Reassessment-6
In the first half of his Vienna years, he was evidently a top star in Vienna
mainly as an excellent pianist who stood unrivaled.
He was too busy in showing his piano performances at the various public
concerts and at many aristocracy's houses in Vienna every year.
However, entering into the latter half of his Vienna era, his popularity
had suddenly and sharply changed for the worse.The extent of his downfall
was astonishing. Yes, it was as if he had already been completely ignored
in Vienna.
It seems that scholars and writers in the past have tried to explain it
by the following two reasons.
One was that his piano performance at that time had already become weary
to Viennese who were apt to get tired soon. The other was that his change
of piano works from gallant style to serious style was not acceptable to
Viennese people who simply loved gaiety.
However, these two seem to me only plausible reasons. I myself think that
there must have been another bitter reason to explain it. In short, it
was a kind of cold Extinction Curtain drawn in front of Mozart by the Establishment
in Vienna.
As described above, a clear contrast can be shown as to Mozart's light
and shade about his popularity in Vienna. Although the purpose of this
chapter is to find out what had decided the issue, we had better look into
the details about his popularity in Vienna in advance.
Mozart was very busy for his piano performances in every year in the first half of his Vienna years. The busiest must have been the music season in the spring of 1784.
At that season, he had to hold various types of piano performances, the
periodic concert at the Burg Theater, the subscription concerts at the
private halls and the piano playing at many aristocracy's houses, as many
as twenty two times from the term during February 26 to April 3 in 1784.
We can know by his letter to Leopold dated March 20,1784 that he had gathered
174 subscribers for his concert that time.
According to the research by Heinz Schler, 50 percent (88 persons) of the
total was such higher ranked nobility as dukes and counts and/or their
families, and 42 percent (74 persons) was the lower nobility and/or their
families in Vienna. That was to say, more than ninety percent of his subscribers
was noble men in Vienna.
We can find many influent and leading noble men in Vienna in that list.
Mozart's popularity was thus supported largely by the nobility in Vienna.
He gave such public concerts very frequently in the first half of his
Vienna era. As to this, some investigation reports that he gave seven public
concerts in 1784 and no fewer than fifteen in 1785.
Though we can not exactly know his each earning from these piano performances,
these public concerts apparently must have brought him big fortune. As
long as we can know from the past records, the largest income at a single
concert might have been that of the Burg Theater in March 10,1785. At that
time he earned 559 florins, which was more than one-year salary of a middle
class government employee those days.
In line with the earnings from such public concerts, he had other incomes
from his piano playing at many Vienna aristocracy's houses. But we scarcely
know how much reward he was given from those nobility.
Anyway, Mozart must have spent a gorgeous life with these huge amount of
earnings in the first half of his Vienna year.
He moved to the Figaro House, whose annual rent was 460 florins. It cost
nine times larger than that of the commoner in Vienna and the rent was
equivalent to Leopold's annual salary as a deputy Kapellmeister in Salzburg.
He owned gorgeous billiards facilities there which cost several hundred
florins. Also he got a carriage and six( though they were six Polish ponies)
and a horse for riding. To say nothing of, he employed such servants as
a lady's maid and a cook there.
Under such magnificent circumstances, his main association was that with
the Vienna nobility. And the association was not restricted to the relation
between the famous music player and the fans, but showed sometimes very
intimate relationship.
He was often invited as a guest to the Reisenberg, the summer residence
of Johann Phillip, Count Cobenzl. In July 1782, he traveled to Laxenburg
Palace with Count Karl Zichy.
In mid January 1783, he had a private ball at his house. At that time,
Baroness Waldstätten and the Baron Wetzlars were invited there together with his commoner
friends, the Adambergers, the Stephanies, Aloisia Lange and Josepha Weber.
It is also well known that he frequently took part in Baron Swieten's matinee
concert and the salon held by Countess Wilhelmine Thun.
Mozart had thus intimate contacts with many aristocracy in the first half
of his Vienna years. However, entering into the latter half of his Vienna
years, things had suddenly and largely changed for the worse.
All his connections with Viennese aristocracy had somehow died out suddenly
and completely in that term. Then let me next describe about that.
(1) Cold Wind against His Piano Performance
It was at the beginning of his late Vienna years that Mozart's life as
a pianist in Vienna had suddenly come to an end.
His last piano concert at the Burg Theater was that in April 7,1786. After
that he could not have appeared on the stage of the Burg Theater for his own piano concert.
On the contrary, it was only three times from then to his death that he could show his piano
playing in Vienna.
Yes, we should recognize that he could after all have played piano in
front of Viennese audiences only three times during the five and a half
year. More to say, they were not his own piano concerts, but he appeared
on the stages as an accompanist or a guest.
Now let us trace the state of things next very briefly.
1786
Mozart himself never dreamed that his life as a pianist in Vienna had come
to an end those days. So he continued to compose and completed the piano
concerto in C (K503) on December 4,1786 in expectation of appearing on
the stage of the Burg Theater again.
However, he was not invited to the concert at the theater in that musical
season beginning from the year end of 1786 and ending in the spring in
1787.
In addition, we also can find no record this year that he was invited to
any house of Viennese nobility for piano playing.
1787
On February 22,1787, Mozart appeared on the stage of the Kärntnertor Theater. But it was not his piano concert. It was Ann Strace's
farewell concert.
She sang the scena and rond "Ch'io ni scordi di te"(K505) on that occasion. While on the other hand, Mozart played only the roll of accompanist by
piano.
During the year Mozart was not invited only once either to the Burg Theater
or the nobility in Vienna.
1788
One year after Ann Strace's farewell concert, he happened to get a chance
to play piano at a nobility's house. But it was not a Viennese nobility's
house.
He was invited to Venetian Ambassador Andrea Dolfin's house, where Mozart
played his piano together with harp playing by a shoemaker's daughter.
This was the only one occasion that he could play piano this year.
In those days, he apparently still had his keen hope to play piano again
at some public concert since he had already finished to compose the new
piano concerto in D (K537, Coronation) on February 24 this year. However,
he could not appear on the periodic concert at the Burg Theater.
Then he determined to hold a concert at a casino by himself at around June
that year. We can know such Mozart's idea by his letter to Puchberg in
June 1788 ( date unknown).
In spite of his strong desire, it seemed that such concert had not been
held.
1789
Three years have already passed since Mozart was deserted by the Viennese
nobility and the court theater. We can find no record this year that Mozart
could have shown his piano performance in any place in Vienna. Yet Mozart
was still attached to hold his piano concert in Vienna.
" To my regret, my fate is now being surrounded, though only in Vienna,
by an adverse wind. For that sake I can not make money at all here. I have
circulated a list for subscribers for two weeks but I could find only the
name of Baron van Swieten there! " (The letter to Puchberg. July 12,1789)
We should pay great care for this letter since we know that he could once
have gathered 174 of subscribers in 1784, almost all of whom were Viennese
nobility as described before.
Though he had gained such popularity among the Vienna nobility in the past,
all the Viennese nobility except for Swieten at that time had completely
turned the cold shoulder on Mozart's concert.
As to this, the important point is whether or not we can blame this for
"the weariness of the Vienna audience" and/or for "the change
of Mozart's works to difficult ones"
In my view, I can be in favor of these reasons in case if most of Viennese
nobility had shown such cold attitudes but a few nobility had still accepted
Mozart's proposal.
But the question is why all the Viennese nobility except for Swieten had shown such negative attitude
completely. I myself can not understand why all the Viennese nobility had
betrayed Mozart.
No matter how the fashion in Vienna may change, I firmly believe that there
surely must have existed the nobility in Vienna who still understood and
loved Mozart's music sincerely. But it seems that even such nobility had
not signed to Mozart's subscriber concert.
Then I wonder why such noble men also turned their cold shoulder on Mozart
too.
After considering this and that, I myself can not help thinking that some
cold Extinction Curtain which was made by a secret mutual consent among
Viennese nobility, a kind of conspiracy, was probably drawn in front of
Mozart those days.
1790
During this year, Mozart was neither invited to the court theater nor to
the nobility's house, too. However, he was still attached to hold his own
concert. We can know it by his letter to Puchberg in early May this year.
In October he wrote to his wife from Frankfurt that he was going to have
a string quartet concert at the Christmas season.
However, both of the concerts had not been realized.
