The Mozart Museums of Salzburg, Austria are not the only celebration of Mozart. Consider Mozart chocolate Kugeln, Playmobile Mozarts, street musicians playing Mozart tunes while wearing his distinctive wig, Mozart posters, Mozart books, and even Mozart golf balls and PEZ dispensers. There is no doubt that the city of Salzburg in Austria is rather proud of its famous son.
The City
Visiting Salzburg is a treat, whether you come for some veritable time travel in the old town, where you can not only imagine what life was like hundreds of years ago, but also walk through lanes and into buildings that haven’t changed one bit over the years. UNESCO listed, the entire old town of Salzburg is a feast for the eyes, and a treat for all history buffs. It really is not surprising that little Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, born on 27 January 1756 right in the middle of the old town was inspired by his beautiful surroundings.
A stunning yellow house dating to the 12th century, and later the house where Mozart was born, stands tall at number 9 on Getreidegasse, the loveliest shopping street in Salzburg. Even from the outside there is much to see, such as the three pulleys which are located next to the entrance. These used to be the doorbells, with one leading right up to the third floor, where the Mozarts lived. There is also a small supermarket on the ground floor, which may seem strange, but is quite authentic, as in Mozart’s days, there also was a grocers in that location, if maybe not a Spar.
Inside, you climb up to the first floor for your ticket, best buying a combination ticket for both Mozart’s birth house as well as Mozart’s later residence across the river. While the family once lived on the third floor, since 1880, the entire building has been functioning as a museum, filled with amazing souvenirs of the time, objects that belonged to the family and items relating to Mozart’s work.
Mozart’s Birthplace and Early Life
It all starts in the room where Mozart was born. The rooms have been renovated, with only the tiled ovens in each corner left, and have been filled with the history of the family. A family tree on the wall, and intricate details of the family give great insight into the world little Mozart was born into. His mother, Anna Maria Walburga Mozart, was Austrian born and his German father ‘High Princely Salzburg Chamber Musician’ Johann Georg Leopold Mozart, was a composer, accomplished violinist, theorist, and teacher. Mozart’s older sister, Maria Anna Walburga Ignatia Mozart (Nannerl) was his only surviving sibling.
Clearly surrounded by music from the word go, his father taught him to play the violin and a more old-fashioned cousin of the modern piano such as the harpsichord at first, and he was so competent that he composed his first piece for keyboard when he was a tiny five years old.
There are examples of his father’s books, of musical scores, objects of day-to-day life, and even locks of Mozart’s hair on display. The exhibition then moves on to his early musical life when he was merely six years old. At this age, he started to entertain not only Salzburg’s high society, but travelled throughout Europe playing for nobility including: Empress Maria Theresa, Francis I, and probably Marie Antoinette, who later married Louis XVI of France and was beheaded in Paris.
Musical Musings
At age 16, Mozart was appointed concert master of the Salzburg court orchestra, but broke away at age 25, when he settled in Vienna, married Constaze Weber, and later was appointed Imperial and Royal Chamber Musician. But in between the straight-forward sounding career, Mozart travelled with his music. Museum research shows that Mozart was on the road for about a third of his life, equivalent to roughly 3,720 days, or roughly 10 years out of his 35 years lived. Even with a somewhat nomadic life, he managed to compose more than 600 musical works, including 22 operas.
Although the museum’s exhibits of his family life, early career, and his impressive contemporaries are fascinating, his travels and successes mind-blowing, there is one room, where I remained longer than in any of the others. That room shows examples of costumes from his many operas, but also small replicas of stage sets in 3D. However delicate they may be, they draw you in, capture the entire atmosphere of the theatre, the music, the performance, and transport you straight to one of Mozart’s operas. Quite magical.
Just before visitors are guided through the fun museum shop (Mozart rubber ducky, anyone?) they can explore a recent addition to the exhibition: Bang & Olufsen installed an interactive way for visitors to play some of Mozart’s tunes. Stepping onto metal discs on the floor, representing various segments of an orchestra, you can create modern sounds leaving you quite literally humming Mozart’s compositions.
The Mozart Residence at Makartplatz 8
Besides the house of Mozart’s birth, The Mozart Museums of Salzburg also include the house where Mozart lived in his later years: The Mozart Residence at Makartplatz 8. Located just across the river, use the two-in-one ticket for quick and easy entry.
In 1773, when Mozart was 17 years old, the entire family finally outgrew the third floor at Getreidegasse 9, and moved to what was and still is called ‘new’ Salzburg. This residential area is opposite the castle, close to the Mirabell Palace, built in 1606, belying the fact that this is a part of Salzburg that can’t in any way be called ‘new.’ The beautiful, manicured palace gardens start pretty much opposite the Mozart residence and are a much visited sight in town due to its many Sound of Music (1965) filming locations.
Again, while the Mozarts lived on the first floor in a much more spacious eight-room apartment, later, the entire building was given over to celebrate Mozart’s life, with grander rooms, many paintings, private letters, and a special focus on his travels and successes in Italy. There are original instruments, early books written about the family, and numerous original documents. The model of the house is cut open to allow you a peek into the apartment, as it would have been at Mozart’s time, and includes contemporary drawings of Salzburg.
Quick Comparison
Overall, this is a much smaller exhibition than Mozart’s birth house. What makes it interesting however, apart from the essential clues to constructing the entire Mozart story, are the quirky little extras. There are, for example, drawings by local Salzburg children of aspects of Mozart they found appealing, including perspectives of Mozart from above to Mozart with spots hanging in the stairwell. More extras include a Mozart audio and film collection, which is quite unique and was dotted with plenty of music students learning and listening to classic scores.
Parallel Lives
Emerging from the museum, my guide Elizabeth insisted that the legend of young Mozart declaring that he would marry little Marie-Antoinette when he was grown, was true. There is no proof that the conversation ever took place. However, imagine how both their lives would have been different if Marie-Antoinette had become a musician’s wife instead.
Either way, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart lived a brief but incredibly full, if short life, and Salzburg delivers on the details.
Cover photo: © Internationale Stiftung Mozarteum / Chr. Schneider
[Written June 2024]
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