This summer I've been diving into the life and music of Mozart. What has struck me is that Mozart's life as a musician wasn't that different from today's musicians. In his childhood, he, his sister and his father spent most of their time on the road, traveling from city to city, doing shows. Even as he became well known, he still spent a lot of time bumping along dirt roads, in all kinds of weather. It may sound romantic, to travel from one great European city to the next, but historians say that, in that era, cities were filthy and disease-ridden.
Mozart's life reminded me of the “On the Road Again” life of Willie Nelson. At age 93, Willie is still on the road, playing outdoors in the summer heat. Like Johnny Cash, he has spent most of his life on a tour bus. Mozart lived that life in the 1700's; Willie is living that life today, some 300 years later.
Mozart made a living mostly from performances. Sometimes he was decently paid, but for most of his life, he struggled to get by. It was a life of hustle and hard work. Both he and Willie, once successful, overspent and got into financial trouble. In 1990, federal agents raided Willie's properties and seized his belongings, which were then auctioned to pay off a $16 million debt to the IRS. Fortunately, Willie managed to hide his famous, beat-up guitar, Trigger, from the agents.
Mozart, a child prodigy, started his life as a traveling musician at the young age of 5. Willie started as an adult. Willie had his first hit solo album, at age 40. Mozart died at the young age of 35. Even though his life was cut short, he somehow managed to compose over 600 works.
Before I play music in a restaurant or winery, I try to pause and pay tribute to the songwriters whose tunes I play. I think of Willie, Johnny Cash, and Lucinda Williams, and how many smelly bars they've played, and the countless hours spent on a bus, in hotel rooms and roadside diners.
As a young person learning classical guitar, I became quite familiar with Bach, as numerous Bach compositions have been transcribed for guitar. I didn't become attracted to Mozart until I heard my son's children's choir perform Laudate Dominum (from Vesperae solennes de confessore K 339) with a professional soprano. It was unforgettable. Click here for a performance of Laudate Dominum on YouTube.
For a great Willie tune, try his version of Townes Van Zandt's Marie. I love a sad country song about someone who is truly down and out.