Mozart: Rise of a Genius

Synopsis

This documentary mini-series is a tale of creative genius, family feuds and ruthless ambition, exploring the life and times of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart as he strives to share his musical gift with the world. Featuring reconstructions, concert recordings and insights from a range of contributors including actors, historians, and musicians, each one-hour episode looks at a different chapter in Mozart’s life, and how these inspired the music that he composed. 

Episode one (59 mins): Mozart displays an extraordinary musical talent from a very young age. By the age of eight, his ‘Symphony No. 1 in E-flat major’ has the Austrian court declaring him a child prodigy, and his father gets him to perform all over Europe. As a young adult he leaves Salzburg to pursue a career as a composer. His journey takes him to Mannheim, Europe’s musical hub at the time, and to Paris, where he strives to make a name for himself. However, just as his prospects begin to improve, Mozart is faced with the devastating loss of his mother and the burden of a controlling, unsupportive father.

Episode two (59 mins): Alone in Vienna aged 25, Mozart faces an uncertain future in a city where he knows few people. He falls in love with Constanze Weber and despite his father’s disapproval, they get married. He writes and performs piano concertos, taking a radical and entrepreneurial approach organizing subscription concerts. Fame follows, but Mozart’s bold opera, ‘The Marriage of Figaro’, provokes the aristocratic patrons who once supported him, threatening his rising success with its rebellious tone and social commentary.

Episode three (59 mins): After his father's death, Mozart's music deepens in emotion and intensity. His opera ‘Don Giovanni’ is full of drama and musical sophistication, but Viennese audiences, including the emperor, find it too bleak. The 1788 Austro-Turkish War disrupts cultural life, and with no money being sparred for the arts, Mozart struggles to support his family. His future now seems uncertain as he faces an increasingly indifferent society – and it is in this uneasiness that he produces the unexpected and subversive operas ‘Così fan tutte’ and ‘The Magic Flute’.