Mozart’s “Requiem” and the history of creation are shrouded in mystery, and disputes over authorship have not subsided to this day. The circumstances of work on this famous work are so tragic and mysterious that they still haunt researchers and admirers of the work of the ingenious composer. Conflicting facts indirectly confirm that Requiem is the result of the work of several authors.
What is a requiem?
In Latin, the word "requiem" is translated as "peace". This solemn, sad and exalted work belongs to the genre of concert religious music and at first it was part of the memorial Catholic Mass. However, starting from the 15th century, as a rule, a requiem was performed in memory of the deceased, but had no direct relation to worship. It was only a tribute to the people who left this world, as well as a reminder of the wrath and grace of God. The work had a strict structure, included a musical part and a text, divided into 9-12 separate chants.
In the 18th century, the requiem became one of the most popular genres of sacred music, so almost all composers of that time created their own versions of the work. Michael Haydn, Antonio Salieri, Johannes Brahms, Giuseppe Verdi and many others wrote their variations of the memorial service. Over time, the requiem lost its ceremonial component and turned into a concert piece dedicated to the tragic events: the death of a person, the victims of war or natural disaster. The traditional structure was hardly followed.
Short biography of the author
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born on January 27, 1756 in the Austrian city of Salzburg in the family of the court violinist Leopold Mozart. Already at the age of three, he began to take his first steps in music: he listened to his father play the harpsichord, and then he picked up sounds in tune. Father began to learn plays and minuets with him, and at 5, the future composer showed a desire for independent creativity and wrote his first small works. Mozart never went to school, but Leopold managed to give his son an excellent home education. He dreamed that the boy would become a great composer and devoted almost all his time to teaching the child. Wolfgang masterfully mastered the harpsichord, so at 12 he played better than adult musicians of that period.
He possessed a phenomenal memory and amazing performance, throughout his life he created many marches, minuets, plays and other small works commissioned by aristocrats. Unfortunately, most of these works are now lost. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart received huge royalties and lived in luxurious apartments for creating musical works. However, then the number of orders fell sharply, and its financial situation seriously deteriorated. The money earned was barely enough for a living, and in 1791 the composer died at the age of 35 from an unknown illness.
Who ordered Mozart "Requiem"
In the summer of 1791, a mysterious stranger came to Mozart, wrapped up and down in a black cloak. He did not introduce himself, but paid a significant amount for the creation of a requiem mass - a requiem. The customer did not limit the time, but demanded that the name of the author be kept secret. Exhausted by poverty, Wolfgang Amadeus accepted this proposal, humiliating to the great composer. A few years after the death of Mozart, it became known that the mysterious customer was Count Franz von Walseg, who had the habit of anonymously buying the works of talented authors and passing them off as his own. He ordered music to honor his wife’s memory, and when the work was performed for the first time in 1793, it was written on the score “Requiem for Count von Walsseg.”
History of the creation of "Requiem" by Mozart
The author took up writing the essay. Shortly before this, the composer felt unwell, he began to suffer pains of unknown origin, a strange weakness. He realized that he was dying. Work on the order began immediately, but the author could not help thinking that he was writing a memorial mass for himself.
Meanwhile, there were new orders for musical works to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Between work on Requiem, he managed to write The Magic Flute, a fun and cheerful play that was more familiar to his talent. The composer died on December 5, 1791, and never having finished the work. However, the story of the creation of Mozart's Requiem did not end there.
Unfinished tune
Constanza, the wife of Mozart, was worried that after the death of her husband, the mysterious customer would demand an advance payment for Requiem and would not pay the rest of the fee. She turned for help to another composer, Joseph Eibler, with a request to complete the work. It is believed that it was he who wrote the instrumental part in several sections, right up to Lacrimosa "Requiem" by Mozart, and then for some unknown reason left the work. Subsequently, Constanta turned to other authors, but was refused. As a result, the manuscript was in the possession of Franz Xaver Süzmeier, a student of Wolfgang Amadeus. Researchers who are studying the issue of who completed the “Requiem” of Mozart are inclined to believe that it was this author who completed the essay.
Joseph Eibler
This famous Austrian composer, who took part in writing the great work, was born in 1765. Wolfgang Amadeus highly appreciated his talent and, according to some sources, the musicians were connected by friendly relations. It is noteworthy that in 1833 there was an apoplexy blow with Eibler. This happened while performing Mozart’s music “Requiem”.
Franz Xaver Sussmayer
Franz Xaver Süssmeier was born in 1766. At age 21, he became a student of Antonio Salieri, Mozart's main rival, but then moved on to Wolfgang Amadeus. For a whole year he lived in his house as a member of the family, helped the composer in his work and assisted in the writing of many works.
Interesting Facts
Researchers have found a similarity between the music of "Requiem" by Mozart with similar works by Bach, Haydn, Cimarosa and Gossek. However, the presence of common features is explained by the requirements of the traditional composition structure and the general principles of religious music of the 18th century.
The image of a mysterious customer dressed in black shocked the imagination of a composer susceptible to mysticism. Pushkin beat this story with the demonic messenger of death in Little Tragedies, and later the same character appears in Yesenin’s work in the poem Black Man.
It is believed that the basis of "Requiem" was written by Mozart long before the order, but the work was not published. After the composer received the order, he could only make some changes and adapt the finished composition to the requirements of the buyer. However, this version does not have strong evidence.
Thanks to Franz von Walseg, music was published 2 years after the death of Mozart and was first played on December 14, 1793 at the funeral service for the count's wife. Von Valseg tried to attribute authorship to himself, but none of the listeners had any doubts that this was a genuine work of Mozart.
Researchers found a letter from Constance dated 1827 and addressed to an unknown recipient in which the woman wrote: “Even if we assume that Süsmeier wrote everything completely according to Mozart’s instructions, it’s still“ Requiem ”remains the work of Mozart.” These words cause a lot of speculation and fair doubts, but now that no participant in those events has survived, it is almost impossible to find out the truth.
September 11, 2002, on the first anniversary of the tragedy that occurred in the United States, Mozart’s “Requiem” sounded on the whole planet. At 8 hours 46 minutes, exactly at the same time when the attack on the twin towers began, the orchestra from the first time zone located in Japan began to perform. An hour later, the next band in the next time zone picked up the music, and then the next. The mourning requiem on this day sounded continuously throughout the planet. The choice of this particular sad music was not accidental: the life of the young composer ended just as tragically and prematurely as hundreds of lives of victims of the attack. The story of the creation of Mozart’s “Requiem” is full of suffering, the work remained incomplete, just like the dreams of the future of those who died in this disaster.
The meaning of "Requiem" for listeners
Requiem, written by Mozart on the verge of his death, is one of the greatest creations of a musical genius that inspired many composers. Deep, sublime and touching music does not leave the listeners indifferent, penetrating into the most remote corners of the soul and touching the living. “Requiem” is a true hymn of sorrow and sadness, brightly and purely reflecting the feelings of a person yearning for the departed.
Mozart's Requiem Nowadays
The date of creation of Mozart's Requiem is considered to be 1791. Although more than 200 years have passed since the publication of the work, this music still sounds at memorial ceremonies and classical concerts. The version written by Süsmeier received the highest recognition, but many composers repeatedly try to rewrite the work in order to improve it and adapt it to modern traditions.
The death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart did not allow him to complete the famous work. Despite controversy and controversy, no one can challenge the greatest talent of a young author. Even after centuries, his brilliant music continues to sound.