Happy Birthday, Nannerl!

Nannerl in 1763, wearing a dress given to her by
Empress Maria Theresa when she and Wolfgang performed for her.

Mozart's sister, Maria Anna Walburga Ignatia Mozart, or Nannerl for short, was born on July 30, 1751 in Salzburg. She was the fourth child born to Leopold and Anna Maria Mozart, but the first to survive infancy.

Nannerl was one of Mozart's greatest heroes. As a child he would watch her play the piano and take lessons from Leopold, and then he would try to play her pieces. Like her brother, Nannerl was a child prodigy, but since she was a woman, she couldn't pursue a career like him. 

On August 23, 1783, Nannerl married twice-widowed Johann Baptist Franz von Berchtold zu Sonnenburg and moved to St. Gilgen (the town where her mother was born). She took care of his five children and eventually had three of her own, two daughters and one son. 

Nannerl in 1785.

Wolfgang often composed piano duets to perform with his sister while they were young. In 1765, at nine years old, he composed this piece, which the two performed together:

On October 29, 1829, Nannerl passed away in Salzburg, where she lived after her husband died in 1801. 

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all fathers everywhere!

Johann Georg Leopold Mozart

November 14, 1719 - May 28, 1787

Mozart's father Leopold was born on November 14, 1719 in Augsburg, Germany. He was very serious and extremely dedicated to his two children, especially his son. He was a very talented composer and violinist, and became famous throughout Europe when he published a book on how to play the instrument the same year that Wolfgang was born.

Leopold contributed greatly to his children's abilities, not just musically, but also academically, as he was both music instructor and teacher to his Wunderkinder as they toured all of Europe. 

In April of 1787, Leopold became seriously ill, and on May 28th of that year, he passed away in Salzburg, Austria.

Hallelujah!

Happy Easter, everyone!
I don't think anyone can say this better, however, than Georg Friedrich Händel in his Hallelujah Chorus from his oratorio, Messiah...

The Seven Last Words of Christ

Today this show was being played on television in remembrance of Christ's Passion and death. I didn't catch the opening credits and therefore didn't know exactly who the composer was. As I listened, I thought, "This is either Händel or Haydn (a very good friend of Mozart's, who inspired him in many ways). Händel, because it is a religious theme, or Haydn, because it sounds like Mozart, but it isn't quite him." Soon I decided that it wasn't Händel because it didn't sound Baroque in the least. So, it must be Haydn...and it was!

This is Haydn's "The Seven Last Words of Christ".
I didn't upload these videos, but I gathered them into a playlist on YouTube for you to enjoy and meditate on.

May God bless you this Good Friday!

Music In Their Eyes

Maybe I'm just weird (most likely the case)...

When I see paintings of all the different composers, I see music in their eyes. Not written-out notes or anything, but a certain glow of the gracious gift given to them by God.

Notice how the look in their eyes reflects the feel of their music. 

Mozart: A mysterious glow with a little of everything--sadness, joy; calmness and excitement. His eyes are full of these emotions, like his music.

J. S. Bach: A joyful look that a father gives his children. I have said before that I call Bach the "Father of Music", and his eyes almost earn him the title. His eyes are full of knowledge, just like his incredible music.

Beethoven: A look of anger and also of deep contemplation. Just like that look, his music is full of strong emotion and feeling--mostly anger!

What do you see when you look into their eyes?

Happy Birthday, Bach!

Today is the birthday of the man I like to call the "Father of Music"...

Johann Sebastian Bach.

Johann Sebastian Bach was born 326 years ago in Germany. He had a very interesting life.

At a young age, his older brother taught him to play the organ. It wasn't long before Bach was better at playing than his brother!

At one point in his life, he was even imprisoned for writing music for one king while he was working for another.

He had 20 children -- seven with his first wife, Maria Barbara (who died in 1720), and thirteen with his second wife, Anna Magdalena (unfortunately, only six of these children would survive to adulthood). Two of his children became very famous composers themselves: Philipp Emanuel Bach and Johann Christian Bach, who would later teach young Mozart.

Due to illness Bach lost his sight shortly before he died and underwent an unsuccessful eye surgery to regain it. He died at the age of 65 in the year 1750.  

Below is a recent computer construction of what Bach may have really looked like: