“Mozart in London”
Cut 18.02.16
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“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
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Mozart in London
Cut – 18.02.16
TIMECODE
DIALOGUE
10:00:00
PROGRAMME STARTS
10:00:06
COMM:
London, 1765.
10:00:13
A scientist had in his possession an extraordinary specimen.
10:00:21
It was said to possess magical abilities – never before seen or heard in the natural
world.
10:00:30
But this specimen did not belong to the animal kingdom.
10:00:36
It was in fact an exceptional little boy, by the name of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
10:00:48
And he was now to be the subject of a rigorous examination.
10:00:56
With Wolfgang at the keyboard, the scientist went about his work.
10:01:04
LUCY PTC:
He scrutinized Wolfgang’s technique. He dissected his compositions, placing the boy
on musical trial.
10:01:13
COMM:
But what had Mozart done to deserve such a vicious interrogation?
10:01:19
It was all because of this.
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:01:23
(ORCHESTRA PLAYS)
10:01:28
COMM:
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While in London and of just eight years of age, Mozart had composed and performed
this, his first ever symphony. It was such an extraordinary achievement for one so
young, that few believed he’d done it.
10:01:50
LUCY PTC:
That’s just beautiful. I can’t quite believe that there hasn’t been some sort of trick or
scam here. I just can’t believe that he was only eight years old.
10:02:03
COMM:
But it was true and this is the fascinating and forgotten story of the pivotal year that
little Mozart and his family spent in London.
10:02:14
RANDALL SCOTTING:
Mozart found it more difficult than he expected when he came to London.
10:02:19
COMM:
What began with a thrill of a royal performance ended playing for pennies in a London
pub. But despite it all, it was here in London that Mozart found musical inspiration.
10:02:34
IAN PAGE:
I think there is a sense that the musical style that he was imbibing in London was one
that would hold him in good stead for the rest of his career.
10:02:44
COMM:
And it was here that Mozart made a miraculous breakthrough. Blossoming from a
mere performer to a powerful new composer. This is the story of how Mozart may
have been born in Saltsburg, but was made in London.
10:03:04
TITLE CARD: MOZART – Made in London
GFX TITLES:
MOZART
Made in London
10:03:14
COMM:
I’m lucky enough to work at Hampton Court Palace. And when the public have left the
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
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building and the gates have been locked I can often be found playing at the Chapel
Royal Piano.
10:03:31
For me, tickling the ivories with a little bit Mozart is one of life’s great pleasures…But I
have to confess, as a young girl I hated Mozart’s guts.
10:03:45
LUCY PTC:
When I was learning the piano all I really wanted to play was big, gushy, romantic
music, with lots of pedal. Like this: [PLAYS]… But because my hands are quite small,
my teacher always made me play Mozart. I thought that it was prissy, uptight, little girl
music. And because I had to spend so much time with Mozart when I wanted to be
somewhere else, he was my arch nemesis. [PLAYS]
10:04:23
COMM:
How times change. Though I still haven’t mastered Mozart I can’t help but admire his
amazing gifts and the great music he’s given the world.
10:04:39
LUCY PTC:
And what’s astounding is the fact that he was writing completed, perfect pieces of
music at the age of just eight years old. And when he grew up he fulfilled all
expectations. He’s given us some of the greatest symphonies and concertos and just
plain tunes that the world’s ever known. He really was a genius.
10:05:08
COMM:
But to really understand Mozart, you have to understand the year he spent in London.
10:05:16
When other eight year old boys were at home playing tin soldiers, little Mozart was
whisked away to a foreign land where he composed his very first symphony.
10:05:28
It’s an extraordinary tale and it begins in Mozart’s hometown of Salzburg.
10:05:50
COMM:
In the 18th Century, this was a small but proud principality, nestling in the foothills of
the mighty Alps.
10:06:02
And this pretty little town was made more beautiful by the music that emanated from
one particular home.
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10:06:14
It was the home of the family Mozart.
10:06:20
Long before Wolfgang was even a twinkle in his father’s eye, music was made here
both day and night. Mother, Anna Maria, was an accomplished musician. The
daughter, Nannerl, was an exceptional keyboard player. And at the helm of family life
was Leopold, court musician, composer, and above all, master music teacher.
10:06:51
LUCY PTC:
Now, even if Leopold hasn’t been Wolfgang’s Dad, we’d still know his name today
because of this venture. This is the first edition of a book he published called The
Violin School. Here’s Leopold himself, proudly hogging the frontispiece. It’s a series
of tutorials for learning to play the violin. And as you work through the exercises,
Leopold gets tougher and tougher with you. But people liked this. The book was a
bestseller. It made him quite a lot of money. And it’s lasted. If you’ve studied the
violin, that to this day, it’s likely that at one point, or another you will have played one
of Leopold’s difficult exercises.
10:07:39
COMM:
With a success like this, the Mozart family seemed to be on a stable and comfortable
path. But in 1756, the very same year that this book was published, their lives would
be changed forever.
10:08:02
It was 8 o’clock on the evening of 27th of January that Anna Maria gave birth to a very
special child. As devout Catholics, they had the boy baptised that very same night.
And so it was that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart greeted the world.
10:08:31
Five of his siblings had died in infancy, so Wolfgang’s survival was seen as
miraculous. And growing up surrounded by music he soon began to perform miracles
himself.
10:08:49
Horzt Roshenbach is a Mozart obsessive and knows how the family first became
aware of Wolfgang’s musical genius.
10:08:59
LUCY:
Horzt, can you tell me what’s, what’s special about this piece of music?
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10:09:02
HORZT:
10:09:07
It is out of the notebook Leopold collected for Nannerl and Wolfgang heard the piece
CAPTION: Horst
and wanted to play it too. It was surprising for Leopold that this young boy, not even
Rieschenbock
four years old, was able to learn it, or to learn to play it in half an hour at night.
Music Critic
10:09:17
LUCY:
In half an hour?
HORZT:
Yes.
10:09:19
LUCY:
It only too him half an hour to learn this piece?
10:09:21
HORZT:
[OVERLAP] Yes, exactly. Yes. Actual could played it, yeah? He didn’t memorise it,
he just played it and it was surprising for Leopold.
10:09:29
LUCY:
So, Leopold wrote into the notebook, ‘Wolfgang learnt this piece on January the 24th
1761, three days before his fifth year, between 9 and 9.30 in the evening.’ Impressive.
10:09:45
HORZT:
Yeah. It’s unbelievable for us. What is half an hour for such a piece?
10:09:49
LUCY:
What do you think it was like for Leopold?
10:09:52
HORZT:
For Leopold, it was surprising, he could, I think he couldn’t understand what Wolfgang
actually was. Yeah.
10:10:00
LUCY:
Shall we see how a forty year old can do it?
10:10:02
HORZT:
You’re not, you’re 40 years?
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10:10:05
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LUCY:
I am.
(SHE PLAYS)
10:10:17
COMM:
As Leopold watched his son breeze through ever more complex pieces, he came to
believe that he’d been blessed with a genuine gift from God. Seized with religious
conviction it was now his duty to both nurture Wolfgang’s talent and exhibit this divine
prodigy to the world. But to do that the whole family would have to leave Salzburg and
head out on an epic journey across Europe and it was no mean feat.
10:10:54
LUCY PTC:
The Mozart family would have packed up a huge amount of luggage for their journey
into the unknown. As well as their clothes and their letters of introduction, a telescope
would have been useful for spying out the way on strange roads. I think I can see a
highwayman over there. They could expect to be paid, in all sorts of different
currencies. And that’s where the scales comes in. If a dodgy looking Frenchman
gives you a Louis d’or, a golden Louis, then you use this particular weight, to check
that it’s a good one and that he hasn’t short changed you. They could have cured,
practically any illness, I imagine with this enormous range of drugs in the dinky little
case. Look at all of them. And they also needed home comforts. As an English
person, I completely approve of this item. It’s a beautiful case for carrying their sugar
and their tea.
10:11:55
COMM:
It was July 1763 when Wolfgang his mother, father and sister set off into the big, wide
world.
10:12:09
Together they charged through the dense forests of Bavaria and out into the lowlands
of western Europe.
10:12:22
Munich, Mannheim, Brussels and Paris – everywhere they went Leopold called on
friends in high places and palace doors were flung open, and the royalty were aghast
at Wolfgang’s virtuoso shows. But no matter where they went the grown ups would
talk of another place. It was a musical paradise, where they said the streets were
paved with gold.
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:12:56
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LUCY PTC:
He heard tell of a city where the inhabitants loved foreign musicians and showered
them with money. This was a city of unrivalled musical opportunities. Leopold felt that
he couldn’t possibly miss this so he changed course. He took his children across the
sea for the first time. Their destination was London.
10:13:21
COMM:
In the 18th century, London was the place to be for any travelling musician.
10:13:31
The city had grown rich on Britain’s burgeoning empire. And it was money that made
Britain’s music scene unique.
10:13:42
Elsewhere in Europe, concert life was dominated by the chords. But here a wealthy
merchant class had emerged as great patrons of the arts. And lured by the riches on
offer, the finest musicians around had made London their home.
10:14:05
Conductor Ian Page understands why London was irresistible to the Mozart family.
10:14:12
IAN PAGE:
CAPTION:
London had the money. It was the wealthiest, the biggest, the most successful city in
Ian Page
Europe. And they just brought people in. So they were…
Conductor
10:14:19
LUCY:
The star players.
IAN:
Yeah, so they were the leading composers, Jan Christian Bach and Abel, two leading
German composers were living and working full time in London. And the leading
figures of the day were all congregating in London. You know, they were looking for
the best composers, the best performers and the best entertainment.
10:14:36
(SINGER PERFORMS ARIA)
10:14:53
COMM:
Little Wolfgang was soon plunged into a musical wonderland, that was to have a
profound influence on his entire musical life. This aria, by the English composer
Thomas Arne, was one of Mozart’s favourites. .
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:15:14
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The pizzicato line in the cellos, and the sustained strings accompanying the voice.
These were motifs that would occur again and again in Mozart’s later operas.
10:15:44
COMM:
Barely had the music begun to feed into his prodigious little mind, when Wolfgang was
whisked away for his first big performance.
10:16:03
COMM:
It wasn’t to be in London’s fabled West End, but yet another royal palace. Just five
days after arriving, Wolfgang was summoned to play for King George III. But such a
big concert so early into their trip was no accident. Since leaving Salzburg, Leopold
had obsessively sought letters of introduction, and as luck would have it, one of them
plopped onto the desk of the Groom of the Stool.
10:16:39
LUCY PTC:
It’s a testament to Leopold’s networking abilities that his letter of introduction was able
to penetrate so deep into the heart of the palace. The Groom of the Stool was one of
the top court officers. He was intimate with the King. In centuries gone past, he
literally attended the King, on the close stool. Yes, that’s his toilet. By now the
groom’s duties were more ceremonial, but he was still influential; if you wanted an
audience with George III, this was the man who had the ear of the King.
10:17:21
COMM:
And the ear of the King they certainly had. Together, Wolfgang, and his sister
Nannerl, put on a virtuoso display. With four hands perfectly synchronised on the
keyboard, they wowed their royal audience.
10:17:41
LUCY:
So, Hannah, this duet, we think this is something pretty much like Wolfgang and
Nannerl would have played for the King?
10:17:47
HANNAH:
CAPTION:
Yes. Certainly while they were in London they definitely played with four hands on the
Hannah Templeton
same keyboard. And apparently they were the first people to actually do that in
Music historian
London.
10:18:00
LUCY:
And how did the evening unfold by all accounts they had a pretty good time?
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:18:03
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HANNAH:
Yes, by all accounts, so they were there for four hours, from six o’clock ‘til ten o’clock
in the evening. And the King gave Mozart, keyboard works for Mozart to play Prima
Vista, ‘At First Sight’. He accompanied Queen Charlotte while she sang an aria and a
flutist, for a solo. But certainly they went down really well. Leopold says they were
treated with the most extraordinary kindness and they were so friendly that they were
able to forget that they were the King and Queen of England at all. And then, a few
days later, they’d been out for a walk in St. James’s Park and the car-, the Royal
Carriage had gone past and the King had popped his head out of the window to wave
to them and greet them so.
10:18:47
LUCY:
Aww!
HANNAH
It seems like they got on very well.
10:18:54
COMM:
Wolfgang had earned the Royal Seal of approval and he must have made his father a
very proud parent.
10:19:05
And Leopold himself now dreamt of the rich rewards that were sure to come his way
from the Royal Purse.
10:19:16
But he would be sorely disappointed.
10:19:21
LUCY PTC:
George III had the reputation of being rather a frugal king. He was parsimonious.
The press had great fun with this. They were always mocking him for it. But to the
Mozart family, it wasn’t a joke. They were really counting on George’s generosity. And
so, when they opened up the purse that he gave them, it was a bit disappointing. It
only contained 24 guineas.
10:19:53
COMM:
Compared to what they’d earned on the continent, 24 guineas was a paltry sum and
the family now found themselves on a financial tightrope. Leopold had arranged a
complex web of credit in order to travel and he was banking on lucrative performances
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to keep his lenders at bay. From their apartment in the backstreets of the West End,
he wrote letters home to his friends in Salzburg. And they portray the dawning
realisation that London was a very unforgiving place.
10:20:31
LUCY PTC:
These letters are fantastic because they give a complete picture of London as it was
in 1764 and as a foreigner, Leopold takes nothing for granted. What really strikes you
on reading them is how full of complaints they are about the cost of living. Leopold
complains about the tax on wine, the tax on coffee, how much money he has to spend
to get his laundry done, he has to buy hair powder, even a plain bowl of soup cost
eightpence. London was a rip off. Well, some things don’t change.
10:21:13
COMM:
As his father kept a close eye on the coffers, Wolfgang practised hard for his next
performance. But it was a good excuse not to set foot outside. For they soon
discovered that London was not a very friendly place at all.
10:21:34
LUCY PTC:
The streets of Georgian London were full of violence. Leopold’s letters record his
amazement at seeing drunken men fighting in the gutter. William Byron, the so-called,
Wicked Lord, killed a man in a dual in a pub. And the family also saw 4,000 silk
weavers rioting; they were angry about the importing of French textiles. Fresh from
Paris themselves, the Mozarts also experienced this hostility. If you were to walk
down the street in French fashion, as Leopold wrote, all the street urchins would run
after you, shouting, ‘Bugger French! French Bugger!’
10:22:21
COMM:
But leaving the home was unavoidable as Wolfgang was dragged around to meet with
wealthy patrons. And all the while being laughed at, at the clothes his parents had
bought for him in Paris. Amber Butchart is a fashion historian and she knows exactly
what little Wolfgang was going through.