1791
On January 5 this year he finished to compose a new work, the piano concert
in B flat (K595). According to a recent research, it was likely that he
began to compose the work in 1788, but stopped on the way somehow.
He played this as guest at Joseph Bärr's concert held at the restaurateur Jahn's house on March 4 this year. This was his last piano performance in Vienna.
Thus he lonely and sadly ended his life of pianist in Vienna.
(2) Adverse Wind against His Other Music Activities
It was true that Mozart's popularity as a pianist had been kept so long
( for five years) in his early Vienna years. Then we can admit in a sense
that Viennese audience had become weary of his piano performance at around
1786 and his popularity had dropped after that.
On the other hand, it was also true that his works had become more serious
or difficult around that time. During 1785, such serious music were composed
one after another as the string quartet in C (K465), the piano concert
in D minor (K466), the fantasia for piano in C minor (K475), and the quartet
for piano, violin, viola and violoncello in G minor (K478).
Then we also can accept the opinion that the merry and playful Viennese
audience had not welcomed such serious music and his popularity in Vienna
had dropped as a result.
However, I myself strongly doubt if above two were all the reasons to explain
the sharp drop of Mozart's popularity in Vienna at the beginning of his
late Vienna era.
Now, what weigh heavily on my mind are the suddenness and the completeness of lost Mozart's popularity in Vienna, as mentioned before.
To solve this question, I think we had better check his other music activities
than piano performance, and the reaction of Viennese to them as well.
1786
On May1,1786, when it was a month later after his last piano performance
at the Burg Theater, the premier of " La nozze di Figaro" was
given at the same theater by Mozart's conducting. .
The premier started with enthusiastic applause by Viennese. The popularity
of this opera among Viennese was so enormous that the ensembles as well
as the arias of this opera often received encores. As a result, the performance
time of this opera had to be prolonged inevitably.
At such moment, curious posters which prohibited encores other than arias
of this opera was suddenly announced on the wall of the Burg Theater on
May 12 this year.
This was apparently announced being based on the following letter from
the emperor Joseph to Count Rosenberg on May 9, 1786.
" To prevent the excessive duration of the opera, without however
prejudicing the fame often sought by opera singers from the repetition
of vocal pieces, I deem the enclosed notice to the public( that no piece
for more than a single voice is to be repeated) to be the most reasonable
expedient. You will therefore cause some posters to this effect to be printed.
The same ruling is to be observed henceforth by the German Singspiel Company,
and notice to this effect to be given." ( Deutsch)
Reading this letter, we can easily detect that the theater director Count
Rosenberg seduced the Emperor to do so. It was of course not the Emperor's
idea or his initiative.
Then, in my view, the first attack by the Vienna nobility to Mozart had
begun that time.
To say nothing of, this opera was full of criticism to the aristocracy
as written in the Wiener Realzeitung " What is not allowed to be said
these days, is sung".
As this paper pointed out, Count Zinzendorf for example showed his hatred to this opera describing in his diary that "・・・At the opera, La nozze di Figaro. Mozart's music singular, hands without head・・・" (Deutsch)
In addition to such harassment, Mozart had to endure the cold treatment
by the theater director.
In spite of the enthusiastic applause by Vienna audience, the performance
of this opera was somehow suddenly stopped at its ninth stage in August.
Mozart would have gotten mad at that time and must have written the background
to Leopold. However, we can not know it since all his letters to Leopold
those days were destroyed probably by Constanze.
A possible reason was that Count Rosenberg had ordered so forcibly being
instigated by Salieri and the Italian musicians who had penetrated into
the Vienna court deeply.
1787
This year he was busy for the city Prague during the year and had not shown
any music activity in Vienna.
At the beginning of this year, he was invited to Prague where " La nozze di Figaro" was booming and he stayed there for a month.
He was commissioned that time to compose another opera (the "Don Giovanni")
there. Then he became busy for the composition during the year. And he went to Prague again for 40 days from October 1
that year for the premier of the opera.
At the end of this year, he was assigned to a chamber musician, not a court
composer, by Vienna court. He was paid annually only one fourth of the late court composer Glück's
salary.
1788
At the beginning and the end of this year, he was busy for composing the
dance music for the court ball which was his duty as a court chamber musician.
He had to waste his talent in composing such valueless music.
