The Marvel of Mozart’s Letters

spectator.co.uk

79 points·tintinnabula··16 comments

When I was a teenager, I had no love for Mozart. An aunt who did used to tell me: "you will appreciate Mozart when you get older." Now I wonder if she actually meant when you get younger. I was a humorless pompous prick then.

Since childhood, Mozart is my big idol in classical music. Then, some people told me the opposite: you like Mozart now, but later you will discover better music. I listen to a lot of other composers, and like many of them, but nobody gives me the same kinds of feelings as Mozart.

Excerpts from his letters were also set to music by Michael Nyman for a film project: for example, "O My Dear Papa": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cN1xc0wqeBg

Though the piece I like best from that film is "Profit & Loss", which has invented lyrics based on Mozart's finances & his father's imagined reaction to them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9Ts9GoBv1s

'Composers’ letters can make frustrating reading. But with Mozart, you get the whole personality — candid, perceptive, irresistibly alive and packed with filth'

This was no composition by a performing monkey!

Sorry for mentioning this, because you will never be able to forget it. But regarding Mozart and filth, IMHO every adult should know that there is a piece of Mozart called "Leck mich im Arsch" (Lick my arse).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C78HBp-Youk

For connoisseurs, it's Köchelverzeichnis 382c

I own a copy of "The Letters of Mozart and his Family" and they are a wild bunch, especially the letters addressed to: "Cousin Buzz Fuzz".

Got some .epub by any chance?

https://archive.org/details/lettersofmozarth000861mbp

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