10:22:45
LUCY:
Amber, what were these French clothes that got Mozart heckled on the streets of
London?
10:22:50
AMBER:
Well, British and French fashions were very, very different at this time. The French
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fashions were incredibly ornate, and the embroidery on men’s clothing could rival, or
even exceed, the kind of embroidery that we’re seeing on womenswear. And you can
see, sort of spangles…
10:23:06
LUCY:
Sequins.
10:23:07
AMBER:
Sequins.
10:23:07
LUCY:
Highly effeminate if I may say so.
10:23:09
AMBER:
Highly effeminate. And the British public really viewed these fashions as foppish, as
10:23:14
anti-intellectual, as just not manly enough. And that was one of the big problems that
CAPTION:
they had with it.
Amber Butchart
Fashion historian
10:23:20
LUCY:
Now we know from Leopold’s letters, that he laid out quite a lot of money getting new,
English clothes for his family. What would they have been like?
10:23:27
AMBER:
Well, English fashion at this time looked very different. As we can see over here, this
is a very small version that we’ve got that might have fit a young Wolfgang. And it was
much less decorative. And crucially it’s made of wool. Now it’s a lot more practical
than than silk. You can go riding in this, you can go walking, you can go hunting. And
it really reflects the idea of the country estate. So whereas in France, you have this
very formal court culture built up around Versailles, in Britain it’s much more about
spending time at your country estate, and the outdoor pursuits that go along with that.
10:24:08
LUCY:
You’re not telling me that’s a paired down hat though are you?
10:24:11
AMBER:
No. It is quite excessive. Leopold does actually write from London that no woman
leaves the house without wearing a hat, and he talks about the, sort of, real variation
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in shapes and styles and fabrics. And millenary is a really important feature of fashion
at this time. So, where the dress, the dress styles themselves may be a bit more
paired down.
10:24:32
LUCY:
You could go to town on the hat. [LAUGH]
10:24:34
AMBER:
Exactly. Exactly. Yeah!
10:24:40
COMM:
Wolfgang was now happy to walk the streets in his smart woollen coat. But he was
not quite saved from embarrassment, cringing at his mother’s spirited attempts to
embrace the English ways.
10:24:55
LUCY PTC:
Mrs Anna Maria Mozart tried to fit in with her English gown and her crazy English hat,
but there was just one little detail of Englishness, which she could never get a taste
for. Try as she might, she could not enjoy the local drink: beer. [DRINKS] I don’t really
like beer either.
10:25:26
COMM:
It was now high time that little Wolfgang was launched on the lucrative London stage.
Here public concerts were held almost every night in theatres and salons. And with
the right act musicians could make their fortune. But it soon became clear it was run
by a network of powerful impresarios. They were the king makers of the music scene.
And in 1764, they’d already anointed their super star of the season.
10:26:13
His angelic castrato voice had made all of London swoon and made Italian opera the
most fashionable music of the day.
10:26:27
His name was Giovanni Manzuoli.
(SINGER PERFORMS)
10:26:49
COMM:
Wolfgang and his father went to see him star in the opera Adriano in Syria. And opera
singer, Randall Scotting, knows exactly what they would have witnessed.
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10:27:02
RANDALL SCOTTING:
10:27:07
Apparently, he had quite a beautiful, sweet voice. It was defined as clear and brilliant.
CAPTION:
But the thing that really struck the audience was how loud his voice was. It was often
Randall Scotting
described as voluminous.
Opera Singer
10:27:20
LUCY:
So, we have Manzuoli, this smooth Italian superstar [SLIGHT LAUGH], he hoovers up
all the money and the success of the season really, doesn’t he?
10:27:28
RANDALL:
That’s true and I think…Leopold Mozart found it a bit more difficult than he expected
when he came to London. He writes a letter to his friend and says that, ‘Manzuoli is
the only person who’s actually making any money this season and his fee for this
season was £1500, which, at the time, was an exorbitant sum. To put it into context; a
maid in London would have made £6 per year.
10:27:58
COMM:
While Leopold saw Manzuoli as a rival to success, Wolfgang was entranced. And he
pestered his father to see the great singer whenever the chance arose. And Manzuoli
too became intrigued by the prodigy in his midst.
10:28:15
RANDALL:
They became great friends apparently, the admiration was very mutual. I think Mozart
saw Manzuoli on stage and was quite taken with his presentation. But Manzuoli,
likewise, was quite interested in the young prodigy, Mozart, and he offered him voice
lessons, and became a friend of the family while the Mozart's were in London. And
that’s a friendship that continued to thrive.
10:28:38
COMM:
To become friends with a superstar like Manzuoli had a profound impact on the young
Mozart. Tutored in the intricacies of writing for the voice, Wolfgang would later cast
Manzuoli as the lead in one of his earliest operas, Ascanio in Alba.
(APPLAUSE)
10:29:06
COMM:
But as the applause rang around his ears, Leopold Mozart was sure his son could
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15
rival Manzuoli for success on the London stage. But to do it, he knew he would have
to turn to the dark arts of advertising.
