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    Mozart

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    Mozart: 15 facts about the great composer

    Born in Salzburg in 1756, Mozart is now recognised as one of the best classical composers of all times, with repertoire spanning opera to symphonies.

    1. A Transverse Flute

      1. The Magic Flute: Mozart's last opera

      The Magic Flute was the last opera Mozart composed, it was premiered on 30th September 1791 - roughly three months before he died. Mozart himself conducted the orchestra, while the librettist, Emanuel Schikaneder, sang the role of Papageno.

    2. Mozart's Family Portrait: Leopold Mozart, his wife, Maria Anna, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart playing the piano

      2. Mozart's father, Leopold: a keen musician

      Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was the only surviving son of the well-known violin teacher and occasional composer Leopold Mozart, who wrote the pieces including a Trumpet Concerto and the Toy Symphony.

    3. French Horn

      3. Mozart Horn Concerto No. 2

      Another Hall of Fame favourite often voted by Classic FM listeners is his Horn Concerto No.2 for his friend and horn player Ignaz Leutgeb.

    4. A still from The King's Speech

      4. Mozart Clarinet Concerto: a film music favourite

      Another of Mozart’s most popular compositions is the Clarinet Concerto in A Major features in films including ‘The King’s Speech’, '27 Dresses' and 'Out of Africa'. The Clarinet Concerto is also a favourite here at Classic FM, often appearing in the top 10 in the Hall of Fame

    5. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart most famous portrait

      5. Mozart's Requiem: left unfinished

      Mozart’s Requiem Mass in D minor was composed in 1791 and was left unfinished at the time of his death. Mozart composed his Requiem with the belief it was for himself. The work was commissioned by an anonymous nobleman, who had intended to pass off the work as his own.

    6. Allegri

      6. Mozart and Allegri's Miserere

      Mozart had an incredible ability to remember music, he famously heard Allegri’s Miserere aged fourteen when visiting Rome. Later that day, he wrote it down entirely from memory, returning to the Chapel that Friday to make minor corrections.

    7. The Shawshank Redemption still

      7. Mozart's music in The Shawshank Redemption

      ‘Duettino- Sull'aria’ from one of Mozart’s most popular operas ‘The Marriage of Figaro’ features in the film ‘The Shawshank Redemption’.

    8. A Church Bell

      8. Mozart's 250th birthday

      On 27th January 2006, all the church bells in Salzburg were rung simultaneously at the exact hour of his birth, in honour of Mozart's 250th birthday.

    9. An image of the planet Jupiter

      9. Symphony No. 41 nicknamed 'Jupiter'

      Mozart wrote his first symphony in London in 1764–5 and his last in Vienna in August 1788. The last symphony, Symphony No.41 was nicknamed in later years the ‘Jupiter’ Symphony, which is believed to have come from an early arrangement for piano by Johann Peter Salomon.

    10. Image of a catalogue

      10. Mozart: a classical catalogue

      Mozart’s compositions were catalogued in the 19th century by Köchel, and they are now generally distinguished by the K. numbering from this catalogue such as Mozart’s Ave Verum Corpus K.618.

    11. An iconic picture of Paris

      11. Mozart's Symphony No.31 'Paris'

      Mozart composed his first 30 symphonies by the age of 18, and returned to composing symphonies a few years later in Paris, the city which also happens to be the nickname of his Symphony No.31.

    12. Wedding

      12. Mozart's wife, Constanze Weber

      Constanze Weber was Mozart’s wife and her father Fridolin’s half-brother was the father of composer Carl Maria von Weber. Constanze had three sisters, Josepha, Aloysia and Sophie, who were all were trained as singers and later performed in premieres of a number of Mozart's works.

    13. Violins playing

      13. Mozart's Divertimento: A Musical Joke

      Mozart's A Musical Joke also known as Divertimento for two horns and string quartet, is thought to have been written to be intentionally as a funny piece, clumsy, mechanical and over-repetitive.

    14. An image of the night

      14. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik

      Eine Kleine Nachtmusik ('A Little Night Music') is also known as Serenade No. 13 for strings in G major and was written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1787. Only four of the five original movements survive.

