Comparing Composers: Beethoven and Mozart

Beethoven like Mozart followed his father as a court musician. The Beethoven's served the archbishop-elector of Bonn in West Germany. But Ludwig's father, unlike Wolfgang's was a failure and an alcoholic who beat the boy to make him practice. The father-son relationship is similar in the fact that both fathers wanted their sons to do extremely well in their musical careers. Leopold Mozart believed that Wolfgang Mozart (his son) was a miracle of God and that he was given the duty by God to educate him and show his talents to the whole world. His relations with his son were critiziced. It is believed that he was exploiting his son as well as profiting from and commercializing his incredible musical talents. In Wolfgang's early years, there was definite influence of his father on his first compositions. In the eyes of Leopold, his son became the main source of wealth and status for his family. With this came inevitable resetments and jealosy towards this perfect child. More and more, his career, financial health, and hunger for recognition became to depend on his son. For example, when be began to neglect his duties as deputy kapellmeister to Salzburg court and abandon his acitivites as a composer and litterateur.

Also, both Beethoven and Mozart were very acknoledged for their talent in the 18th century. Beethoven was a well known virtuosic pianist and good at improvisation. He also became deaf at age 30 but overcame his depression by wroting his powerful symphony, the Third (Eroica). He also wrote "Symphony in C Minor." Mozart wrote operas and comic operas and every year he set up a concert at which he introduced on of his piano cncertos. Some of his chief works are "Don Giovanni" and "Symphony in G