10:29:26
LUCY PTC:
Hm, Mozart chocolate cream. If you go to Salzburg today, you can pick up all sorts of
Mozart memorabilia, like this pencil. Or, Nannerl liqueur, mmm! And, I think this is my
favourite, a Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart snow globe. Now you might think that this
merchandising is a modern idea.
It isn’t.
When Leopold arrived in the very
commercial world of Georgian London, he had to use every trick he could to create
hype for his family.
He, too, produced merchandising. You could buy a souvenir
print, showing them as a harmonious group. Here’s Leopold on his violin, Wolfgang
on the Harpsichord, and Nannerl, the singer. Leopold also placed adverts in the
papers. Here’s one announcing a concert at the great room in Spring garden near St.
10:30:28
James’s Park. Now Leopold does write good copy. ‘The concerts to be for the benefit
of Miss Mozart of eleven, and Master Mozart of seven years of age, prodigies of
nature.’ So Leopold is using every trick in the book to try to create a buzz about these
performances. But I do detect old Leopold in getting a bit carried away here because
Master Mozart was no longer, technically speaking, a child of seven years of age. By
this point he was a slightly less impressive child of eight.
10:31:05
COMM:
True to his billing, little Wolfgang didn’t disappoint. His first public concert was a
resounding success, pulling in 100 guineas. It seemed that his conquest of London
was well underway. But London would not be conquered so easily.
10:31:32
It was during a rush to make it to a performance, that Wolfgang saw his father fall
suddenly and desperately ill.
10:31:46
A chill turned to cold sweats and then became convulsions. For an eight year-old boy,
far from home, this must have been a terrifying turn of events.
10:32:09
LUCY PTC:
Leopold’s illness was a disaster for the family. Without him they couldn’t organise
concerts to earn money and they couldn’t take Wolfgang about to continue his musical
education. But much worse than that was the risk that Leopold might actually die,
leaving them stranded in London.
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:32:33
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COMM:
But amid the morbid atmosphere that had settled on the house, the extraordinary,
young boy would turn this disaster into the triumphal moment of his early musical life.
10:32:49
LUCY PTC:
With Leopold marooned in bed, Wolfgang had a tiny taste of freedom from his father’s
controlling presence. He couldn’t perform in concerts. He couldn’t even practise
because the noise would disturb the sick man. So, instead, Wolfgang started writing
music down. And I don’t mean short little pieces like he’d done before, he now wrote
his first, full-length symphony.
10:33:20
COMM:
The symphony was the most daunting challenge for any composer, let alone an eight
year-old boy. Blending together multiple instruments, and sustaining the magic over
three movements, it was a supreme test of skill and invention. But with the music he’d
heard in London still marching through his mind, Wolfgang picked up his pen and
paper. Conductor Ian Page understands little Mozart’s amazing achievement.
10:33:54
LUCY:
Ian, here’s a facsimile of what Wolfgang actually wrote. How does it strike you? Does
it look like the work of an right year old to you?
10:34:02
IAN PAGE:
It’s, I find it really beautiful. I mean, no, you wouldn’t know that that was by an eight
year-old, I don’t think, would you? I mean, the writing is really interesting; there are
bits of crossings out. He’s playful, as an eight year old would be. He slipped into
Italia and he calls himself, ‘The Senior Wolfgang a London,’ [CROSSTALK]
10:34:22
LUCY:
[SLIGHT LAUGH] Yes…
10:34:23
IAN:
A complete, you know, he knows the odd word of Italian and knows that it’s the
language of music. And then as soon as he starts writing out the notes - not a
blemish, which is, is really amazing. [CROSSTALK]
10:34:33
LUCY:
When you look at the melody and the way he’s harmonised it, do you see the
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influence of Georgian London there?
10:34:39
IAN:
On one level, yes and on another level, not at all, it’s, sort of, unique to Mozart and I
think that’s what’s so interesting about this piece, and this, and the whole of his time in
London. You know, on one hand, these opening three bars. [PLAYS THEM /
ORCHESTRA PLAYS] They could absolutely be by JC Bach or any of the composers
writing in London. It's a sort of call to attention, [ORCHESTRA PLAYS] and Mozart,
later in life, would often write similar openings, and, err… [PLAYS NOTES] or [PLAYS
NOTES]. And of course we need to remember that in those days they didn’t have
electricity, so they needed a device to get the audience to shut up and stop talking.
10:35:32
LUCY:
Oh right! OK.
10:35:32
IAN:
So pieces would open with a fanfare partly as a mechanism just to get attention partly
because there wasn't the thing of house lights suddenly going down..
10:35:41
LUCY:
When we get on to this next bit, it seems to me, like these are really clever,
sophisticated chords. Is that right? [CROSSTALK]
10:35:46
IAN:
Completely. Basically we’ve got a series of chords, there’s not really any tune.
[PLAYS CHORDS]
10:36:01
And just to give a sense of momentum, he takes the bass line away from the down
beats. [PLAYS CHORDS] So suddenly there’s more momentum and direction.
