Mozart’s Early Influences: Wolfgang, Son of Leopold
The Beginning of a Long Journey
Below is a drawing by Louis Carmontelle of Leopold, Wolfgang, and Nannerl Mozart engaged in musical activity. Young Wolfgang is depicted as sitting in front of a harpsichord and reading music from the stand, whilst his father Leopold accompanies him with a violin. At the time of this drawing’s completion, Wolfgang would have only been seven years of age; Carmontelle emphasises his youth by presenting him as sitting upright in a large chair with legs dangling far above the ground. Nannerl, on the other hand, holds a piece of sheet music and leans on the harpsichord following, and perhaps singing along with, Wolfgang and Leopold’s performance.
Upon closer inspection, we can see that Leopold’s posture is informal: he crosses his legs whilst leaning on the chair in front of him, creating the impression of a casual or relaxed atmosphere. Through this positioning, Carmontelle may be implying that the Mozart family participated in collective musical activities as a routine exercise or frequent event. Their untroubled expressions are also reflective of the unceremonious ambience depicted in this drawing. Although the events outside our field of vision are uncertain, we may infer from these details that this is an intimate space consisting of only a few people enjoying the music being played. This produces an atmosphere of privacy, indicative of an intimate family event, in which the Mozarts are playing as a matter of practice and pleasure.
Moreover, the bright blue colours of the sky in the backdrop, as well as the fading sage hues of the trees, imbue the drawing with a sense of peace and natural harmony, also suggestive of the time period in which this drawing was produced. The music from the early-Classical Period echoes this colour palette, as it emphasised elegance and balance through simpler melodies with homophonic textures.1 In addition, Leopold’s bright red attire highlights the influence and power he has in this scene, while Wolfgang’s clean blue coat draws attention to his youthful innocence, while also mirroring the sky behind him. This visual alignment of Wolfgang with the natural world relates to the frequent influence that contemporary Classical artists and musicians received from nature as a source of sublime beauty. Overall, the portrait’s use of vivid colours and meaningful images of the Mozart family creates an idyllic atmosphere that combines music, nature, and family.
I emphasise the bold red colour of Leopold’s coat as it symbolises his significance in the household, as well as the influence he had on Mozart’s development as a musician. Leopold himself reflected upon Carmontelle’s drawing in a letter to Lorenz Hagenauer on April 1st 1764, noting that
M. de Mechel ein kupferstecher arbeitet uber Hals und Kopf unsere Portrats die H. von Carmontel ein Liebhaber sehr gut gemahlt hat. Der Wolfgang spiehlt Clavier, ich stehe hinter seinem Sesel und spiele Violin, und die Nannerl lehnt sich auf das Clavecin mit einem Arm, mit der anderen Hand halt sie musicalien, als sang sie.
[M. de Mechel, an engraver in copper, is working hand over fist engraving our portrait, which M. Carmontelle (an amateur) painted very well. Wolfgang plays at a keyboard, I stand behind his chair and play violin, and Nannerl leans on the harpsichord with one hand; in the other she holds a piece of music, as if she were singing.] 2
Leopold’s tone reveals his thoughts on Carmontelle’s artwork: laudatory phrases such as “working hand over fist” and “painted very well” imply how pleased he is with the image, and that he is keen to share it with others, as he does in this letter. That Carmontelle’s drawing was being turned into a copper plate is particularly emphasised in Leopold’s writing, which indicates his pride in having a depiction of his family engaged in musical activity as an engraving, as opposed to just one drawing. It is understandable that Leopold would have been delighted to have this artwork turned into a copper plate, as this would have rendered the image durable in a printable and thus infinitely reproducible way, thus also promoting the circulation of the Mozart family image and of Wolfgang’s name in particular.
Recognising his extraordinary musical talents, Leopold was Wolfgang’s most enthusiastic supporter. In order to promote his son’s musical abilities, Leopold would embark upon a long and arduous tour of Europe from 1763-6 to publicise his talents. In fact, it is likely that both the drawing and the copper plate were created during the Mozart family’s stay in Paris. Indeed, the engraving was actually signed by Jean-Baptiste Delafosse and often sold with printed editions of Mozart’s sonatas henceforth.3 The most widely circulated representation of Mozart during this time would become precisely this engraving, as it made its way across France and into Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Holland, and England well into the 1770s.
