. In one of his letters to his father, he refers to the second piano concerto (K. 382): “Whenever I play this concerto, I play whatever happens to me at the moment. at this time. You must not allow anyone else to play the music because I composed it especially for myself.”

11. 5 violin concertos

In 1775, Mozart wrote five violin concertos, which was a remarkable feat for any classical composer; it is considered even more astonishing that Mozart composed them while only just 19 years old. 

You are even more surprised, the 5 concertos are Mozart’s first works that are always performed in the world’s concert repertoire.

12. Mozart and the Flute

Mozart once admitted that he did not like the flute, he only composed when asked. In a letter to his father, he stated that he often composed at night and “Furthermore, I know that you become quite depressed whenever you are forced to write for an instrument (flute). ) that I cannot bear.”

Mozart did not like the flute and only composed when asked

14. Mozart’s mother passed away

Mozart’s father Leopold Mozart sent him to Paris in 1778 with his mother, but they didn’t really have a good time there. He spent his days playing music for rich people who were simply not interested in his talent. Mozart wrote to his father to complain about the way he was treated. “They arranged for me to come visit on such a day, I played music and heard them say “Oh, it’s so magical, so wonderful, I can’t imagine! And then “Goodbye!”

With no money and little food, the great Mozart cut back on teaching to earn money after wandering around the streets looking for work. His mother later fell ill and died in a shabby hotel in Paris. At that time, Mozart was only 22 years old.

15. Virtuoso Technique

Unlike Chopin, who was happy to use unconventional fingerings in his keyboard works, or Beethoven, who deliberately used unusual fingerings to make the works more difficult to play, in his works of Mozart, he valued well-timed fingering, smooth technique, flexibility, and a steady hand. He did not like technical virtuosity which was simply an excuse to show off.

Mozart’s technique differed from Beethoven and Chopin, he emphasized timely fingering, smoothness, flexibility and a steady hand. Mozart died when he was only 35 years old, but the legacy he left behind to the world is admirable. He is one of the greatest composers in the world of classical music – the man known as the genius of all geniuses. No matter how many centuries have passed, humanity still remembers his name!