[ORCHESTRA PLAYS] But then, for me, the thing that makes it totally unique to
Mozart is quite big discords. [PLAYS CHORDS] So we…
10:36:31
LUCY:
Yeah, that’s…weird.
10:36:36
IAN:
So… You just have this sense of someone seeing how far he can push things before
his dad says ‘no, no, you’re not allowed to do that.’ Maybe this would have been less
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
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18
good if his dad had been downstairs too. You know, maybe there was something quite
nice about the fact that dad was…
10:36:52
LUCY:
Out of the way.
IAN:
Off limits.
10:36:53
LUCY:
Yeah.
IAN:
Yeah.
10:36:57
LUCY:
What’s it like for a whole orchestra to be playing this? Is it technically easy or difficult?
10:37:03
IAN:
Bits are…particularly as, in the last movement, the third movement, there are bits of
second violin writing that are really difficult. So there are things like er [PLAYS] and it,
it’s sort of fussy for them.
10:37:23
LUCY:
[CROSSTALK] So, in later life, he wouldn’t have done that?
IAN:
And later on he would have, he would have found a more, I mean, I think there’s
something, from a performer point of view, if music’s really difficult you want it to
sound difficult [LAUGH] and it’s, you know, something like this is more difficult to play
than it sounds.
10:37:37
LUCY:
Yes. Yes.
10:37:37
IAN:
Whereas the other way, the sort of virtuoso school of writing something that is…
sounds fiendishly difficult, is much more satisfying for the performer because people
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19
say, ‘Oh, that was clever!’
10:37:48
LUCY:
[LAUGH] Just before we finish, could we play that really lovely bit again?
10:37:51
IAN:
Yeah.
[THEY PLAY – A WRONG NOTE SOUNDS OUT]
10:37:58
LUCY:
Oh! That was my fault! That’s too discordant! [THEY LAUGH]
[THEY PLAY]
10:38:20
LUCY:
[SIGH] It’s beautiful!
10:38:26
COMM:
Now recovered, Leopold set to work. Sure his eight year old composer would finally
conquer London.
10:38:36
Working into the night, he struck deals, sweet-talked musicians, and spread the hype.
Pulling together the pieces of an irresistible event that no one could afford to miss.
10:38:52
Finally, a date was set. It was to be the 21st of February, 1765 at the Haymarket
Theatre, that Wolfgang’s first symphony would be unveiled to the world.
10:39:11
[ORCHESTRA PLAYS]
10:39:29
COMM:
The call to attention sounded out and the orchestra rose up to fill the hall. Working in
unison were oboes, horns, harpsichord and strings. It was all exactly as the eight
year-old had imagined.
[ORCHESTRA PLAYS]
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:40:07
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20
COMM:
Using period instruments, this performance brings the vibrancy of Wolfgang’s original
composition to life.
10:40:25
Hannah Templeton knows what the audience would have witnessed.
10:40:30
LUCY:
Did Wolfgang conduct his own first symphony?
10:40:35
HANNAH:
10:40:39
Well, there wasn’t a conductor who would stand in the middle, as we normally have
CAPTION:
today, there was a concertmaster, who was the first violinist, and he would have led
Hannah Templeton
the orchestra in and maybe directed specific entries. If there were maybe some untidy
Music historian
moments then he might have stepped in to give a little bit more direction. As for what
Mozart did, he may have been playing the harpsichord. If he did have a role in
directing his own symphony then he might have been up front with the concertmaster.
10:41:08
LUCY:
I love the idea that there could’ve been this eight year-old going, [POINTS] ‘And now
you – and now you – and now you…”
[ORCHESTRA PLAYS]
10:41:43
COMM:
As the audience were led into the slow, second movement, they would have
marvelled at the prodigy’s deft arrangement of strings, woodwind and brass.
[ORCHESTRA PLAYS]
10:42:35
COMM:
But strange as it may seem, it may have been difficult to appreciate Mozart’s beautiful
music. Because by today’s standards, audience behaviour was really rather shocking.
10:42:51
HANNAH:
They would chat, even when the music was playing, not just in between movements,
so there might have been a constant murmur of chatting. If they saw somebody else
that they knew that they wanted to go and talk to, then they might have got up and
walked over to them. So you would have had people walking around, they would have
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
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21
had refreshments.
10:43:11
LUCY:
It’s astonishing to think then, that during Mozart’s first symphony ever, people might
have just been talking!
10:43:17
HANNAH:
It’s really hard for us to imagine now, isn’t it? Whereas now, if you so much as rustle
a programme, then you get a frown from the person next to you.
[ORCHESTRA PLAYS]
10:43:49
COMM:
As the divine music was coming to a close, and Leopold was drifting back down to
Earth, he was in for a shock. All around him were empty seats.
10:44:11
LUCY PTC:
Hmm. Despite the big build up to this night, it’s possible that Leopold was left a little
disappointed by his concert. He’d done everything he could to make it a success.