This brings us back to Leopold’s enthusiastic attitude toward Carmontelle’s drawing. Leopold’s intention to build a prominent music career for his child was an immense source of ambition in his life, which caused him to sacrifice his own career ambitions to focus on helping Wolfgang. Although Leopold’s musical abilities did not become as well known as his son’s, Leopold did, in fact, have a talent for musical composition, having even composed multiple pieces of his own. However, his perseverance in highlighting his son as a prodigy overtook his own work, and thus his musical compositions came to a gradual stop.
Following the circulation of this copper plate print across Europe in the 1770s, it is noticeable that images of Wolfgang’s profile, which cut out Leopold and Nannerl, would become most widespread (see figure 4). This now “iconic” image of Wolfgang’s profile thus also reveals, in its cropped omissions, that Leopold’s ultimate goal of narrowing the spotlight on Wolfgang by underscoring his talents eventually led to success.
Here, I would like to pause to momentarily reflect upon the cropped figure of Nannerl, or Maria Anna (Marianne) Mozart. It is noticeable that in the family portrait, Nannerl is actually facing the opposite direction to both Wolfgang and Leopold. While Wolfgang and Leopold both gaze at the same music sheet, Nannerl faces the opposite direction. In a figurative sense, this detail highlights the idea of Nannerl as set on a different path compared with Wolfgang. While Wolfgang was constantly pushed by Leopold and other influential figures around him to rapidly develop his musical talents, Nannerl would never receive the same attention.4 Even in Carmontelle’s drawing, it is unclear whether she is participating in the musical production or not, for she looks into the distance, instead of at the music in her hands. Indeed, Leopold, in his letter, even stated himself that Nannerl was positioned “as if she were singing”. Nannerl appears to be a part of this image of musical excellence, but she is half-hidden behind the large harpsichord and almost blends into the background in her white-hued dress. Her ambiguous presence as a musical participant raises some questions about her position in this family, and about her gendered social and circumstantial limitations. Was Wolfgang simply more naturally gifted? Was Nannerl sidelined because of these limitations? Or both? Unfortunately, with limited information regarding Nannerl’s musical career, it is difficult to answer such questions with supporting evidence. The patriarchal nature of eighteenth century society is, however, well-established; women were considered creatively inferior to men, meaning that Nannerl would not have had access to the same opportunities as Wolfgang. Thus, while Nannerl did compose a few pieces in her youth, her potential to become a professional musician remains unknown due to the restrictions of her gender: she was permitted to showcase her musical talent until she reached a marriageable age.5
Both Wolfgang and Nannerl received much of their musical influence from their father, Leopold Mozart. When tracing the life of Wolfgang back into his childhood days, however, we are met with the figure of Leopold as his primary source of musical instruction and encouragement. Without this crucial support, it is possible that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart would not be known as the phenomenal composer he is understood to be today. As one of my goals for this blog is to dive further into the process Wolfgang went through to become one of the most prolific composers of the classical period, following this post about the Mozart family, I will expand on the theme of his social and familial influences by researching other figures in his life that had a significant impact on his musical development.
“The Classical Period of Music,” String Ovation: A Connolly Music Publication, last modified on April 12, 2019, https://www.connollymusic.com/stringovation/the-classical-period-of-music
"Drawing by Louis Carmontelle," British Museum, 1777, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1994-0514-48
“Portrait of Mozart: 1763-1764, Carmontelle / Delafosse,” Mozart & Material Culture: Souvenirs, King’s College London Department of Music, 2022, https://mmc.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/entities/object/portraits-mozart-1763-1764-carmontelle-delafosse/
Sylvia Milo, "The lost genius of Mozart's sister," The Guardian, September 8, 2015, https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/sep/08/lost-genius-the-other-mozart-sister-nannerl
"Was Mozart’s sister actually the most talented musician in the family?," Classic FM, April 8, 2021, https://www.classicfm.com/composers/mozart/nannerl-mozarts-sister-better-musician/
Great work :)
Interesting insight :)