Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart—baptized Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart—was born on January 27th, 1756. His father was the music composer Leopold Mozart, and his sister, Maria Anna, was also a musician. Mozart was a well-known composer and musician during his time. Although his talent was undeniable, he and his family suffered financially, especially during his last years. On the outside, he was the talented composer with “taste…and complete understanding of composition,” according to his friend and fellow composer, Haydn. His personal letters to family and friends highlight the unity between him and his wife, his relationship with close friends, his feelings of insecurity, his work ethic, and his disdain of composing simply to make money.
According to his collection of letters, Mozart had a small group of confidants. Clearly, he relied a lot on his teacher/father’s advice and support. He also worked closely with his wife to support their family. In one of the earlier letters, Mozart wrote to Herr Geheimrath and expressed his zealousness for German nationalism. He wrote that he would not speak so frankly if he wasn’t writing to a good friend. He also corresponded heavily with Michael Puchberg over borrowing some money because he knew Puchberg to be a true friend. To the few close friends he had, he seemed to be able to speak with much frankness and honesty. As with his family, he could “be himself.” He even expressed some good-humored sarcasm in a letter to his friend, the Baron Gottfried; he was so amazed at receiving a letter from him, he almost threw “his cap over the roof.”
Mozart used his most romantic and flowery words when writing to his wife. He wrote her constantly while he was away and always missed her terribly. During their collected correspondence, both got dangerously ill. As his wife recovered at home, Mozart always begged her to take care of herself in his letters to her. He often said to “watch out for the chilly mornings” and “don’t spend too much time in the bath.” When he remembered the “good days”, he thought back of when he and his wife were together in Baden those early days. From his letters, I get the sense that he can share anything with his wife—their finances, their children, their memories. He even described some of his “jokes” to his wife; for example, he told her (in great detail and with much excitement) about playing an arpeggio during one of the musician’s performances, thus exposing him as a fake. It’s not a joke he would probably have shared with everyone, probably because it might not be funny to some.
Mozart was clearly unease when it came to having enough money at the end of the month to pay his debts; despite all his hard work, he often had to compose and perform simply to pay off his debts. Even if he had just enough money to pay everything off, the schedule-following, punctual man in himself was uneasy. This is what drove him to borrow so much from his good friend Puchberg. Above all, Mozart cherished honour and credit. He turned to his friend (the same friend) instead of the “money-lenders” because he saw his friends as “brothers”, as people he could really trust. He wrote intensively to Puchberg about how pathetic he felt asking for money and how he understood if Puchberg could only give what he could spare. Money clearly brought out the worst in him. He began some letters to the King for a position and composed many quartets and clavier sonatas to sell for money. He was definitely a hard-working fellow (see his introductions in some of his letters where he apologizes for taking so long to answer because of work). He wrote in a letter that he was “much at others’ dispositions” out of necessity. It is clear that he was frustrated at how his life and work was dictated by his finances. However, the last years proved to be more fruitful for him in his home country [in the last letter from his wife to the Emperor, she states that Mozart could have been extremely successful financially if he had accept the job offers abroad].
-Amanda Puitiza