As mentioned before, he could no more have appeared on any stage in Vienna
as a pianist those days.
However, oddly enough, he appeared on the stages as a conductor this year.
What is more, he had to conduct other composers' music, not his own works
as shown below.
The "Auferstehung und Himmelfahrt Jesus" (C.P.E.Bach) at Esterhazy's
residence (February 26,1788).
The same music at the Burg Theater (March 4, 1788).
The " Acis and Galatea" (Händel, arranged by Mozart) at the house of the restaurateur Jahn (November 1788, date unknown).
Thus he had to endure such hardships as composing gay dance music and conducting other composers' works this year.
Though he was in such hard time this year, his opera " Don Giovanni
" was performed for the first time in Vienna this May. This opera
was performed fifteen times in Vienna from May to December during the year.
But, unlike the performance of the " La nozze di Figaro", we
can not find any comment on this performance in any Viennese paper. We
do not know the exact reason, however I wonder if some force had worked
on the Vienna media.
Zinzendorf described in his diary, "......In the evening I was much bored at the opera Don Giovanni." (Deutsch)
1789
Things this year were nearly the same with those of the previous year.
He had to compose the dance music at the beginning and the end of this
year too. He also had to conduct the "Messiah" (Händel, arranged by Mozart) at Esterhazy's residence on March 6 this year.
He finally stopped composing a piano concerto this year probably because
he had already given up holding his piano concert there.
" La nozze di Figaro" was performed again in Vienna. But Mozart was not assigned to the conductor. It was Joseph Weigl who conducted it.
An unusual thing happened this year. He was commissioned to compose a new
opera the "Cosi fan tutte" by the Emperor.
This commission and the assignment to the court chamber musician were the
exceptional heartwarming deeds given to Mozart during his late Vienna years.
These were allegedly said to be by the courtesy of the Emperor.
1790
Opera "Cosi fan tutte" was performed on January 26 this year. Soon after that the Emperor JosephⅡdied and the performance was postponed. This opera was performed ten times
in total this year but could never be performed again in Vienna until 1850.
This March, Mozart submitted to the new Emperor LeopoldⅡ his petition for the post of assistant to the court Kapellmeister. However,
it was coldly rejected in May this year.
Mozart's long-sought performance at Viennese nobility's house was realized
on April 9 this year. But it was not his piano performance.
By the request of Count Hardik, Mozart took part in playing the Divertimento
for violin, viola and violoncello in E flat (K563) and the Clarinet quintet
in A (K581) in Hardik's residence.
This was the only one performance by Mozart at Viennese nobility's house
through his late Vienna years.
1791
On some day in late April, Mozart submitted to the City Council of Vienna
his petition for the post of assistant to the Kapellmeister of St. Stephen
Cathedral Church.
This was once coldly rejected, however it after all was accepted on May
9,1791.
But it was only nominal and of little use to him since the post given to
Mozart was without salary as long as the existing Kapellmeister Leopold
Hoffman was alive.
After that he became too busy in composing three big works, the "Magic
flute", "La clemenza di Tito" and the "Requiem".
As to the commission of the "La clemenza di Tito", it is said
that there exists a certain document in Prague. The document stated that
some circle of Vienna court showed strong opposition to Prague when they
heard that the opera was after all commissioned to Mozart. Prague side
was frightened to know that, however they did not surrender to Vienna.
This is a good example to prove the clear harassment to Mozart by the Establishment.
At the end of this year he passed away under the enthusiastic applause
by Vienna commoner to the Masonic opera the " Magic flute" which
had been performed at the theater auf der Wieden.
By above descriptions, we can clearly see that Mozart's popularity suddenly
dropped from the first half of 1786, and after that he became the being
as if he was completely ignored in Vienna.
At the back of such occurrence, there must have been an invisible Extinction
Curtain drawn in front of Mozart by Viennese nobility, I guess. As to this,
we should pay enough attention that Mozart could have scarce contacts with
them privately in his late Vienna years.
When we take a look at Mozart's chronological records, we are frightened
to find that few names of Viennese nobility are listed in his late Vienna
years.
Yes, when we check the "W.A.Mozart. Chronik eines Lebens" by
J.H.Eibl for example, we can find only four noble men's names there from
1786 to 1791 as listed below.