    15. Mozart's statue in Salzburg

      15. Mozart Statue

      A Mozart monument stands in Salzburg, Mozart's birthplace, which is 3m in height which has been there for over 150 years. The monument was made in 1842 by Ludwig Schwanthaler and was unveiled in the presence of Mozart’s sons.

    Mozart latest

    See more Mozart latest

    A12 orchestra plays in Netherlands protest

    Orchestra passionately mimes Mozart ‘Dies Irae’ in protest – after police banned their instruments

    From Mozart to Elgar: the best pieces of classical music for beginners

    15 timeless pieces to begin your journey into classical music

    Discover Music

    Sheku Kanneh-Mason plays Elgar Cello Concerto; Alison Balsom plays Haydn Trumpet Concerto; Anne-Sophie Mutter plays Williams Violin Concerto No.2

    The 20 greatest concertos in classical music

    Discover Music

    Operatic greats Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Angela Gheorghiu

    The 20 greatest opera arias of all time

    Discover Music

    The greatest classical music for babies

    10 most beautiful and calming pieces of classical music for babies

    Discover Music

    This is how Acqua’s ‘Barbie Girl’ might have sounded if it had been written by Mozart.

    Here’s how ‘Barbie Girl’ might have sounded, if it had been written by Mozart

    Lizzo plays Mozart on the 2023 Glastonbury Festival

    Lizzo just played Mozart on the Glastonbury stage, and it was an iconic moment

    Filipino soprano Lara Maigue casually sings amazing Mozart

    Singer casually gives astonishing karaoke performance of Mozart’s fiendish ‘Queen of the Night’ aria

    Best classical music

    See more Best classical music

    The 15 most famous tunes in classical music

    The 15 most famous tunes in classical music

    Discover Music

    Best symphonies: Ludwig van Beethoven, Antonin Dvorak and Florence Price

    The 15 greatest symphonies of all time

    Discover Music

    4 eras of classical music

    The 4 eras of classical music: a quick guide

    Discover Music

    A young Marin Alsop, Sir Simon Rattle, and Seiji Ozawa conduct their respective orchestras.

    The 25 greatest conductors of all time

    Discover Music

    Hildegard von Bingen, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Edward Elgar among the greatest composers in classical music history.

    30 of the greatest classical music composers of all time

    Best pianists of all time

    The 25 best pianists of all time

    Discover Music

    Latest on Classic FM

    Everything you need to know about German film composer, Hans Zimmer.

    Inside Hans Zimmer’s greatest film scores, family, and awards so far

    Zimmer

    Tamar Greene sings to his baby

    Baby duets with Broadway star dad in video that’s bringing people to tears

    Videos

    The most memorable times classical music featured in the hit cartoon ‘Bluey’

    Bluey soundtrack: what are all the pieces of classical music used in the TV show?

    Discover Music

    Yuja Wang is one of the greatest pianists of the 21st century.

    Who is Yuja Wang, and what makes her so good at the piano?

    Yuja Wang

    Maxim Vengerov, Lise Davidsen, Yo-Yo Ma: among today’s leading classical artists

    The 30 greatest classical musicians performing today

    Discover Music

    A depiction of Jesus holding a lamb

    What are the lyrics to ‘The Lord is my Shepherd’ and who wrote the hymn?

    Discover Music

    Whitney Houston and Luciano Pavarotti stunned crowds with an opera duet.

    When Whitney Houston surprised the world with an extraordinary Verdi aria… with Luciano Pavarotti

    Luciano Pavarotti

    Royal Swedish Opera cancels all performances after tragic accident

    Royal Swedish Opera cancels all performances as stage technician tragically dies after fall

    Alexander Armstrong embarks on a Musical Voyage challenge for Global’s Make Some Noise

    Alexander Armstrong embarks on a Musical Voyage charity challenge for Global’s Make Some Noise!

    This week’s on-air highlights – including Album of the Week and Drive Discovery.

    This week’s Classic FM radio highlights – including Album of the Week and Drive Discovery

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