Mozart: A Great Composer

Most people today know the name Wolfgang Amadé Mozart and about his works as a composer. His melodies still remain prevalent in society from young children humming as they learn the alphabet, to professional orchestras performing his concertos in grand concert halls. His works remain in most standard lists of repertoire, from the piano to the clarinet. Although he died at the age of thirty-five, Mozart composed over six hundred works in every major genre. His work advanced the forms of those genres, most notably the concerto. Mozart’s presence and renown reputation throughout time in Western Classical culture reflects the perfection and clarity of his works and demonstrates his impressive legacy.

Since his childhood Mozart showed a strong

Haydn once told Mozart’s father, Leopold, that “[Leopold’s] son is the greatest composer known to [him] in person or in name.” Haydn spoke highly of Mozart and when asked about Don Giovanni after its poor reception in Vienna, he refused to comment and replied that “Mozart is the greatest composer that the world now has.” The emperor, Joseph II also recognized the brilliance of Mozart’s opera despite the poor reception in Vienna at the time (textbook footnote). Although critics often commented on the complexity of his music as being difficult for even musical connoisseurs, the complexity of Mozart’s work contributes to his role in Western Classical music throughout time. The complexity of his works allows listeners to study his music and learn a new concept each time they listen to a

After Mozart replied to Emperor Joseph II’s comment that “such music is not meat for the teeth of my Viennese” with “give them time to chew on it,” Don Giovanni (Don Juan) became a powerful archetype. He appears in works of Lord Byron, E.T.A. Hoffmann, and Richard Strauss while in music, composers such as Chopin and Liszt used themes from Don Giovanni in their works. Since the opera premiered, Western Culture has continued to use both the characters and music from Mozart’s opera. The use of Mozart’s characters and music in spheres both in music and outside since the premiere of the opera displays the relevance of his music at such a deep, human level that allows it to remain prevalent in society today. The presence of his characters as archetypes in literature demonstrates the esteemed reputation of Mozart and the ability of his music to relate to domains outside of his own, such as