The key of life
Lucy Worsley looks back at a musical prodigy’s adventures in Georgian England
Mozart in London scheduled for late March TV The idea that the Austrian-born Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who spent his adult life in such cities as Salzburg and Vienna, thought of himself as a “dyed-in-thewool Englishman” seems fanciful. Yet, as a new documentary from Lucy Worsley reveals, Mozart’s career was profoundly shaped by a childhood visit to England.
“His time in Georgian London taught him a lot about the elusive nature of commercial success, and about resilience, composing and silver linings,” Worsley tells BBC History Magazine. Mozart and his family arrived in London in 1764 on a tour of Europe organised by his musician father, Leopold. Partly bankrolled by an emerging merchant class, the musical scene in London was “exciting, vibrant” and “the place to go as a musician”.
“There was lots of music-making going on for Mozart to listen to and join in,” Worsley adds. “It was a musical melting pot unique in Europe, and the young Mozart met performers he’d work with as an adult.” Then, worryingly, his father fell sick, leading to fears that Leopold might die, leaving his wife, daughter and son stranded in a foreign country.
Yet this proved to be a key moment in the young Mozart’s musical development. His father needed quiet to recover, so the eight-year-old boy was banned from performing or practising. Instead, he wrote down music, composing his Symphony No 1 in E flat major. “It contains the seeds of so much of his later career,” says Worsley. “It’s simple, and in some ways naive, but it contains the most beautiful, daring, clashing harmonies that would prefigure much to come.”
However, a concert of the symphony proved financially unsuccessful. “The disappointed Mozarts had to resort to playing in a downmarket tavern in order to earn the money to leave London.”
It’s a reminder that we shouldn’t get too distracted by the giggling genius of Amadeus. Rather, we need to remember that “he was also a member of a family and a profession” – living, moreover, at a time when the expectations of boys and girls were very different.
“What’s missing from our picture of Mozart, I think, is his sister [Marianne, 1751–1829],” says Worsley. “She was just as talented a performer, but it was her destiny to get married. Expectations were so different for girls. I feel annoyed on her behalf!”
“Mozart’s time in London taught him a lot about success, resilience and composing”