This had been his big chance to introduce a new composer to the world. And he’d
wanted to get what he called, ‘a good catch of guineas,’ And yet, only 260 people
turned up – to a venue, which we believe, held around 800. Perhaps this was the
point at which Leopold started to believe that dark forces were working against the
Mozart family.
10:44:55
COMM:
The adulation they’d hoped for with Wolfgang’s extraordinary musical breakthrough
never materialised. And it was now Leopold became gripped with paranoia. In the
months following the performance, his suspicions were fuelled when vicious rumours
began to appear in the inky world of pamphleteers and gossip columns.
10:45:22
LUCY:
Malice…
10:45:25
COMM:
They attacked the credibility of the entire Mozart family. Stories of deception and
daylight robbery. Their accusation, that Wolfgang wasn’t quite so young as he was
claimed to be, and in fact, was a little man of 30. Leopold now had no choice but to
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
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22
enter a war of words.
10:45:56
LUCY:
This is a copy of a letter that appeared in the Public Advertiser, in May 1765. This
could be Leopold writing, it could be a friend of his, it’s unsigned. But this is basically a
fight back on behalf of the Mozart family, against these malevolent remarks that had
been circulating. ‘People have been saying that Wolfgang is not, in fact, a child of
eight years old, but that he’s really a teeny, tiny man, reduced by some defect of
nature to an insignificancy of person.’
10:46:35
COMM:
It seems that little Wolfgang had fallen prey to London’s vicious music world.
Someone, somewhere wanted him out of the West End.
10:46:56
Leopold’s letters back home betray his changed attitudes towards the city that once
promised so much. ‘London’ he writes ‘is a dangerous place, where the inhabitants
have no religion, and is filled with evil.’
10:47:17
Simon McVeigh is a music historian who understands Leopold’s state of mine.
10:47:25
SIMON MCVEIGH:
10:47:29
Something clearly went awry because he starts to complain in some of his other
CAPTION:
references, other letters that he wasn’t getting the support that he used to, and that he
Simon McVeigh
was expecting. So he started to lose touch, in some way and you get a certain sense
Music historian
that their time in London was, was unravelling as the months went past in 1765.
10:47:53
LUCY:
He writes as if there were, ‘dark forces working against me,’ almost, doesn’t he?
10:47:57
SIMON:
Yes, he does. I mean, he, he was somewhat inclined towards conspiracy theories like
this.
10:48:09
COMM:
Determined to rescue the good name of the Mozart family he hatched a plan, inviting
the London public to test Wolfgang’s skill for themselves.
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:48:21
PAGE
23
LUCY PTC:
Adverts started to appear in the press. They’d been placed by Leopold, who now
threw down the gauntlet to the London public. He challenged all comers to visit the
Mozarts in their home at the West End, to see young Wolfgang for themselves. ‘If you
came, you are able to test the boy. You could try his musical capacity by giving him
anything to play at sight, or you could test his notation skills: you could sing a tune,
which he will write upon the spot without recurring to his harpsichord. LM.’ Leopold
Mozart.
10:49:06
COMM:
We don’t know how many strange people came knocking at the door, but little
Wolfgang must surely have noticed one man who seemed extra specially interested in
what he could do. Daines Barrington considered himself to be one of life’s true
Renaissance men, and spent his life in constant pursuit of obscure fields of study he
could make his own.
10:49:35
LUCY PTC:
Mr Daines Barrington was a man of wide and rather peculiar interests. He researched
the possibility of travelling to the North Pole, in the comfort of his own study. He
claimed to have discovered the last surviving speaker of the Cornish language, until
several others came forwards. And he spent several years conversing with birds, in
order to write a book about their language. Although, as we know, birds can’t speak.
[IN STYLE OF VENTRILOQUIST – TO THE BIRD] Hello Mr. Barrington.
10:50:08
COMM:
When Barrington heard the rumours surrounding Wolfgang, it fired his imagination. He
aimed to subject the boy to scientific testing that would sort fact from fiction and settle
the matter, once and for all.
10:50:25
Yvonne Amthor is an historian of science. She’s gonna subject me to the very same
tests as Barrington set little Wolfgang.
10:50:36
YVONNE:
CAPTION:
Leopold very specifically, in his advertisements, addressed the ‘lovers of science.,
Yvonne Amthor
Science historian
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:50:41
PAGE
24
LUCY:
Yes.
10:50:42
YVONNE:
And Daines Barrington would have seen himself as such and therefore was very
much attracted in wanting to observe the boy, wanting to see his musical abilities.
10:50:52
LUCY:
What were these tests, then, that Daines Barrington administered?
10:50:57
YVONNE:
Well, I’m gonna ask you to try a couple of them. We know for sure about two, two
tests, because he’s described them quite well in his notes. And he actually asked
Mozart to play by simply just sight-reading a five-part piece. Now, we haven’t got that
here, so I’m gonna ask you to sight read.
10:51:20
LUCY:
OK.
10:51:21
YVONNE:
To play… a sonatina instead.
10:51:24
LUCY:
A sonatina, OK. Oh dear, it’s in two sharps!