Count Esterhazy (in February and December 1788, and March 1789)
Baron van Swieten (in November 1788, March 1789 and July & December
1790 )
Marquis Lichnowsky (in April and May 1789)
Count Hardik (in April1790)
Strangely enough, no name of Viennese nobility other than above four can
be found anywhere although Mozart could have frequent contacts with many
noble men in Vienna in his earlier Vienna years. His association with
nobility in Vienna had thus largely shrunken.
The reason to explain this might have existed in the point that Mozart had been driven out of the fashionable societies in Vienna by some force those days, I suppose.
Here we should naturally notice that the music concerts those days were
the important part of their fashionable societies in Vienna. And Mozart
was deeply involved in such societies in his early Vienna era.
However, it is clear that he had virtually been driven out of those societies
in his late Vienna years.
The facts, no invitation to the nobility's houses, no purchasing his concert
tickets by them, and no request for his piano performance from the Burg
Theater, will be an eloquent proof.
By the way, many scholars and writers have been making too much fuss about
Mozart's gorgeous clothes by describing that he needed them for his frequent
association with nobility all the time through his Vienna years.
But can we believe this although Mozart has been thus treated so cold by
them? I myself believe they only have written their imagination as they
please without checking such background as explained above.
Well, such a topic aside, we must then find out the reason why Viennese
nobility had turned the cold shoulder on Mozart.
In my view, the reason might have closely linked with the political and social situation in Vienna those days.
What I mean in short is that Mozart was attached to be a Freemason although
the circumstances over Freemasonry in Vienna had drastically changed for
the worse. In other words, Viennese nobility had hated Mozart because he
was heavily attached to be a Freemason to the last.
Nobility, who could enjoy their higher social ranks thanks to the old fashioned
feudal systems, had by nature ill feeling against Freemasonry who argued
egalitarianism strongly.
The existence of Freemasonry, which was basically against for feudal systems,
was originally very inconvenient for aristocracy. However they pretended to be in favor of Freemasonry during the term of
Enlightenment ages. But the situation had suddenly changed.
As we know there was a big change of Vienna politics in December 1785.
It was the imperial ordinance on the control of Vienna Freemasonry, which
was issued on December 11 that year.
Emperor JosephⅡhad pushed his Enlightenment policies forward by utilizing Freemasonry
party by that time. However, he suddenly changed his mind to put Vienna
Freemasonry under the government control.
His change of mind was probably by the reasons that he thought he could no more utilize Freemasonry party effectively in pushing his policies forward for one thing, and that some doubtful parties who named themselves Freemasonry had been rampant in Vienna for the other.
In addition, we of course can guess the political backlash of Catholic
party in the court. They had long been accusing Freemasonry as heretic because they were deists
and denied the revealed religion like Catholic.
After the issue of this ordinance, the controls of Freemasonry were tightened.
The Viennese lodges had to submit their member's lists and the minutes
of the meetings to the police every time after their meetings.
Soon the secret polices had begun to sniff Masonic meetings and an official notice were informed to censors in Vienna that no book
and pamphlet were permitted which scorned the religious doctrines, the
churches and the churchmen.
Such controls against Freemasonry have continued and finally in 1795 the
imperial ordinance was issued by the Emperor FranzⅡthat Freemason was to be put to death penalty.
Under such circumstances, the power of Freemasonry in Vienna was largely
weakened year by year. Many members of Vienna Freemasonry had left their
lodges and finally in April 1789 one of the two lodges in Vienna "
The Truth" had dissolved.
In spite of such unfavorable circumstances, Mozart had remained to be the
member of the "New Crowned Hope" to the last of his life. On
the contrary, he stood up and took action for establishing a new lodge
"Cavern" for the recovery of Freemasonry power.
What is more, he bravely performed the Masonic opera, the "Magic flute"
just a couple month before his death in the theater auf der Wieden in a
dignified manner.
Probably Catholic church and Viennese nobility regarded Mozart as a heretic
and an anti-Establishment considering his enthusiastic Freemasonry activities.
Then they acted in unison to ignore this stalwart Freemason by drawing
an Extinction Curtain in front of him.
The fact that Mozart could never have appeared on the stages in Vienna was not by natural progress but by this Extinction Curtain by the Establishment, I believe.
