Mozart (review)

For more than a century, the Master Musicians series has provided readable and reliable guides to the 'life and works' of the major composers. The series format calls for the biography and music to be treated in separate chapters, sometimes interspersed and sometimes in discrete sections, with the musical works generally organized by genre. Appendices include a calendar, work-list, personalia, and select bibliography. Quite naturally, over the years the volumes in this series are revised and replaced as new information comes to light and as opinions and perspectives change, along with the expectations and requirements of readers. Eustace J. Breakespeare's Mozart, first published in 1902, is hardly remembered today, but its replacement, by Eric Blom, has been with us since 1935, periodically reprinted, corrected, and updated. In his preface, Blom explained somewhat cryptically that 'for various reasons the book originally contributed to the first edition of the "Master Musicians" was found to be no longer adequate', so perhaps it was out of discretion that he avoided mentioning his forerunner's name. Of his own effort, Blom rather modestly confided that 'it is doubtless too much to hope that in another quarter of a century or so it will not in its own turn have grown out of date'. As it turned out, he considerably underestimated his book's longevity. If Breakespeare's biographical account was largely dependent on Otto Jahn, Blom had the benefit of Hermann Abert's revision of Jahn (1919-21) and Ludwig Schiedermair's edition of Mozart's letters (1914), among other resources. Of course, Mozart bibliography has expanded enormously since then, fed by a steady and seemingly ceaseless stream of discoveries, including even some newly discovered musical works. Replacing Blom's Mozart was thus long overdue, and in doing so Julian Rushton has done a magnificent job.

Rushton brings all of the requisite skills to the task. He knows the scholarly literature and primary sources exhaustively, and incorporates the very latest findings into his biographical narrative. For example, courtesy of Michael Lorenz, he is able to report that Mozart's so-called 'Jeunehomme' Concerto, K. 271, was composed for the French piano virtuoso Victoire Jenamy. He also displays a comprehensive knowledge and deep understanding of Mozart's music and communicates a passionate love for it. As he points out in his Preface: 'The works themselves-not only the operas-appear inexhaustible, inspiring new insights that change their meaning with the passing of time' (p. vii). Rushton's insights, the fruits of many years of living with, listening to, and thinking about this repertory, are yet another justification for this new book. In addition, he is an elegant writer, effortlessly imparting an enormous amount of information, but without giving the impression that he is producing an encyclopedia entry. He never gets bogged down by minutiae or resorts to lists. This is no small feat, given that his subject was so prolific and well travelled.

Rushton's biographical account pretty much sticks to the facts. He does not titillate by quoting instances of Mozart's scatological humour from his letters and bawdy canons, nor does he psychoanalyse the composer's relationship with his father or torture the complexities and apparent ambiguities of his personality. These are deliberate choices and are probably the right ones, given the size and nature of this book. Limitations of space, he explains, mean that he cannot 'report more than briefly on what we know of [Mozart's] lifestyle, beliefs, income, and most controversial of all, the cause of his death. I can only state what I believe on present evidence to be the case' (loc. cit.). But Rushton's stance derives as much from conviction as from necessity: 'It is Mozart's present misfortune that the popularity of his music, in an age of intrusive journalism, has led not only to fictional constructions such as Peter Shaffer's Amadeus but to speculations about his character and health that go well beyond the accessible data, sometimes in order to...