Essay on Haydn and Mozart

The first movement of both pieces start off in their own unique way. Haydn’s work begins stridently with a quick timpani strike accompanied by the strings, then is followed by a toned-down melody in C-minor. The second theme of Haydn’s first movement is more jovial sounding and is in C-major. After the

          Haydn has a special preference for writing music in a bundle of six. Each of the six pieces has its individuality while sharing many common features at the same time. Haydn’s solo keyboard sonatas show striking diversity in type and style. They often could be categorized by their style periods and each of them reflects a corresponding social background.

Some of the great composers during this time were Franz Josef Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart,

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart baptized as Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart lived from January 27, 1756 to December 5, 1791. Mozart was a very influential and prolific composer of more than 600 works, including symphonies, concertante, chamber, piano, opera, and choral music. Regarded as a child prodigy, Mozart composed and performed in the European courts from the age of five, and was engaged at the Salzburg court at 17. Mozart’s musical style can be classified as Classical, although he learned from many of his contemporaries throughout his musical career. In order to better understand Mozart’s genius it is best to begin looking at his earliest contributions to the musical world as a child. From there, an exploration of his

Composing works derived from styles already in existence, he created an extremely unique and unprecedented genre of works. Thus Mozart became a trailblazer of the classical age. Music from this period consists largely of a lighter and clearer texture than the preceding Baroque music and is less intricate. One trademark especially evident in Mozart’s contribution to the classical period is the use of homophony. Examples of the homophonic effect are displayed in his piano concerto No. 23 and sonata No 16 in C. In these, the distinct pattern of an indubitable melody can be distinctly and easily recognized above the adjunct chordal accompaniment. Although Mozart contributed primarily to the growth of the classical era, he was also influenced by the works of Handel and Bach. Both were prominent composers of the baroque era. In some of his later works, Mozart indulged more in the incorporation of the previous baroque

This paper discusses Mozart's life, his compositions and his importance to the world and the world of music. It explains how Mozart's music is still some of the most popular classical music played today and his life is still studied because his music is so well known and liked.

Haydn composed his Op. 74 quartets in the later years of his life between 1796 and 1797 and it was the last of his completed string quartets. The set of quartets were dedicated to the Hungarian Count Joseph Erdödy and were published in 1799. It was said that this selection of quartets was one of his “most ambitious chamber works” with his attempt of “emphasizing thematic continuity, seamlessly and continually passing motifs from one instrument to another” 1. The fourth of these quartets is nicknamed “Sunrise”. This is due to the exquisite rising theme heard in the first violin part at the beginning of the first movement from bar one to bar four as seen in Figure

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven are two of the greatest composers ever to write music. Both men lived in the early 18th and 19th century, but their music and influences are still felt today. The men faced similar experiences, yet they both lead very different lives. All together the pieces that these men composed amounts to over 300 published, and unpublished works of art. The people of their time period often had mixed feelings about these men, some “complained that Mozart’s music presented them with too many ideas and that his melodies moved from one to the next faster than audiences could follow, yet the ideas themselves seem effortless and natural, clear and

     Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91) is regarded as the greatest composer who ever lived. He began writing minuets at the age of 5,and by the time he died in 1791 at the age of 35, he had produced 626 cataloged works. “ Mozart has enriched the concerto form with a larger number of masterpieces than any other composer.”1

Deriving from Haydn’s examples, Beethoven’s early piano sonatas have structures ranging from the quite free forms, found in Op. 2 No. 2, to the clarity of form of Op. 22. The moods of the sonatas also vary from aggressiveness of the two C minor sonatas toe the playfulness of Op. 10 No. 2. Moreover, many of these sonatas have four movements, with the third generally termed “minuet” (slow) but occasionally “scherzo” (lively).

Franz Joseph Haydn is one of the most recognizable names and characters of the Classical era. He is recognizes as the inventor of the string quartet, and tutored many other easily-recognizable musicians such as Ludwig van Beethoven and Amadeus Wolfgang Mozart. Haydn’s first experience with music was when he was eight, and he was recruited to sing as a choirboy at St. Stephen’s choir in Vienna. He eventually came to love the keyboard and violin, and supported himself in his early years by teaching and playing violin. His most famous pieces include: the "Rider" quartet and the Surprise, Military, Drumroll and London symphonies. The listening example: Symphony no. 94 is known as the Surprise Symphony, and is the second of the twelve London Symphonies.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is the composer of Symphony No. 40 in G minor. This piece was composed in 1788. Mozart overshadowed and took after his father, Leopold, who was a talented composer of the time. After his father passed, young Mozart had the opportunity to work in several different musical genres composing symphonies, string quartets, sonatas and serenades and a few operas. He developed a passion for violin concertos producing what came to be the only five he wrote.

Joseph Haydn was born in a small Austrian town named Rohrau. His mother was Maria Koller a cook, and his father was Mathias Haydn who was a step under the village mayor in Rohrau. His Parents were hard working people his father would be the one who did have interests similar to his Mathias enjoyed performing folk music. Haydn would also discuss memories of his family singing and being very musically inclined with one another. He was very shart and extremely talented in the Musical Arts and his parents would notice and knew he needed a change of scenery to help him attain a better career in the art. Haydn's parents would send him with

Several of his twenty-two operas gained worldwide recognition soon after his death, and they still please audiences all over the world. The Marriage of Figaro (1786) and Don Giovanni (1787) are operas he composed with words in Italian. The Magic Flute (1791) has German words. Each of these contains arias (beautiful melodies for singers), recitative (Rapidly sung dialogue), ensembles in which several people sing at the same time, and choruses. The orchestra provides an ever-changing expressive accompaniment. The drama ranges from comedy to tragedy. Mozart wrote over forty symphonies, many of which are performed today. Some originally were overtures (orchestral introductions) for operas, and last only a few minutes. His later symphonies, which are the most popular, are full-length orchestral compositions that last twenty to thirty minutes. Most of them consist of four sections. Mozart’s last and most famous symphony, Number 41 (1788), is nicknamed the Jupiter.

Among the many musical types of the period, the classical period is best known for the symphony, a form of a large orchestral ensemble. The symphonic pieces generally had three movements, the sonata, the minuet and the finale. Building of the achievements of earlier composers,