To our regret, this cold Extinction Curtain by the Establishment had been
drawn up to Mozart's death. On the contrary the same state had still continued
in Vienna after Mozart's death for a long time.
Let me itemize them as follows.
1. Just before Mozart's death, Sophie rushed into St.Peter Church in response
to Constanze's request and asked the priests to come. But the priests hesitated
for a long time. Then she tried to persuade them again and again.
However, according to Nissen's memo, none of the priests had finally visited Mozart's house. We suspect why priests had taken such inhuman deed.
In my view, they would not like to go because they knew well that Mozart
was a stalwart Freemason, not a Catholic at all.
2. The place where Mozart's funeral was held was at the small chancel called
Capistran pulpit in the St. Stephen Church, not in the main hall of the
church.
We do not know the exact reason why such shabby place was given to his
funeral. As to this, I myself do not think that the bereaved hoped to hold
Mozart's funeral in such place. But I guess that the Church allotted such
place to Mozart who was a Freemason, not a Catholic.
3. Vienna court was also very cold upon Mozart's death.
This court was enough respectful to hold a state funeral for Glück
who was the court composer but had not composed only one German opera.
Though the court had shown such respectful attitude to Glück, they
had nothing to do with Mozart's funeral. What was done by the court upon
Mozart's death were the following two.
One was the attendance and the contribution (150 docaten) by the Emperor
to the charity concert held for the widow on December 23,1791. The other
was the provision of annually 266 florins of widow's pension to Constanze.
4. Soon after Mozart's death, Prussian king offered to purchase eight Mozart's
autographs by huge amount of 3,600 florins. However, Vienna court as well
as Vienna city had no idea at all to keep these precious Mozart's music
from getting scattered and lost.
In place of Vienna organizations, it was Johann Anton André in Offenbach
who purchased a sheaf of Mozart's music from Constanze.
In November 1799, the contract were made between the two. By this agreement,
André paid 3,150 florins to Constanze and got about 280 of Mozart's
autographs then. As a result, many precious Mozart's music have been kept
up to the present without lost.
However, the rest of his music were given a free hand by Constanze, and
then many Mozart's music not included in André's acquisition have
been scattered and some of them lost.
5. As to the publishing of the " Complete works of Mozart", Breitkopf
und Härtel in Leipzig began to publish the first edition of them as
early as 1798.
To our regret, any music publisher in Vienna had never thought of such
memorial attempt.
6. No writer appeared both in Vienna and Salzburg who was going to write
the biography of Mozart.
It was Schlichtegroll in Munich who wrote the biography on Mozart first,
which was published in Gotha in 1793 . The second author was Niemetschek
in Prague and the book was published there in 1798. As late as in 1829,
when it has passed 38 years after Mozart's death, the biography by Nissen,
Constanze's second husband, was finally published. But it was published
by Breitkopf in Leipzig, not publisher in Vienna.
7. After the completion of Nissen's biography, Constanze sent letters to
ask to be subscribers for the biography to many Royal families in Europe.
In response to her request, the Royal family of Denmark and Prussia had
purchased twelve and twenty six respectively. However, the Royal family
of Austria was cold enough to purchase only two books, one for the Emperor,
the other for the Empress.
8. Things were like above. Then it was as late as in 1859 when Mozart's
memorial bronze statute was installed in Vienna. Sixty eight years have
already passed after Mozart's death.
Thanks to the cold Extinction Curtain, Mozart was ignored not only in his late Vienna years but also for a long time after his death in Vienna.
TOP
HOME
Bibliography
1.H.C.Robbins Landon
Mozart Almanac (translated by Hirosi Ishii, Chuou Kohron Shinsha, 2006)
2.op.cit.
The Mozart Myths
3.op.cit.
Brief und Aufzeichnungen Gesamtausgabe Weiter Nachtrag
4.op.cit.
Mozart A Documentary Biography
5.op.cit.
Das Mozart Lexikon
6.op.cit.
The Masonic Thread in Mozart
7.op.cit.
To gange fuldkommen lykkelig
8. op.cit.
W.A.Mozart. Chronik eines Lebens
author: Shuji Fujisawa
e-mail; ssfuji@mbj.nifty.com
first published: April 25, 2008
updated: December 15,2008
All rights reserved