[LUCY PLAYS]
10:51:36
COMM:
Unlike me, Wolfgang made short work of his sigh reading test. But now, Barrington
turned his attention to Wolfgang’s supposed ability to compose.
10:51:47
LUCY:
[LAUGH] Does it get worse than this?
10:51:49
YVONNE:
It actually does. One of the tests that Daines Barrington actually asked of Mozart is to
make up a love song, in the style of an operatic tune.
10:52:01
LUCY:
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
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25
A love song, in the style of an operatic tune. Made up on the spot.
10:52:05
YVONNE:
Made up on the spot.
10:52:07
LUCY:
OK. [PLAYS, SINGS]. ‘Here it is. My song. A song of love…’
10:52:16
YVONNE:
[LAUGHS]
10:52:18
LUCY:
‘It’s going wrong.’ She’s laughing at my song of love.
10:52:23
YVONNE:
I think you can easily turn that into a song of rage now.
10:52:28
LUCY:
[LAUGH] A song of rage?
10:52:30
YVONNE:
That would have been his second task.
10:52:33
LUCY:
[PLAYS, SINGS] Aaahhh!
10:52:36
YVONNE:
[LAUGH] Sorry.
10:52:37
LUCY:
Raaage!
10:52:41
YVONNE:
Yes, he would have very much made any kind of nonsense or words just to express
those feelings.
10:52:50
COMM:
The tests came to an end when little Wolfgang leapt from his keyboard and on to his
hobby horse. In his paper to the Royal Society no less, Barrington wrote that Mozart’s
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
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26
genius and invention was most astonishing. Such a report would have restored the
Mozart’s credibility – had it not taken Barrington three years to publish.
10:53:20
It was now clear that the Mozarts would never win over the London public. And in
scraping together the funds they needed to leave, Wolfgang was booked to play a
final, and demeaning series of concerts.
10:53:43
In July 1765, Wolfgang took to the keyboard to play, not for a king, not for a queen, a
lord, or his lady, but for wide-eyed drunks in a London pub.
10:54:03
SIMON MCVEIGH:
10:54:06
Well, they started putting on performances at the Swan and Hoop Tavern, in the City,
CAPTION:
the other end of town from the fashionable West End.
Simon McVeigh
Music historian
10:54:16
COMM:
In such a bewildering world, Wolfgang played daily from 12 until 3, churning out piano
tricks to the tune of tuppence a pop.
10:54:29
SIMON MCVEIGH:
There’s no doubt about it, this was just off the, off the radar as far as normal events
were concerned. This wasn’t the kind of venue that the elite musicians would frequent
for their musical adventures. This was something else.
10:54:46
LUCY:
So, he’s sucking out the pips London really. It’s the last dregs.
10:54:50
SIMON MCVEIGH:
Yes, it was at the lower end of music making in London’s musical calendar - there’s
no doubt about that.
10:55:00
COMM:
Once feted by the King and Queen, the world’s greatest composer ended his stay in
London, providing the soundtrack to a boozy lunch. But looking back, I do think
London gave young Wolfgang a host of experiences that inspired and influenced his
later, glittering career.
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:55:24
PAGE
27
LUCY PTC:
Firstly, he’d seen perseverance in action. He’d watched his father, working really hard
to get some traction for the Mozart family, in a cutthroat musical environment.
Secondly, London had made Wolfgang into an ambitious composer. He’d arrived as a
performer, but he left as somebody capable of making music from scratch. That
happened here. And finally and perhaps, most importantly, I like to think that this pub
performance taught Wolfgang something essential: that his music had to appeal to
everybody—from kings to boozers.
10:56:13
COMM:
On the 24th of July 1765 the Mozart family left London, never to return. But before
departing they made time for some sightseeing. On their trip to the zoo, little Wolfgang
got frightened by the roar of the lions. But the highlight was a special tour around the
newly-opened British Museum, where children were normally forbidden. And as if in
thanks, little Mozart left us a parting gift. It was a short choral work, rarely performed
these days… but he wrote especially for us.
10:57:03
LUCY PTC:
Uniquely among all of Wolfgang Mozart’s work, the words are in English. It says on it,
‘1765, In London.’ When you look at the words, I think that they are appropriate for
the Mozart family’s quite troubled time in London. ‘God is our refuge’, they go, ‘he’s a
very present help in trouble.’
10:57:34
COMM:
But although it’s a sad song, it remains a beautiful little gift to the British people and
an eloquent reminder of that pivotal year he spent with us.
10:57:48
LUCY PTC:
And when Wolfgang grew up, and looked back on his time in London, he didn’t seem
to remember the trouble of it, he remembered the joy. He claimed, in later life, that he
was a dyed in the wool Englishman. Isn’t it funny to think that Wolfgang Amadeus
Mozart may have been born in Salzburg, but he was made in London.
10:58:16
END CREDITS
(30 SEC)
“Mozart in London” – Rough Cut 18.02.16
10:58:45
PROGRAMME ENDS
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28