Did Mozart die from writing too much music

11-26-07, 04:25 PM

I recently watched the film Amadeus. I remembered that I found it interesting and amusing when it first saw it. I recently rented it and wondered does writing music kill a man?

Konovalov · 11-26-07, 04:50 PM

Great film. What ever happened to the actor F Murray Abrahams?

On the subject, is it any different from say the Chinese guy who died from gaming online non-stop? :hmm:

STEED · 11-26-07, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Konovalov

On the subject, is it any different from say the Chinese guy who died from gaming online non-stop? :hmm:

Yes.

11-26-07, 05:09 PM

We need a musicologist.

Whatever that is, we need one to step in and answer the question.

fatty · 11-26-07, 05:29 PM

Where's Takeda? :hmm:

The WosMan · 11-26-07, 05:40 PM

Ahh a great mystery. I believe that he probably died from disease since there were so many back in those days and then the fact they threw some leeches on you or bled you didn't help. He may have even got some trichinosis from eating undercooked pork. I doubt he was murdered like the movie suggested.

11-26-07, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The WosMan

Ahh a great mystery. I believe that he probably died from disease since there were so many back in those days and then the fact they threw some leeches on you or bled you didn't help. He may have even got some trichinosis from eating undercooked pork. I doubt he was murdered like the movie suggested.

I was thinking mercury (quick silver) poisioning. At one time the concesus was it a cure all.

Chock · 11-26-07, 05:57 PM

First winner of the Mercury Music prize?

If it is possible to die from banging out too many tunes, I think we should strongly encourage James Blunt to release more records, so he can hurry up and pop his clogs, thereby doing the music world a huge favour:rotfl:

Chock

AntEater · 11-26-07, 06:12 PM

AFAIK Mozart died from Syphillis (and Absinthe), just like any other artist in that age, but as he had an umarked, his remains were never found and nothing can be proven.

But you can't really do that in a 1980s Hollywood movie.
Also I've always wondered why the german arias in "Amadeus" were in english. Was that a director's twist to make them more accessible or the usual anti-german bias?
It surely was weird since in the german version, the singers in the Zauberflöte still sing english.

Actually it seems he was not that poor as suggested in the movie. In 1791 there were laws in force in austria, which actually governed that everybody except the extremely famous and rich had to be interred in unmarked graves and there were only set times.
He had huge debts, but did not live in poverty.

Mercury at the time was considered the cure for Syphilis. Alledgedly Frederick the Great was cured to impotence by Mercury, but at least he lived.

AVGWarhawk · 11-26-07, 07:28 PM

Anteater is correct. He was quite the ladies man and well, picked up something along the way. Dying flat broke is conjecture I believe.

The WosMan · 11-26-07, 07:39 PM

Ha, everyone had syphillis back in those days. It was like the common cold.

Big Paul · 11-27-07, 05:20 PM

Old Wolfie was rather fond of the odd tipple, and as mentioned before, he had a few problems in the bilges, if you get my meaning!

The WosMan · 11-27-07, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AVGWarhawk

Anteater is correct. He was quite the ladies man and well, picked up something along the way. Dying flat broke is conjecture I believe.

I thought he was just beginning to come into some wealth by the end of his life. He was one of the first musicians to break away from the old format of being commissioned by kings or the church and sorta going freelance / independent agent. He is my second favorite classical composer after JS Bach but Mozart certainly was ahead of his time.

Takeda Shingen · 11-27-07, 06:27 PM

I'm a musicologist. The death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has become more a domain of legend, rather than fact. W. A. Mozart died on 5 December 1791. Legend places the time at 1 am, but no reliable sources indicate anything other than that his corpse was removed from the residence shortly after sunrise. Also, we know that his death was from an illness, but speculation on the type ranges from influenza to the plague. Still, there are others, mostly conspiracy types, that suppose that he was poisoned, either by mercury or arsenic.

What we do know is that Mozart held a busy schedule from early 1790 until his death. After being barred from the Salzburg court of Archbishop Corlloedo, he struck out to Vienna to find work as a freelance composer. The social structure of Europe dictated that composers for hire worked as court writers and musicians. In other words, they wrote music for the social and artistic functions of the local ruler. He tried to enter the court of the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II, but was only marginally successful in achieving a part-time position. He was very successful as a keyboard virtuoso, but the required novelty of a new performer would be short lived in such a metropolis that was Vienna.

Exacerbating his financial problems was the fact that he was very determined to provide an extravagant lifestyle for his wife and two surviving children. This required that he travel far to promote his operas, as this is where the money was in composing. It was this travel and schedule, combined with some very poor weather in the waning days of the medieval cold period (see global warming discussion) that undoubtably caused his illness and death.

So, the short answer is: Yes, the schedule required of Mozart in his composition work killed him.

The long answer is more complicated: Mozart's schedule was a product of his self-imposed exile from the music industry of his day, as well as his desire to provide an unreasonable standard of living for his family given his handicapped means.

EDIT: The movie Amadeus is rather fanciful as a biographical depicition. Salieri was far more respected by his contemporaries than the brash upstart, Mozart.

Tchocky · 11-27-07, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Takeda Shingen

I'm a musicologist.

Tak brings out the big guns

11-26-07, 04:25 PM	#1
waste gate Stowaway Posts: n/a Downloads: Uploads:	Did Mozart die from writing too much music I recently watched the film Amadeus. I remembered that I found it interesting and amusing when it first saw it. I recently rented it and wondered does writing music kill a man?

