2. Background
• Born January 27, 1756
• 7th child of Leopold and Anna Maria
• Piano lessons at age 4
• Age 10 played for many great kings of Europe
• As a teenager he became more a serious composer
• Became court musician as a teenager until age 25
3. Training/Influence
• Wolfgang’s father Leopold Mozart was a big influence early in his life
• Met Johann Bach and other composers from his travels to France England and
Germany, who influenced his music later
• Studied with Giovanni Battista Martini
• Met and became friends with Franz Joseph Haydn.
• Started playing music at age 3
• Began Piano Lessons at age 4
• Wrote first piece at age 5
• Played for many important people, improving his skills
Johann Sebastian Bach
4. Best Accomplishments
• Performed at various locations at age 6, such
as royal courts where queens, emperors and
other prestigious guests were in attendance.
• One of the most important classical
composers in history.
• Worked as Kapellmeister for the archbishop
of Salzburg.
• Composed over 600 works
5. Master Works
Mozart composed over 600
works, his best include:
• "Paris Symphony"
• "Commotion Mass"
• "Missa Solemnis"
• "Post Horn Serenade"
• "Sinfonia Concertante"
• "Requiem Mass"
• "Haffner"
• "Prague"
• "Linz"
• "Jupiter"
• "Idomeneo"
• "The Abduction from the Seraglio"
• "Don Giovanni"
• “The Marriage of Figaro"
• "La Clemenza di Tito"
• "Cosi fan tutte"
• "The Magic Flute."
7. Piano Sonata in C major, K.545
This piece is a fast paced piano solo, Wolfgang’s 16th
piano sonata. The melody starts with a moderate pace, but soon
becomes very fast, including many notes into a short span of
time. It is clear that this piece
would be very hard for an average
piano player to play at full speed.
Youtube Link
8. Marriage Of Figaro – Overture
This piece has a moderate tempo, and is played by an
orchestra that sounds like its composed of almost solely
stringed instruments. The tempo and volume change suddenly
a few times during the piece, although it is fairly easy to
recognize when this will happen
because the piece is so famous.
The melody’s intensity matches
the current intensity the song is at.
Youtube Link
9. Personal Reaction
While listening to some of Mozart’s pieces, I was very impressed by how he can shift the
pace of the song without it sounding clunky or forced. This is especially true during Piano Sonata No.
16. While listening to some of his works, it reminded me of Bugs Bunny because of the music style
played during the show. It is actually very likely it was one of Mozart’s works being played.
While researching Wolfgang Mozart, I learned a
lot about him I previously didn’t know, including that he
composed over 600 works during his short lifespan of only
35 years. I also think it is cool how he started playing
music so young, even performing for very important
people at a very young age.
10. Works Cited
• "Fast Facts About Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart." About.com Education.
Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
http://musiced.about.com/od/classicalmusicians/p/mozart.htm
• Willoughby, David. The World of Music. New York: McGraw-Hill,
2010. Print.