11-26-07, 04:50 PM	#2
Konovalov Ocean Warrior Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: High Wycombe, Bucks, UK Posts: 2,811 Downloads: 9 Uploads: 0	Great film. What ever happened to the actor F Murray Abrahams? On the subject, is it any different from say the Chinese guy who died from gaming online non-stop? :hmm: __________________ "In a Christian context, sexuality is traditionally seen as a consequence of the Fall, but for Muslims, it is an anticipation of paradise. So I can say, I think, that I was validly converted to Islam by a teenage French Jewish nudist." Sheikh Abdul-Hakim Murad (Timothy Winter)

11-26-07, 05:57 PM	#8
Chock Sea Lord Join Date: May 2005 Location: Under a thermal layer in chilly Olde England Posts: 1,842 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	First winner of the Mercury Music prize? If it is possible to die from banging out too many tunes, I think we should strongly encourage James Blunt to release more records, so he can hurry up and pop his clogs, thereby doing the music world a huge favour:rotfl: Chock __________________

11-26-07, 06:12 PM	#9
AntEater Grey Wolf Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Germany Posts: 936 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	AFAIK Mozart died from Syphillis (and Absinthe), just like any other artist in that age, but as he had an umarked, his remains were never found and nothing can be proven. But you can't really do that in a 1980s Hollywood movie. Also I've always wondered why the german arias in "Amadeus" were in english. Was that a director's twist to make them more accessible or the usual anti-german bias? It surely was weird since in the german version, the singers in the Zauberflöte still sing english. Actually it seems he was not that poor as suggested in the movie. In 1791 there were laws in force in austria, which actually governed that everybody except the extremely famous and rich had to be interred in unmarked graves and there were only set times. He had huge debts, but did not live in poverty. Mercury at the time was considered the cure for Syphilis. Alledgedly Frederick the Great was cured to impotence by Mercury, but at least he lived. __________________

11-26-07, 07:28 PM	#10
AVGWarhawk Lucky Jack Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: In a 1954 Buick. Posts: 28,253 Downloads: 90 Uploads: 0	Anteater is correct. He was quite the ladies man and well, picked up something along the way. Dying flat broke is conjecture I believe. __________________ “You're painfully alive in a drugged and dying culture.” ― Richard Yates, Revolutionary Road

11-26-07, 05:09 PM	#4
waste gate Stowaway Posts: n/a Downloads: Uploads:	We need a musicologist. Whatever that is, we need one to step in and answer the question.

11-26-07, 05:29 PM	#5
fatty The Old Man Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 1,448 Downloads: 10 Uploads: 0	Where's Takeda? :hmm:

11-26-07, 05:40 PM	#6
The WosMan Watch Officer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: OH Posts: 332 Downloads: 88 Uploads: 0	Ahh a great mystery. I believe that he probably died from disease since there were so many back in those days and then the fact they threw some leeches on you or bled you didn't help. He may have even got some trichinosis from eating undercooked pork. I doubt he was murdered like the movie suggested.

11-26-07, 07:39 PM	#11
The WosMan Watch Officer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: OH Posts: 332 Downloads: 88 Uploads: 0	Ha, everyone had syphillis back in those days. It was like the common cold.

11-27-07, 05:20 PM	#12
Big Paul Watch Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Belfast N.I. Posts: 26 Downloads: 3 Uploads: 0	Old Wolfie was rather fond of the odd tipple, and as mentioned before, he had a few problems in the bilges, if you get my meaning!

11-27-07, 06:27 PM	#14
Takeda Shingen Navy Seal Join Date: Mar 2000 Posts: 8,643 Downloads: 19 Uploads: 0	I'm a musicologist. The death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has become more a domain of legend, rather than fact. W. A. Mozart died on 5 December 1791. Legend places the time at 1 am, but no reliable sources indicate anything other than that his corpse was removed from the residence shortly after sunrise. Also, we know that his death was from an illness, but speculation on the type ranges from influenza to the plague. Still, there are others, mostly conspiracy types, that suppose that he was poisoned, either by mercury or arsenic. What we do know is that Mozart held a busy schedule from early 1790 until his death. After being barred from the Salzburg court of Archbishop Corlloedo, he struck out to Vienna to find work as a freelance composer. The social structure of Europe dictated that composers for hire worked as court writers and musicians. In other words, they wrote music for the social and artistic functions of the local ruler. He tried to enter the court of the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II, but was only marginally successful in achieving a part-time position. He was very successful as a keyboard virtuoso, but the required novelty of a new performer would be short lived in such a metropolis that was Vienna. Exacerbating his financial problems was the fact that he was very determined to provide an extravagant lifestyle for his wife and two surviving children. This required that he travel far to promote his operas, as this is where the money was in composing. It was this travel and schedule, combined with some very poor weather in the waning days of the medieval cold period (see global warming discussion) that undoubtably caused his illness and death. So, the short answer is: Yes, the schedule required of Mozart in his composition work killed him. The long answer is more complicated: Mozart's schedule was a product of his self-imposed exile from the music industry of his day, as well as his desire to provide an unreasonable standard of living for his family given his handicapped means. EDIT: The movie Amadeus is rather fanciful as a biographical depicition. Salieri was far more respected by his contemporaries than the brash upstart, Mozart.